At a time when local, sustainable and responsible food is becoming a priority, two enthusiasts have decided to create a digital bridge between producers and consumers. Stéphane Boschung, founder and developer of the Farm'in application, and Soizic Le Havennec, associate and Community Manager, talk to us about the birth and development of their project. It's an adventure driven by the desire to make things simple, useful... and above all human.
A simple idea, a clear ambition
Stéphane Boschung: The initial idea was very simple: to make it easy for anyone to find a farm shop close to home, depending on what they're looking for - fruit and vegetables, meat, dairy products, etc. We also wanted to respond to a real need in the farming sector. We also wanted to meet a real need on the part of producers, who often have little presence in the digital world. So the application was the perfect bridge between these two worlds.
Soizic Le Havennec: And as we quickly realised that creating an app also required a real presence on social networks, I joined the project very early on. We had to create content, develop visibility, manage messages and create a real community around Farmin.
Learning to code... by coding
Stéphane: It was a real obstacle course. I had a few old code bases, but nothing solid. I had to relearn everything at the same time as I was creating the application. I used libraries, I adapted bits of code, and above all, I spent whole nights doing, undoing and testing. The product vision was clear from the start. But how to make it concrete, ergonomic and accessible to everyone? That was the real challenge.
Soizic: For my part, I learnt as I went along, using social networks. I looked at what other projects were doing, what worked and what didn't. I learnt to sense what worked and what didn't work. I learnt to sense what spoke to our community, and how to adapt the tone, the visuals and the frequency. It's a daily learning process for both of us.
The first feedback: a positive slap in the face
Stéphane: As soon as we started talking about the app, the feedback was very enthusiastic. A lot of people thought the project was great, even if they didn't yet see how we were going to implement it. And once we had the first testers - which wasn't easy, because Google asks for a certain amount of feedback before publishing an app - people approved straight away. We knew we were on to something.
Soizic: Postings to certain local Facebook groups exploded. People from all over French-speaking Switzerland - and even further afield - were reacting, sharing and asking questions.It was a real validation of the need. And we saw that the application could really help people rediscover short distribution channels.
An app that goes beyond its original intention
Stéphane: What's crazy is that some people are now using Farmin to organise their walks or even holidays around farms. We thought we were just targeting people at home who wanted to eat local food, but in the end, it's also being used by tourists and the curious. Others contact us to list their markets, suggest events or even publish recipes.
Soizic: And we've grown the application with them. We've added articles, tips on how to eat better, an events section and a market map. We've also launched a blog, translated the app into English, and we're present on all the major social platforms. We've gone way beyond our initial agricultural directory!
What's next? To grow, but without losing our soul
Stéphane: The goal would be to form a small team of 4 people. At the moment, we're still very much an artisanal operation. But we'd like to step up content production, add points of sale and run the blog. And on the development front, we're preparing a few surprises... which we'll be announcing in early 2026!
Soizic: We want to continue to make Farmin a useful, simple, human tool. And always close to the users. Because, at the end of the day, it's they who guide us.
A final word to project owners
Stéphane: If I have one piece of advice, it's this: believe in your ideas. If you listen to all the people who say ‘it's not possible’, you don't get anywhere. We didn't have the skills to start with, but we had the will to learn. And that's a skill in itself. Don't count the sleepless nights, learn, test, fail, try again. And above all, never give up. Little by little, the bird makes its nest...