On June 12, 2025, in Brussels, the student company BioBliss, founded by students from CHLG “Prof. Ivan Apostolov”, achieved a historic victory for Bulgaria.
Their project—a sustainable biodegradable button battery—won first place in the prestigious Youth Entrepreneurship Award, organized by the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU (AmCham EU) and Junior Achievement Europe.
The company’s team consists of Sofia Nikolova (11A), Viktoria Koleva (11A), and Alexandra Klyaneva (11C), who have been developing their idea and collecting awards since 2024. Their success is not only personal and school-based, but also national—this is the first Bulgarian win in the award’s history.
“It all started very spontaneously—we saw a post about the competition just days before the registration deadline and immediately decided to apply,” shares Sofia Nikolova.
After the initial registration, they received the news that they were among the top 10 teams in Europe, which gave them the opportunity to submit a detailed project proposal. On May 7, they found out they had made it into the top 3 finalists in all of Europe—alongside impressive projects from Spain and Estonia.
The final had strict conditions—only one team member from each finalist could travel and present the project in person. Sofia took on that responsibility:
“As the only one of us who was of legal age, I took on this big task. On June 11, I traveled to Brussels. June 12 was the big day. I had 5 minutes for the presentation and 15 minutes for the Q&A session.
The jury included the Executive Director of AmCham EU, the General Manager of Chevron Phillips Chemical, a Member of the European Parliament, the Minister-Counselor for Trade Affairs of the U.S. Mission to the EU, and a Chief Political Correspondent—a truly serious panel.
Of course, part of me felt a little nervous, but after all the competitions we’ve participated in, I had complete faith in the uniqueness of our idea. Just knowing that we had made it this far was recognition enough, and it gave me the confidence to present the project even on my own.”
On the evening of June 12, during the official AmCham EU gala, in the presence of over 100 corporate representatives and with the participation of the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, came the most emotional moment:
“At the end of the dinner came the most exciting moment for the three of us finalists. We went up on stage to be introduced in front of the entire audience. And then I heard—‘This year’s Youth Entrepreneurship Award winner is BioBliss.’
My heart stopped, and my hands started to shake—we were first in Europe, title holders, winners of a €10,000 cash prize, and granted exclusive mentoring from AmCham member companies.”
On her final day in Brussels, Sofia visited the European Commission, where she met with the chief of staff for Commissioner Glenn Micallef, marking the end of this unforgettable journey.
“Our journey definitely doesn’t end here; it is just beginning, and we hope that one day we will fulfill the promise made at the award ceremony — that everyone will carry a part of us by using our batteries.”
The success of BioBliss is a source of pride not only for CHLG “Prof. Ivan Apostolov” but for all of Bulgaria. It demonstrates what young people can achieve when they combine passion, knowledge, and a desire for change!
“Student Company” Program – Practical Entrepreneurship Training for Youth!
The “Student Company” program is a unique and widely recognized course that gives students the opportunity to go through the entire process of creating and managing their own business. The program is internationally established and is considered a best practice in entrepreneurship education by the European Commission.
Participants go from generating innovative ideas to implementing them through a product or service. They learn about financing, marketing, resource management, and sales, applying these skills in the creation of their company. Student companies have the chance to participate in regional and national competitions, with the best continuing on to European forums like Gen-E.
