Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2026: franchise entrepreneurs can also apply

Zavod Mladi podjetnik, the Slovenian young entrepreneurs’ institute, has once again opened its Young Entrepreneur of the Year competition. Entrepreneurs who have established a franchise business as a separate legal entity are also eligible to enter. For Slovenia’s franchise community, the competition offers an opportunity to showcase young entrepreneurs’ stories. The application deadline is 27 November 2026, and five finalists will present their businesses in Ljubljana on 4 December.

Who can apply

According to a report on the Modre novice news portal, the competition is open to individuals or teams aged 16 to 38. They must have established their company or franchise business as a separate legal entity between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2025. The organisers are looking for Slovenia’s most innovative, enterprising and successful young entrepreneurs.

Importantly for the franchise community, the eligibility rules explicitly recognise franchising as an eligible route into business. Participation is therefore not restricted to entrepreneurs operating under a newly created brand of their own. However, the stated age and establishment-date criteria, along with the requirement to have set up a separate legal entity, remain essential.

Before applying, prospective candidates should check their business’s establishment date and legal form. The opening date of an individual outlet is not, in itself, the date referred to in the published condition: this concerns the establishment of the company or franchise business as a separate legal entity. If these dates differ, candidates should clarify their eligibility with the organiser well before the deadline.

From questionnaire to four-minute presentation

Applications and nominations can be submitted through Zavod Mladi podjetnik’s application page up to and including 27 November 2026. An expert panel will assess the candidates and select five finalists after reviewing their questionnaires. The finalists will then have the opportunity to present their entrepreneurial stories at the closing conference in Ljubljana.

The final will take place on 4 December 2026. Each finalist will have four minutes to present, after which the panel will announce the winner of the Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 title. With just one week between the application deadline and the final, applicants would be wise to start thinking about a potential presentation while completing the questionnaire.

For a franchise business, it can be helpful to distinguish clearly between the support provided by the franchise network and the candidate’s own entrepreneurial contribution. This is an editorial recommendation for preparing a clear presentation, not an additional eligibility criterion. Above all, the short presentation should make it clear what the business does, what role the applicant plays and which achievements they can substantiate with verifiable data.

The judging panel and main prize

The expert panel will be chaired by Jure Knez. Its other members will be Kristina Kočet Hudrap, Darko Jurić, Žan Šude and Borut Borštnik. The panel will both select the finalists on the basis of their questionnaires and make the final decision following the presentations at the closing conference.

The main prize is a four-day entrepreneurial weekend in a European capital, provided by Dewesoft. Alongside the prize, the winner will receive the title of Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2026. The competition thus combines a written application, a presentation to the panel and the final award ceremony.

When preparing an entry, candidates should avoid confusing the competition’s general aims with detailed assessment criteria. The organisers emphasise innovation, entrepreneurial drive and success, so applicants should base their descriptions on specific, demonstrable aspects of their businesses. Franchise entrepreneurs should also explain the relationship between operating under a shared brand and the responsibilities of their own company, without presenting the entire network’s results as their own.

What franchise candidates should prepare

The competition gives young entrepreneurs in the franchise community a firm deadline and a clear route to a possible place in the final. The first step is not to prepare a stage presentation, but to check eligibility and complete the application questionnaire carefully. Only once the questionnaires have been reviewed will the panel select the five finalists.

As a practical aid, candidates can put together a short summary covering the applicants’ ages, the business’s establishment date and legal form, its activities and its verifiable achievements. This is not a list of additional requirements set by the organiser, but a way to organise the information needed for an application. It is also worth testing in advance whether the essence of the entrepreneurial story can be explained clearly in four minutes.

Practical takeaway: if you meet the published conditions, check the application procedure with Zavod Mladi podjetnik and submit your entry by 27 November 2026 inclusive. Keep 4 December free in case you reach the final, and prepare a brief, factual presentation of your own entrepreneurial contribution.