Dr. IOANNIS V. BENOPOULOS

Born in Athens, in 1965.

He studied Economics in USA, acquiring a B.A. from Clark University (1986) and a Ph.D. with distinction from Columbia University (1991), with specialization in Industrial Organization, Theory of Economics and Economic Strategy and Development. During his studies, Columbia University awarded him
with the honorary distinctions “President’s Fellow”, “J. M. OLIN FELLOW” and “Alfred P. Sloan Doctoral Dissertation Title”.
While a graduate student, he taught at the Economics Department and at the Law School of Columbia University for three years. Upon his return to Greece, he also taught Economics at the American College of Greece – Deree for a one year.

During the period 1991 – 1994, he worked as a free-lance business consultant.

His entrepreneurial activity began in 1991 when he established Futon Trade Limited creating the Bed &
Sofa shops.

In 1994 he founded COFFEE CONNECTION SA, a company that introduced specialty coffees in Greece through coffee retail networks. In 2005 COFFEE CONNECTION acquired CAFETEX SA a company that developed to become the largest Greek-owned roaster. The company brands are Coffeeway, Brazita, Via
Espresso and Esclusivo. CAFETEX is also the largest producer of private label coffee products in the Greek
market.

He is President and C.E.O. of Coffee Connection SA and Cafetex SA.

During 1999-2006 he served as a member of the BoD of the HELLENIC RETAIL BUSINESS
ASSOCIATION.

From September 2006 to October 2007, he served as General Secretary of Commerce at the Ministry of Development, responsible for 3,2 bil. € annual state procurements, finalized and submitted for Parliament approval the amended corporate law, changed the permit procedures for food stores and finalized two Presidential Decrees for new procurement procedures implementing European standards.

From October 2007 to July 2008, he was Chairman and CEO of Olympic Airlines, leading a multidisciplined team of Government officials and specialized advisors, successfully negotiated a privatization
process with the EC which kept the airline operating and imposed minimal restrictions to the size of the
“new” Olympic.

From July 2008 to April 2009, he was Chairman and CEO of Pantheon Airways, finalizing the AOC approval for the new company and supervising the production of the Transition Plan from Olympic Airlines to Olympic Air. Leading a 30-person team that run the international tender, presented the project to potential investors and negotiated the details of the deal. At the same time, he maintained labor peace and
negotiated termination procedures and severance packages with all the major unions (representing around 7,000 permanent and seasonal employees).

From April 2009 to September 2009 he was the non-executive Chairman of the BoD of Olympic Air, overseeing the proper execution of the agreement and the transition of flight operations to the new company.

From January 2009 to June 2010 he served as a member of the BoD of OTE SA and from June 2009 to June
2010 he was a member of the Audit Committee of the Organization. During 2013-2014 he led the implementation of the first OECD Toolkit as part of the measures taken by the Greek government to re-organize the Greek economy.

In 2018 he took the initiative to establish the Hellenic Coffee Association after the imposition of a coffee tax by the Greek Authorities. The HCA, a non-profit organization and a member of the European Coffee Federation, has 24 members representing over 80% of the roasted coffee market in Greece. He is serving as President of the HCA since 2018.