, /PRNewswire/ — Founder and CEO, Chau Nguyen of Vintage Modern, Inc was named an EY US Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2026 Southeast Award winner. Nguyen was selected among nearly 35 program participants, including 592 finalists across 17 regions, competing for the title.
Rising from humble beginnings to his third entrepreneurial success, Nguyen has built Vintage Modern into one of the country’s most innovative luxury automotive companies. After founding and exiting two technology ventures, including Campus Special, acquired by Chegg, and Hirewire, acquired by Seasoned, Nguyen launched Vintage Modern in 2018 with a vision to create an entirely new vehicle category: a classic-inspired luxury vehicle equipped with today’s safety features and technology.
Today, the Atlanta-based company handcrafts more than 250 vehicles annually, pairing classic-inspired design with fully modern platforms, safety systems and performance. With a global following of more than 4 million enthusiasts and a clientele that includes Mark Wahlberg, LeBron James and Ryan Reynolds, Vintage Modern has emerged as a disruptive force in the luxury automotive market.
“This honor is deeply meaningful because it recognizes a journey defined by resilience, discipline, and an unwavering belief that there is always a better way forward,” said Nguyen. “I’m grateful to the incredible team whose talent, craftsmanship, and commitment have helped transform a bold idea into an entirely new vehicle category. While I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished together, I believe our best work is still ahead as we continue building a new category in the luxury automotive space.”
Now in its 41st year, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program honors business leaders for their ingenuity, courage and entrepreneurial spirit. It celebrates original founders who bootstrapped their business from inception or raised outside capital to grow their company, transformational CEOs who infused innovation into an existing organization to catapult its trajectory and multigenerational family business leaders who reimagined a legacy business model to strengthen it for the future.
Regional winners were chosen by an independent panel of past winners, top CEOs and business leaders. Judges assessed candidates on long-term value creation, entrepreneurial spirit, purpose-driven commitment, and significant growth and impact.
As a Southeast award winner, Nguyen will now be considered by the national judges for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2026 National Awards, which will be presented in November at the annual Strategic Growth Forum®, where high-growth CEOs, Fortune 1000 executives and investors converge to shape the future of business. The National Overall Award winner will move on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Award in May 2027.
The Entrepreneur Of The Year program has recognized the leadership of entrepreneurs such as:
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Sponsors
Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards include presenting sponsors PNC Bank, Cresa, LLC, Marsh Risk, SAP and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In the Southeast, sponsors also include VACO, LLC as the regional Platinum sponsor; ADP and King & Spalding as the regional Gold sponsors; and Babbit Bodner as the regional Silver sponsor.
About Entrepreneur Of The Year
Founded in 1986, Entrepreneur Of The Year® has celebrated more than 11,000 ambitious visionaries who are leading successful, dynamic businesses in the US, and it has since expanded to nearly 60 countries and territories globally.
The US program consists of 17 regional programs whose panels of independent judges select the regional award winners every June. Those winners compete for national recognition at the Strategic Growth Forum® in November where national finalists and award winners are announced. The national overall winner represents the US at the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ competition. Visit ey.com/us/eoy.
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EY refers to the global organization and may refer to one or more of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law, where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.
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About Vintage Modern
Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Atlanta, Vintage Modern (formerly Vintage Broncos) is a luxury vehicle builder that created an entirely new automotive category: the Modern Classic. Rather than restoring vintage automobiles or modifying existing classics, the company handcrafts classic-inspired vehicles on fully modern platforms, combining timeless design with today’s safety, technology and performance. Every Vintage Modern vehicle is FMVSS-compliant, crash-tested and equipped with six airbags. Producing more than 250 vehicles annually, the company serves a global clientele of celebrities, athletes, collectors and luxury enthusiasts, supported by coast-to-coast white-glove service. For more information, visit www.vintagemodern.com.
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