Multi-Michelin starred Chef Yannick Alléno will create an association for the victims of repeat offenders following the recent death of his son in a tragic road accident in Paris.
Yannick Alléno had just opened his new restaurant in Monaco, the Pavyllon at the Hermitage Hotel, when he got word that his son had been involved in a violent accident in Paris on Sunday 8th May.
24-year-old Antoine Alléno, a talented young chef who was following in the footsteps of his father, died after the scooter he was driving was hit by a stolen vehicle at traffic lights. The driver was reportedly a repeat offender known by police and wanted on drink driving charges. After fleeing the scene on foot and being apprehended by an off-duty police officer, the alleged offender was charged with aggravated manslaughter.
On Saturday 14th May, the day after the funeral of his son, Yannick Alléno announced on his Instagram account that he would be creating an association in Antoine’s name.
“I just understood this morning only the loss that will haunt me all my life so its energy lodged deep in my body will be used, through the association ‘Antoine Alleno’ to support the victims of repeat offenders. #antoinealléno #monange #mylove”
Yannick Alléno thanked the “thousands of strong and loving arms” that were at the funeral in Poissy, including French politician Rachida Dati and First Lady Brigitte Macron.
Photo of Yannick Alléno by Monaco Life
La Compagnie returns to offer business-only travel to US
The 100% Business Class airline La Compagnieis back operating flights between Nice and New York, but this time it has a new aircraft that uses around a third less fuel. And they’re not the only ones using this more eco-friendly airbus.
La Compagnie is a French owned, 100% Smart Business Class airline that launched its first New York to Nice flight for the 2022 season on Saturday 7th May. It will be operating three flights a week on this route on its new Airbus A321neo until 27th September 2022.
The aircraft has 76 sleeper seats, as opposed to the standard layout of 230 seats, and provides free unlimited Wi-Fi and healthy seasonal food “for a unique business class experience”.
The A321neo is able to carry out long-haul flights with a reduced carbon footprint as it uses 30% less fuel than previous aircraft.
“This year, with the health restrictions being lifted in France and the United States, as well as the efforts that all of our employees have put into development, we are already seeing a real enthusiasm for our route and for the exciting city of New York,” said Christian Vernet, President of La Compagnie. “People always want to travel, and our high-quality product on board a modern plane and the excellent value for money attract a lot of customers.”
Meanwhile, Air Transat has resumed flights between Nice and Montreal on the same AirbusA321neo. During the peak season, Air Transat will offer two direct flights each week between Nice and Montreal.
“It’s a pleasure, both for the airport and for our entire region, to have Air Transat, a faithful partner of Nice Côte d’Azur, back to further connect it to North America,” said Franck Goldnadel, Chairman of the Board of Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur. “We also want to acknowledge the prolonged commitment, now lasting three years, to operating these flights with some of the greenest planes out there, which aligns with our commitment to decarbonating air transport.”
United Airlines opened its Nice to Newark flights also in ea rly May.
The Monaco Economic Board has accomplished three missions with three very different entities in the past month, starting with a trip to the United States, followed by two locally-based forums with Vietnam and Djibouti.
It’s been a busy few weeks for the Monaco Economic Board (MEB), who have been on the go and on the ground forging new relationships with countries around the globe, notably the USA, Vietnam and Djibouti.
Guillaume Rose, Executive Director of the MEB, explains that “By multiplying the meetings with quality interlocutors from all over the world, we strive to offer a maximum of business opportunities to Monegasque companies with an international outlook. These actions are intended to make Monaco a business hub within Southern Europe, and to further strengthen our strong appeal to economic decision-makers around the world. In this regard, we welcome the recent appointment of Frédéric Genta. This is an asset that can help tip the balance of economic decisions in our favour.”
On 29th April, MEB reps Michel Dotta, Justin Highman and Guillaume Rose visited the American state of Indiana where they were received by Governor Eric Holcomb and his Secretary of Commerce Bradley Chambers. They were treated to a business luncheon and later,a cocktail event, where several MEB member companies were in attendance.
Governor Holcomb is pushing for interactivity between his state and Europe, and the connections and opportunities between the Principality and Indiana were strengthened via discussions on energy transitions, electric car technology, sustainability and innovation, and of course, motorsport with the Andretti Autosport team taking part in the Formula E race.
