Dr. Tahereh Pazouki of Magrid (centre) receives this year's CYEL award from Daniel Haag, Managing Director & Head of Corporate of BIL (left) and Aurelien Lalahy, National President of JCI Luxembourg; Credit: JCI

The Junior Chamber International of Luxembourg (JCI) has announced the winners of the 15th edition of its Creative Young Entrepreneur of Luxembourg (CYEL) competition.

Pedro Castilho, Founder of Verbalius Sàrl, presented this year's CYEL awards at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, in front of an audience representing the startup ecosystem.

The JCI expressed its pride in reaching this important milestone, as this competition is one of the oldest in Luxembourg. The last two years proved challenging, both for the organisers and entrepreneurs trying to survive in a difficult environment. 

As recalled by Carlo Thelen, CEO of the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, in his welcome speech, in the last years JCI has succeeded in creating an environment and a high level jury that brings together all the main players of the ecosystem, as well as several private players active in the Luxembourg entrepreneurship network.

2018 Coup de Coeur award winner Ilana Devillers was key note speaker at this year's event.

Dr Tahereh Pazouki of Magrid was named Creative Young Entrepreneur of Luxembourg 2021. Dr Pazouki has a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Computer Science and a Ph.D. in Psychology. During her doctoral studies, she has developed an early mathematics learning solution called "Magrid". This learning solution is language-free and thus removes the language barrier in mathematics education and provides equal educational opportunities to all learners. After finishing her Ph.D., she founded LetzMath to continue the research and development of educational solutions for individuals with special needs to allow them to enjoy equal opportunities to learn, experience and excel.

Second prize went to Quentin de Madre and the young father's Kidola team, composed of Jonathan Kindermans and Simon Lelorran. This application provides an efficient monitoring of children: activities with pictures, naps, meals and hygiene. Kidola ensures that what happens at the nursery does not stay at the nursery, according to JCI.

Mattia Raffaelli of RoomMate and his "blue team" took home third prize. As CEO and Co-Founder, Mr Raffaelli steers the company's vision to be a proptech that automates the processes for mid-to long-term rental management, with an app for tenants and a software as a service (SAAS) platform for landlords.

This year, the jury decided to award two "Coup de Coeur"  prizes: one award based on the sustainability of the product and another to reward the resilience of an entrepreneur during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Sustainability Award went to Filip Westerlund for his brand OUR CHOICE. For the second consecutive year, a student of the University of Luxembourg is recognised by the jury for his / her values and social impact. The idea behind OUR CHOICE  is to create a circular business model utilising sustainable and circular raw materials that are less resource-intensive.

The Resiliant Award went to Elfy Pins of Supermiro. Well-known in Luxembourg as an entrepreneur and leader, Ms Pins has proved to be resilient and unique during the pandemic when she had to completely change her business model to survive. This award was created ad hoc for her, to congratulate her on her tenacious skill. 

The jury was composed of: Daniel Haag, Global Head of Corporate Department at BIL; Carolina Vasselli, Senior Associate, and Elodie Vincent, Counsel, both from Bonn Steichen & Partners; Patrick Weis, Partner at KPMG; Jerome Wiwinius, Head of Corporate Sales at LALUX; Candi Carrera, Country Manager at Microsoft; Stefan Berendt, Head of Start Ups at Luxinnovation; Bastien Berg, CEO of Luxembourg-City Incubator; Romain Hoffman, Board Director at LBAN; Amélie Madinier, Director of Le Village by Credit Agricole.