What does it really take to build a business in France when you’re not European, don’t speak the language fluently, and have no safety net?

In this episode of Living the Dream: French Riviera, Cecile speaks with a Brazilian entrepreneur who rebuilt her professional life from scratch after leaving the yachting industry and settling in the South of France.

After years working at sea, she made the decision to step ashore, only to discover the realities many expats face: low local salaries, language barriers, long commutes, seasonality, and the pressure of securing legal residency as a non-EU national. Faced with limited options, she chose entrepreneurship as a way to survive and eventually build stability.

This conversation offers grounded, first-hand insight into:

• Navigating visas and residency as a non-EU entrepreneur in France

• Why salaried work doesn’t always add up financially on the Riviera

• Launching a business without capital, a showroom, or connections

• Managing seasonal income and off-season stress

• Building clients through trust, word-of-mouth and reputation

• The unspoken social and emotional cost of relocation

• Why Riviera life is far less glamorous than it appears

Honest, practical and deeply relatable, this episode cuts through the fantasy of expat life and focuses on what actually sustains a professional life abroad. Living the Dream: French Riviera Podcast Women and their professional journey while relocating to the South of France.https://livingthedreampodcast.com