“At 27, you don’t realise the risk you’re taking”: Sir Stelios backs the next generation of French Riviera entrepreneurs
Félix Nacach, founder of BedBoat, has won the first prize awarded by the Stelios Foundation © Benjamin Godart for Monaco Tribune
The Stelios Philanthropic Foundation recognised five young entrepreneurs from Monaco and the Côte d’Azur on Thursday 21 May at the Young Entrepreneur Awards ceremony. A total of €70,000 for companies in full development.
In the conference room of the Stelios Foundation on Quai Antoine-Ier, several figures from Monaco’s business community gathered to celebrate local entrepreneurship. Over a lunch hosted by the easyGroup founder, the winners of the 2026 Young Entrepreneurs Awards were revealed.
The philosophy behind the programme rests on a conviction the Greek-Cypriot philanthropist articulates without hesitation: “Let me start by saying that I believe supporting young people to start a new business to become entrepreneurs rather than find a job is the best way to create more jobs in the community and economy.” This year, 37 applications were reviewed by the jury, for a total prize fund raised to €70,000 – Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou having reinstated, as in 2025, a fourth prize shared between two additional winners.
Félix Nacach recognised for the second year running
Félix Nacach takes first prize in this edition, presented by Sir Stelios alongside the newly appointed Government Counsellor-Minister of Finance and the Economy, Frédéric Cottalorda. At the helm of BedBoat – a platform for booking overnight stays aboard moored boats – the young entrepreneur walks away with €30,000. The achievement is all the more notable given that he finished second last year. To consolidate his growth, the BedBoat founder is now betting on a white-label model: “The idea is to provide hotels and high-end tourism establishments with a site in their own image, through which they can offer a curated selection of boats and a dedicated service to their clients, earning a commission on each booking.”
Behind him, Tina Lyberaki wins €20,000 for Athena Academia, a tutoring organisation built on a selective approach that prioritises the quality of individual support over volume, preparing students for the entrance examinations of leading international schools and universities. Pierre Athimon, at the head of Corporate Assurances – a brokerage firm specialising in risk management for businesses and professionals – takes third prize (€10,000).
Sharing fourth place with €5,000 each: Romain Le Rouge, founder of ExcelloCenter, a tutoring centre that expanded its offering this year by launching programming and robotics courses for younger students, and Paola Alemanno Grislain, who runs Ambulances du Rocher, a medical transport company present at all of the Principality’s major events, from the International Jumping to sporting and institutional occasions alike.
Beyond the financial reward, the winners will benefit from significant media exposure. Hugh Murray, Managing Director of Riviera Radio and partner of the foundation, announced a dedicated promotional campaign for the five winners: “We want to work with the winners and give them that chance to open their shop front to the whole of the French Riviera and promote them.”
“At 27, you don’t realise the risk you’re taking”
For Sir Stelios, who launched easyJet at 27, the Young Entrepreneurs Awards carry a particular personal resonance. “The age of 27, 28, which is what I was when I started the Easy family with EasyJet, is the best time because you don’t know how much risk you’re taking. You know a bit about the business, but you don’t understand the risk,” he told Monaco Tribune, with the directness of a man who has navigated three decades of entrepreneurship. The late twenties, in his view, offer that rare combination of nascent expertise and sufficient fearlessness to dare.
The world, however, has changed since the liberalisation of European skies that paved the way for easyJet. The founder makes no secret of it: were he starting out today, he would not choose aviation, which he places firmly in the category of “old economy.” “If you want to do something scalable, forget about hard fixed assets, invest in tech. Try something. If it doesn’t work, change it.”
Five years to become profitable
In his address to the winners and guests, Sir Stelios drew a clear line on profitability. “At the beginning, everybody loses money, but if you haven’t made money in the first five years, then maybe you belong to a different category of business – like the ones they fund in the United States of America,” he said, marking a firm distinction from the Silicon Valley model and its cycle of repeated fundraising rounds. The message, directed at young entrepreneurs, quietly sketches the philosophy underpinning the foundation itself.
By backing local entrepreneurship rather than the attraction of outside capital, the Stelios Foundation champions a vision of wealth creation rooted in the territory. The five winners of this edition are its most concrete expression: human-scale businesses, profitable or on the cusp of becoming so, that are hiring on the Côte d’Azur.
Photos: Benjamin Godart for Monaco Tribune