It started with Lemonade

Mohamed’s entrepreneurial gift was evident even while at school – his homemade lemonade was always a big seller with his friends.

But his first real opportunity came after the Second World War. He set up a shipping company, which became known as Genavco (The General Navigation Company). Genavco owned roll-on, roll-off ferries, operating in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea.

Despite its success, Mohamed’s dream to continue working in Egypt was not to be. When President Gamal Abdul Nasser “nationalised” all substantial private companies, in the late 1950s, control of the corporation was wrestled from him. Mohamed took the decision to leave his homeland, along with his brothers and business partners Saleh and Ali, moving the company’s headquarters to Genoa in Italy, with offices also in Waterloo Place, just off Pall Mall in London.

Although he has lived in several countries, and regards Britain as home, he remains proud of his Egyptian heritage.

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