We are used to seeing stories about poor immigrants and how France is not receptive to entrepreneurs, but the story of Mohed Altrad shows how a poor orphan from the Syrian desert has become one of the country's most successful businessmen.
Chances are that if you have a cement mixer, or a wheelbarrow or scaffolding it was made by Altrad Group. Altrad defied his grandmother in northern Syria to pursue his schooling and at 17 got an engineering scholarship to France. He worked with Alcatel and Thomson before setting up his own business, eventually buying nearly a bankrupt scaffolding company which over the following 30 years he has built into a 1 billion euro business, employing over 7000 people, mainly here in France.
As his "thanks" to the city of Montpellier he bought its rugby club from the commune for 2.4 billion euros - and aims to make it as successful as Toulon or Toulouse.
He was elected world entrepreneur of the year by judges of the Ernst Young prize, ahead of 65 others.
