Greek expatriate entrepreneur Eleftherios Gavriilidis, who settled in Finland nearly half a century ago and went on to establish the country’s largest importer of Greek products, spoke about his professional journey and the musical event he is organizing in Helsinki on 09 May to mark the 40th anniversary of his company. He was interviewed on Voice of Greece radio and the program “Our Global Voice” with Dimitris Kontogiannis.
Mr. Gavriilidis noted that, as an engineer, he had several options ahead of him: he could remain in his native Cyprus, move to Saudi Arabia, or settle in Finland, the homeland of his wife, whom he had met in Greece. Ultimately, they chose Finland, although finding work there proved far more difficult than he had expected.
In the beginning, he even taught Greek language classes while gradually becoming involved in trade on an amateur basis, importing products from Greece at the encouragement of his students. Business soon flourished, and he eventually devoted himself entirely to the company, which today has an annual turnover of €30 million, employs more than 50 people, and has also developed a processing division. The company is now managed by his two daughters.