We'll Take Your Check, Mr. Farmer

A few months ago, I had a farmer on the phone. He wanted a website to sell his products locally. Nothing fancy. Just something so people could find him.

I explained LutinGénie. Free mini-site, built-in chat widget, online in 2 minutes.

He asked: "Can I pay by check?"

I said yes.

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Tech forgot where it came from

Somewhere between Series B funding rounds and analytics dashboards, the tech industry forgot who it's building for.

We talk about "scale" and "growth hacking." We optimize for metrics. We build products for startups that look like other startups.

Meanwhile, the plumber in Tours is still wondering how to answer customer messages when he's under a sink. The craft brewery in Brittany is losing orders because no one responds at 10 PM. The food truck in Amboise misses pre-orders every weekend.

These people don't want an "enterprise-grade SaaS solution." They want someone to answer their customers when they can't.

How I got here

I'm not French. Not yet, anyway.

I moved to France in 2021. I've built my life here—a home, a family, roots. France has become my country.

Today, I live in a village of 300 people. LutinGénie is a small local business, just like the ones I see around me every day.

I know what it's like to figure everything out yourself. To juggle the work, the paperwork, and life. To wonder if you're doing things right, or missing something obvious.

And as I settled in, I noticed something: the small businesses around me—craftsmen, shopkeepers, micro-entrepreneurs—are fighting with tools that weren't built for them.

Either too expensive. Or too complicated. Or in English with support on the other side of the world.

I built a site for a local client. Nothing revolutionary. A simple, clean brochure site that gets the job done. And I realized: most people don't need more than that to get started.

What they need is to start. Now. Without friction. Without jargon. Without spending three weeks figuring out Wix.

What we're building (and what we're not)

LutinGénie is simple:

• A free mini-site to be visible online
• A chat widget with an AI concierge that answers when you can't
• Online in under 2 minutes

We're not building an enterprise platform. We're not targeting big accounts. We're not making "all-in-one solutions" with 47 integrations.

We're building an on-ramp. The first step. The thing that lets you say "yes, I'm online" without needing a developer, a marketing budget, or an MBA.

And when you outgrow us?

Here's the thing: we want you to outgrow us.

The LutinGénie mini-site isn't meant to last forever. It's a starting point. When your business grows and you need more—a real e-commerce site, advanced features, custom design—we're not going to hold you back.

We're already working with local web developers. People from the community who can help you take the next step. Your LutinGénie widget? It's portable. Take it to your new site.

We're not here to replace web agencies. We're here to feed them.

Why "we'll take your check"?

Because it's a symbol.

Accepting a check means: I trust you. It means: I understand you might not have a business credit card or you prefer doing things the old way. It means: you're part of the economy, too.

Modern tech decided that if you don't have Stripe, you don't exist. We think differently.

Who this is for

• The food truck that wants to take pre-orders
• The craftsman who misses calls while on a job
• The brewery that gets quote requests at midnight
• The personal trainer who wants a site without the headache
• The farmer who wants to sell direct-to-consumer

If you've ever thought "I'd love to be online, but it's too complicated"—this is for you.

— The LutinGénie Team
Somewhere in France, probably coding or answering a farmer.