Greece is a very pleasant place to live. We know a thing or two about it, and every day we savor how lucky we are to live in this beautiful country. As a result, more and more people are thinking of settling here for a few years or even permanently. It is becoming a popular destination for those working in the digital sector. Becoming a digital nomad in Greece? Why shouldn’t you?
To find out more about the digital nomad business in Greece, Jérôme Bajou, co-founder of the Work Form Naxos website, agreed to answer our questions.
Nomade Digital in Greece: interview with Jérôme Bajou
Hello Jérôme, can you tell us a little about yourself?
Hello ! My name is Jérôme Bajou, I’m nearly 36 and I’ve been living in Naxos for 10 years. After quitting BNP Paribas, I moved to Naxos for a better work-life balance. I’m also CEO of Blue Mango Business Limited, a UK-based web app company founded in 2009.
More recently, I co-founded Workfromnaxos, a website introducing the island of Naxos to the international community of Digital Nomads. As such, I’m a member of the Digital Nomads Observatory Think Tank.
I’m also the founder of CaptainBook.io, a traveltech startup in pre-seed stage. It’s a modular platform specialized in booking activities for tourpreneurs.
How would you define a digital nomad? What is it?
A digital nomad is a person who works with the help of information technologies while traveling more or less often. These workers use coworking spaces, coffee shops or public libraries to work. They plan trips based on their desires, staying for days to months. Usually freelancers or remote workers, they adjust their schedules.
Digital nomads in Greece: does this concern many people? Do you know if there are many digital nomads here?
Unfortunately, we don’t have much data on this subject for Greece. An MIT estimate puts the number of digital nomads at 4 million. Greece has set itself the target of attracting 2.5% (100,000 people), which would increase the country’s income by 1.6 billion euros.
What are the advantages for digital nomads of moving to Greece?
Quality of life is unquestionably at the forefront. Greece is a particularly good place to live.
You yourself, Jérôme, have been an expat in Greece, in Naxos to be precise, for 10 years. What can you tell us about your experience?
Exactly! I’ve seen the island evolve over the years, with a more stable and powerful internet connection for example. My life is much more balanced than it was in London, with much more time for leisure, and I think I’m particularly active professionally.
Learning the language was not a barrier, and was a very enriching experience. It took me about 2 years to become comfortable with all of them, although understanding for small everyday things comes much quicker. The Greeks speak English very well, and if I had to put a word in English in the middle of my sentence when I was learning (which I still do regularly, by the way), it was no particular problem.
I’m more efficient, happier and much more relaxed than before.
You recently launched the Work from Naxos website, which aims to facilitate the installation of digital nomads in Naxos. Why?
The COVID-19 pandemic currently affecting us has clearly been a gas pedal for telecommuting, and is profoundly changing the way we work. This trend is here to stay, and is not to be confused with any fad.
Greece is making remarkable efforts to attract digital nomads to its territory, and we felt that Naxos is an island that has a lot to bring to this community, but also a lot to gain.
With my co-founder, Luca Lattanzio, an Italian expat who has lived in Naxos for just over 10 years, we decided to position ourselves as facilitators, helping anyone who wants to be a digital nomad in Greece to come and work from Naxos. It’s also a question of explaining to the local population who these people are, and giving them all the keys they need to be able to welcome them in a sustainable way.
Why do you think Greece in general, and Naxos in particular, is the ideal place for a digital nomad?
Greece has chosen to position itself strongly and dynamically to welcome digital nomads. She is currently working on a special visa that will enable the community to come and work from Greece without any problems. The 50% tax reduction for the first 7 years of tax residence in Greece is of course an undeniable advantage.
At the same time, the Greek tech scene is booming thanks to measures to facilitate investment in start-ups.
Clearly, Greece will play a key role in innovation over the next few years, and the government has clearly understood that this includes welcoming digital nomads.
Naxos has a key role to play as the largest island in the Cyclades. Internet is well deployed here (fiber optics are being installed in Chora), 5G is fast approaching, not to mention satellite solutions such as StarLink available Q2 2021 for Greece.
Naxos is an active island, including in winter when there are many activities available (from sailing to trekking, to name but a few). It is also particularly well served by ferries and flights from Athens.
What would you suggest to help someone who wants to become a digital nomad in Greece to come and work on the island of Naxos?
We offer them tailor-made support to help them settle in. We’re able to help them with every aspect of their visit, with partnerships that we’ll be announcing shortly (from legal and accounting advice to residence searches and special offers for activities).
We’re analyzing the need for Cyclades’ first coworking space on Naxos. We aim to welcome companies relocating their workforce to Naxos, offering tax advantages.
What could be improved to make it easier for digital nomads to settle in Greece?
There are still a few areas for improvement, notably the availability of long-term accommodation rather than focusing solely on the tourist season. That said, we’ve already been contacted by villa owners who want to move into the long-term rental market instead of seasonal rentals, so I’m confident we’ll get this sorted out in the near future.
The price of mobile subscriptions is also an obstacle when compared with other European countries, particularly France with Free Mobile. Here too, I’m counting on innovation and Greek startups to solve this problem. More competition will help the market evolve.
Thank you Jérôme Bajou for these comprehensive explanations.
If you’re thinking of becoming a digital nomad in Greece, we hope you find this information useful.
Laure M.