Europe is one of the leading regions for Indiana in terms of foreign direct investment and business ties. Within this region, Monaco enjoys an excellent image with Indiana, particularly for the dynamism of its yachting sector, but also for its resilience in times of crisis.
From left to right: Philippe Ortelli, Jean-Jacques Robin, Youssouf Moussa Dawaleh, Frédéric Geerts, Guillaume Rose, Ayeid Mousseid Yahya, Alexis Mohamed, Jordana Remon-Coubeche, Justin Highman. Photo by MEB/ Carte Blanche
On 4th May, the MEB organised an economic conference dedicated to Vietnam at the Novotel Monte-Carlo. Vietnam, considered one of the “Asian Tiger” countries, is looking at a 6% GDP rebound in 2022, making them an attractive place to do business with. Additionally, the country of 98 million has opened up to free trade agreements with Europe in recent times, making them a good alternative to the Chinese.
Toan Thang DINH, Ambassador of Vietnam in France and Monaco, and Quôc Cuong DAO, in charge of investment promotion, presented the economic assets of their country to about 50 key leaders, before the Asian delegation visited two Monaco companies who are already active in their nation, 3xEngineering and SIAMP CEDAP.
Finally, on 9th May, the Monaco Economic Board, in partnership with the Club of Monegasque Entrepreneurs in Africa (CEMA), represented by its President
Frédéric Geerts and his Secretary General Denis Ruyant, organised an economic forum intended to intensify business relations between Monaco and the Republic of Djibouti, a country with a population of one million that enjoys a strategic location at the entrance to the Red Sea.
Bilateral economic presentations started off the day, leading to the signing of memoranda of understanding between the Chamber of Commerce of Djibouti and the MEB as well as a BtoB meeting session.
Maritime transport was the primary focus, but hardly the only, with meetings dedicated to finance, renewable energies, tourism, logistics and telecoms on the agenda. In the end, over 60 meetings brought Monaco and Djiboutian business people together.
During their stay in the Principality, the members of the Djiboutian delegation also visited members of “Team Monaco” who work to promote the Principality’s international influence: the MonacoTech incubator-accelerator, the Monaco Scientific Center and the Oceanographic Museum.
Photo: Frédéric Genta and Guillaume Rose with Eric Holcomb and the delegation in Indiana, by MEB/Carte Blanche
Revealed: the A-listers to be honoured at Monaco Streaming Film Festival
Some of Hollywood’s biggest names will be given accolades at the upcoming Monaco Streaming Film Festival’s Gala Awards ceremony, the only festival that is solely focused on video-on-demand content.
The 2nd Monaco Streaming Film Festival, running from 31st May to 2nd June at the Grimaldi Forum, is presenting a grand finale with the Streaming Awards Gala on Friday 3rd June at Le Meridien Beach Plaza Hotel.
The gala will feature some of Tinseltown’s biggest names, including Avatar writer and director James Cameron, who will be receiving the Reg Grundy Innovation Award, Bond-series producer Barbara Broccoli, celebrities Jeff Fahey, Victoria Smurfit, Mark Wahlberg, and Patricia Arquette, to name but a few.
As reported on by Monaco Life in April, the event, created by Tony Davis, is a powerful forum for the streaming content community, giving players a chance to network, communicate more easily and learn about the latest opportunities in this not-so-niche part of the entertainment industry.
Additionally, there will be free premieres and screenings to highlight some of the newest offerings in the streaming content world. Upward of a hundred films will be presented over the three-day period, made up of 20 feature length offerings and 80 shorts. There are also three black tie premiere evenings, which require advance tickets and include a cocktail event preceding the screening.
The festival itself will have a series of summits, conferences, keynotes and panel discussions with people in the know in video-on-demand (VOD) production and distribution, including talks on the future of Ad-based VOD (AVOD), Subscription VOD (SVOD) and Transactional VOD (TVOD) models.
The yearly urban painting event once known as UPAW is back in Monaco with a new name and a clear mission to support the Prince Albert Foundation and promote street art around the world.
Held from 17th to 20th June, the 6th annual Urban Painting Around the World (UPAW) is back, but with a new name that better encompasses the spirit of the event.
