BOCUSE & Co Trophy
Awards: our graduates
rewarded for their
entrepreneurial skills

On Tuesday 27 November in the lounges of the famous Pavillon Ledoyen, the BOCUSE & Co awards committee chaired by Yannick Alléno, chose to reward the remarkable entrepreneurial journeys of 4 Institut Paul Bocuse graduates.  

The award winners were:

  • Innovation Award: Thibault Merendon (2008), founder of Fresh Me Up, the B2B anti-waste marketplace – France    
  • Food Service Concept Award: Barbara Filippazzo (2011), creator of the Cavatello restaurant, serving bistronomic cuisine of Italian inspiration – France 
  • International Culinary Arts Award: Cynthia Bitar (1999), founder of Nazira Catering, creator of premium catering events and culinary workshops – Lebanon
  • International Hospitality Award: Hrishikesh Desai (2002), Michelin-star Executive Head Chef at Gilpin Hotel & Lake House – United Kingdom

The BOCUSE & CO Trophy Awards celebrate the quality and excellence of the recipients’ journeys as entrepreneurs as well as the expertise and know-how they received as students on their courses. At Institut Paul Bocuse, we positively encourage our students to dare to create and carry out new projects, also giving them the confidence to take risks in order to realize their ambitions. 


True to the vision of its 2 iconic co-founders, Paul Bocuse and Gérard Pélisson, the entrepreneurial spirit is written in the school’s DNA, with a year 4 specialisation dedicated exclusively to entrepreneurship on offer to students. Based on an action learning approach, the course is renowned for being a powerful catalyst and effective incubator for business start-up or takeover projects. 

Nearly 1 in 5 of our students choose to set up their own business within 5 years of completing their studies at Institut Paul Bocuse. 

Institut Paul Bocuse also trains an increasing number of professionals each year on career retraining schemes, guiding them in developing their business creation projects on our Starting Up and Managing Your Own Restaurant continuing professional education programme.