São Paulo – A Greek company sees in the foreign market, including countries like Brazil and the United Arab Emirates, the opportunity to expand its business at a moment in which Europe, and especially Greece, suffers with the economic crisis. Hellas Exports, headquartered in Athens, sells marble and about a year ago also started selling olive oil, a product for which the country is renowned.
“The foreign market is more than enough to compensate the crisis in Greece and, more broadly, in Europe,” said to ANBA, by email, the operations director at Olvium Olive Oil, Evangelos Nikitakis. “Unfortunately the Greek market is not yet on the right route. The Greek are doing the best they can to maintain their standard of living. It is now time for the new generation of Greek businessmen to notice the potential of their land, to turn their attention to the productive sector and to the new opportunities abroad,” he added.
The executive was recently in Brazil and says that the country “is among the most attractive worldwide”. “I believe that people will accept the good quality we offer. They usually have an open mind and receive new ideas in a positive manner,” he stated. Nikitakis said that he is seeking shops with “trustworthy partners” and local distributors to result in his “premium” olive oil reaching high end product shops, hotels, restaurants and markets. “Apart from the commercial work to make the brand known, there is also word of mouth, which is very important to us,” he explained.
The company, according to him, sells olive oil in the Emirates, Germany, China and Greece itself, and hopes to start trading in the United States through a contract “to boost sales in 2013”. Apart from Brazil, the Emirates, the US and China, the executive also mentioned Canada, Australia and Russia as markets that are currently most attractive.
In the Arab world, the brand participated in the Gulfood, a food sector fair in Dubai, in the Emirates. “People loved our products. It was our first attempt in the Arab world and we believe there is great potential and that locals were very pleased with the quality of what they sampled,” he pointed out.
This was the first attempt in the olive oil area, as last year the group showed marble at Big 5, a fair in the building sector that takes place in Dubai. In the area, the company is also interested in the Brazilian market, and it already sells to the United States, the Netherlands, Germany and the Emirates.
“All our products are made in Greece, mainly in Sparta—Peloponnese and in the great Island of Crete,” pointed out Nikitakis.
Contact
Olvium Olive Oil
Evangelos Nikitakis
Tel.: +30 210 33 92 900
Cel.: +30 6944 50 49 50
Fax: +30 210 36 37 678
E-mail: nikitakis@olvium.com
Sites: www.olvium.com and www.hellasexports.com
*Translated by Mark Ament