Now called UPAINT, the event is bringing together 14 of the world’s best street artists to create beautiful pieces infused with an air of “coolness”.
The concept was originally the brainchild of Alberto Coleman, who in 2013 saw a live art performance by legendary urban artist Mr One Teas and his partners Los Gringos. This spurred the idea of putting together a multi-day live art show to relay to the world the what street art has evolved into, as well as giving art collectors and enthusiasts a chance to own a piece of this cutting edge type of art.
The event has gone from being entirely artist-focused to becoming more participatory.
“We can tell that it is YOU who brings life to the event. It is about You, the performer, the audience, the collector… this strong connection between painting and you, each one of you – whether the artist, the art lover or a mere spectator – we wanted this “U” and “Paint” to become our message, our name, our identity… U PAINT!” say the organisers on their website. “The UPAW team designed UPAINT to become the new face of each future Festival, to visually symbolise our mission of bringing people together around this incredible form of art and supporting just causes, all around the world. Anywhere we go, the circle will start from YOU, and it will end with PAINT, coming from the most amazing urban painters.”
The tagline supports this enthusiastic message. U Come, U See, U Paint gives an all-inclusive vibe and even will be hosting interactive activities such as the Junior Challenge, which will showcase local secondary school kids’ creativity, an expo of works from previous festivals, and a wall that will let members of the public express their inner street artist.
The last day of the event at 6:30pm will feature an auction by Artcurial where fans can purchase their favourite pieces, in-person and, new this year, remotely by using the online auction space invaluable.com.
This edition will support the Prince Albert II Foundation’s Human-Wildlife Initiative, protecting wildlife in rural and mountainous areas in the South of France.
The UPAINT Monaco 2022 Crew of Artists are Alice Pasquini, Aura Aerosole & OLDHAUS, Bond Truluv, Bordalo II, Buff Monster, Curtis Hylton, Dan Kitchener, Dario Vella, Futura, Mr One Teas, Pez, Spok Brillor, The London Police, and Tim Marsh.
Photo source: Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation
Monégasque manufacturer ROKiT Venturi Racing bounced back from a difficult weekend on home soil to take consecutive podiums over two races in the German capital.
Key to their revival was Edoardo Mortara. The Swiss driver scored podiums in both races, including a victory from pole position on Saturday. Having expertly controlled the first-part of the race, Mortara was made to race in the second to ensure the lights-to-flag victory.
After taking his second boost, he fell behind Jean-Eric Vergne and Monaco winner Stoffel Vandoorne. Mortara made easy work of Vergne, before getting the job done on Vandoorne a couple of laps later to retake the lead.
Vergne, however, had a fan boost, and used it to good effect. The former F1 driver took a podium in Monaco a fortnight ago, but was looking for more in Germany. He launched an audacious move on Vandoorne and then on the leader Mortara. Although he made his first move stick, Vergne went too deep on the second and Mortara switched back on him to take the chequered flag. Vergne and Vandoorne rounded off the podium.
Lucas Di Grassi, meanwhile, had a difficult qualifying and then didn’t finish in the race, but the Brazilian’s fortunes turned-around on Sunday. He was still out-performed by team-mate Edoardo Mortara, who secured second-place having qualified on pole.
Nyck de Vries, who made a first corner lunge to jump from third to first, controlled the race from start to finish to secure his second win of the season. Di Grassi was pipped to the final podium position by Vandoorne late-on as the Belgian snuck down the inside of Di Grassi, despite the Venturi driver’s best attempts to shut the door.
It was a hugely successful weekend for the Monégasque team, who move up to second in the Formula E Championship. Mortara is also back in the hunt for the Drivers’ Championship, but still has work to do to catch Vandoorne, who has a 12-point lead.
“This weekend has been phenomenal and I’m extremely proud of the entire team for what we’ve been able to achieve,” Team principal Jérôme D’Ambrosio said. “62 points from two races is an incredible achievement and, in a championship as close and competitive as Formula E, is one that doesn’t happen very often at all.”
Formula E next heads to Jakarta at the start of June, and at the halfway mark Venturi are well and truly in contention for both the constructors and drivers’ championships.
Photo source: ROKiT Venturi Racing
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