Dylan Nossel has long been captivated by the power of social media. When he enrolled in the HEC Paris MBA program in 2024, he began a journey that would lead him to create his own social media marketing agency, Savoir Strategies. He describes how HEC Paris shaped his path as an entrepreneur.
Driven by a passion for empowering brands and forming authentic connections, Dylan Nossel knew that he could make a meaningful difference in leading global ventures. After graduating with an MBA from HEC Paris, he quickly founded his own digital marketing agency, Savoir Strategies, in 2024.
“I’ve always been excited and energized by growth. Building brands, opening markets, and helping ideas find their audience catapulted me to launch my own digital agency,” says Dylan. (00:25)
After 7 years working in corporate digital marketing strategy for the likes of Macy’s and Walmart, Dylan felt ready to synthesize this experience with his unique perspective.
“While at HEC, I found myself unofficially consulting for classmates, startups, or even luxury brands,” he recalls. (00:40) “What excited me the most wasn’t really joining someone else’s vision, but transforming businesses through my own lens,” he adds. (01:04)
Dylan goes on to explain, “Launching Savoir Strategies really felt less like a leap and more like a natural continuation of what I was already doing, just now with a stronger global lens and a deeper toolkit, as well as the confidence that I could really make an impact immediately – thanks to the HEC MBA.” (01:17)
His HEC MBA served as the final catalyst to spark his own venture by giving him the tools, confidence, and support to launch his agency with little friction or hesitation.
During the HEC Paris MBA entrepreneurship journey, there was a rich variety of courses that influenced Dylan’s entrepreneurial methods.
“I think that the biggest influence and support when it came to classes was in one of the entrepreneurial classes, where we were consulting for real clients,” Dylan says. “We had a case study, for example, with Valrhona chocolate, where we would actually implement our own recommendations to the C-suite of the company,” (02:59)
Leading HEC Paris Student Clubs was another key element of the program that helped shape his approach. “As a leader of the Luxury Club, it was really exciting to organize brand events with top maisons in Italy, in the U.K., in Greater Paris, connecting passionate people in the luxury industry, both in the alumni world and current students, with C-suites of Fortune 500 companies,” he explains. (03:27)
The culmination of these experiences taught Dylan two foundational entrepreneurship skills: the humility to listen and the courage to disrupt. According to him, these two contrasting yet complementary attributes are essential ingredients for any “change-making entrepreneur.” (04:02)
It’s an age-old question. Where does confidence come from, and how do we cultivate it? For Dylan, self-belief is something that anyone can achieve… with a little hard work and inspiration.
“Confidence is different for everybody, in my opinion. Even if you feel like you’re a little shy or introverted, everyone has confidence in different areas, personally and professionally,” says Dylan. “But I believe that what helped me was that confidence was built through momentum. Before Savoir Strategies even officially existed, I was already helping Fortune 500 companies build and scale their digital businesses.” (04:09)
He expands on the idea. “To be honest, I think that entrepreneurship really thrives on the mix of, not just confidence, but passion, preparation, and enough audacity to really hit go.” (05:13)
The HEC Paris MBA is renowned for this kind of bold confidence, which is forged in the intense, inspirational learning environment.
During his HEC Paris MBA entrepreneurship journey, Dylan discovered that entrepreneurship is a mixture of learning when to say “yes” and knowing when to seek support. He believes this balance has enabled him to maintain excellence and sustain Savoir Strategies’ high reputation.
“The biggest challenge for me was capacity,” says Dylan. “When anyone starts out with a business, it’s a one-man show. And that feels really exciting, really empowering, and it’s fun to be stressed out a little bit every day. But as you continue to scale, you realize that you’re becoming your own bottleneck. (06:55)
For any venture to become successful, it’s also crucial to build the foundations on a mix of innovative creativity and purposeful strategy. Dylan is clear about what each one brings to the table.
“In my experience, creativity attracts and strategy converts,” he explains. “One without the other creates chaos or stagnation.” (08:02)
For Dylan, building a team he trusted was another essential for a good business foundation. From creators and account managers to analysts and specialists, he found people who shared his vision. Together, they deliver exceptional results at speed.
And when it comes to advice for anyone thinking of launching their own business venture?
“Start before you’re ready,” he says. (09:22) “There’s also going to be fear in the back of your mind, that little devil on your shoulder saying, ‘let me play it a little safe, go back to corporate, get some more experience’… sometimes that little bit of impulsiveness helps you get over the starting line.” (09:39)
Dylan believes the key to a successful launch is to first focus on solving a real problem for real people. Find your unique problem-solving ability. If you can tap into that, your business will be off to the best possible start. Then, when you have momentum, you can fine-tune.
“Refine your offer as you build, not before,” says Dylan. “You will never come to the table with the perfect blueprint. It’s always going to change,” says Dylan. (10:00)
Dylan notes that another important point is to lean into the community around you. “Your classmates today can easily become your clients, and your best friends and family can easily become your partners, investors, and even brand ambassadors.” (10:25)
His final piece of wisdom is to embrace curiosity and take risks. Dylan believes that the more you utilize these two entrepreneurial pillars and the more you lean into impulsiveness, the stronger your entrepreneurial instincts will become.
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