Direction Βusiness Network: New international collaboration with Nexus Communication

Strategic alliance with the worldwide leader Nexus Communication aimed at the development of new editions and online products for the fleet management and mobility market.

In Greece, fleet management is an interesting and growing market and constitutes a new category that falls within the journalistic sectors covered by Direction Business Network, the Greek market leader in sector and special publications.

This new business venture is carried out in collaboration with Belgium-based Nexus Communications, the international leader in business-to-business communication within the corporate fleet management and mobility sectors. The collaboration is expected to include the development of new products in both digital and printed version as well as training programmes, and events that are specifically targeted for the Greek market.

Nexus Communication’s priority is to immediately and quickly provide its partners, readers and clients with the most advanced and specialised knowledge. In this context, it is committed to finding ways to offer high-quality communication solutions. Therefore, in order to meet its readers’ needs for information, it has created genuine communication platforms that bring complementary media together (magazines, websites and events).

It all began in December 1997 with the Fleet Europe magazine, which is recognised as the leading media platform for corporate fleet & mobility leaders worldwide. This platform accompanies the last 20 years of fleet management internationalisation and records the beat of the sector. Nowadays, other than the magazine there is the website and electronic newsletters (Fleet Europe Digest, Smart Mobility Digest, Remarketing Digest and Fleet Europe Exclusive). In addition, each year it publishes the “Fleet Europe Taxation Guide” which records data for car taxation in 29 European countries and the “Fleet Europe Directory”, which has details and data on all the fleet management’s international players. Moreover, each year it chooses a geographical zone which constitutes the main topic for the “Guide to Fleet Management” edition, which it edits.

In 2013, it presented the Global Fleet platform which is dedicated to fleet & mobility managers with global competencies and responsibilities and provides the necessary information for the global optimisation of a corporate car fleet. It also comprises of the website, electronic newsletters (Global Fleet Digest, Global Fleet Focus Digest and Global Fleet Exclusive) and special editions of the “Guide to Fleet Management” series for specific markets.

Furthermore, 2010 marked the launch of the Smart Mobility Management brand. It is the leading media platform in Europe for active mobility professionals. It provides insights to the trends that shape the worlds of travel, fleet and real mobility services.

Another significant part of Nexus’ activity are the two major annual events that it organises. Specifically, under the Fleet Europe umbrella it carries out the Fleet Europe Forum & Awards event that assembles the international fleet management community, it highlights issues that concern the people in this area, and awards the major achievements that have been recorded by the market. In addition, every summer, Global Fleet in collaboration with US Automotive Fleet organise the Global Fleet Conference, the only true global fleet management event, which is attended by 200 executives from 6 different continents.

Caroline Thonnon and Thierry Degives, Nexus Communication CEOs stated: “We are extremely pleased to be collaborating with Direction Business Network and we see it evolving into a member of the Fleet Europe Network. Our network comprises of high quality media in the fleet and mobility fields throughout Europe and Direction Business Network will constitute our sole partner in Greece, a developing and ever interesting market for Europeans”

The collaboration between Nexus Communication and Direction Business Network strengthens the latter even more. With more than 30 printed and electronic titles, a strong internet presence and events that are recognised by the Greek business world, Direction Business Network provides daily, valid, objective, reliable and well-rounded information, interactive communication and valuable business tools to its sectors’ executives, Opinion Leaders and Decision makers

Business News Magazine – Front-page leadership

Business News Magazine is Direction Business Network’s new publishing venture. Focusing on the Greek and international business scene, it is published monthly and addresses senior executive and the heads of leading businesses. It is sent to 5,000 senior executives and leaders of the 1,500 largest businesses in Greece and to those who are actively interested in the developments and trends of the modern business world within and outside Greek borders.

The new magazine bears the businessnews.gr and the Direction Business Network editorial team’s signature and was created with the assistance of well-known freelancers. Its primary objective is to highlight the protagonists of the domestic business world that make the difference and decisively contribute to the economy’s recovery.

It is an edition with high aesthetic standards and tabloid dimensions which consists of company presentations, sector studies, exclusive interviews and flashbacks to historical Greek businesses. But that is not all, since its readers will find news from the international scene, developments of the new entrepreneurship and start-up ecosystem, opinions and news reports, thus establishing it a valuable “tool” in the hands of every contemporary businessperson.

In an effort to support the Greek entrepreneurship, the new publishing venture comes to complement the Businessnews.gr business portal, the annual edition “The Strongest Greek Companies” and the “Protagonists of the Greek Economy” awards.

Vangelis Papalios receives “Vlassis Sokratidis” award

Significant recognition for Direction’s publisher at the 34th award ceremony of the “Athanasios V. Botsis” Foundation for the Promotion of Journalism

The 34th award ceremony of the “Athanasios V. Botsis” Foundation for the Promotion of Journalism took place in the presence of the political leaders, politicians and Mr Pavlos Pavlopoulos, President of the Hellenic Republic, at the Old Parliament House on Wednesday 17 January 2018. Inter alia, the ceremony also included the “Vlassis Sokratidis” award which was instituted in 2013 in memory of the late Vlassis Sokratidis, President of the Hellenic Union of Editors of Periodical Press (HUEPP).

Mr Michael Savvakis, President of the HUEPP, presented the award to Mr Vangelis Papalios, Union Member and Publisher of Direction for his long journalistic-publishing journey, his pluralistic articles and his significant social and political activity

Vangelis Papalios celebrates 34 years in the publishing field. His career began at COMPUPRESS SA in 1984 and in 1985 he became head of the editions “Computer for all “ and “Pixel”.

He founded DIRECTION in 1993 and DIRECTION BUSINESS NETWORK was created in 2014 with the arrival of the second generation corporate structure.

He is the publisher of many well-known business and sports magazines, online editions and websites including ADBUSINESS, ADBOOK, RETAIL BUSINESS, ESTETICA HELLAS, ALLSTAR BASKET, CSR REVIEW, BUSINESSTODAY, RETAILTODAY, THE STRONGEST GREEK COMPANIES, ΒUSINESSNEWS.GR.

The company also organises extremely important awards for the Greek business world such as the “RETAILBUSINESS AWARDS”, the Protagonists of the Greek Economy and the HAIR AWARDS, while it recently undertook the international institution PRODUCT OF THE YEAR.

He is married to Penelope Chatzidimitriou and is the father of three, Konstantinos, Giorgos, and Natassa.

Product of the Year: Direction to represent the institution in Greece

Direction undertakes to represent the institution “Voted Product of the Year” in Greece with the organisation of the first event starting immediately.

Direction Business Network moved forward with a significant international collaboration since it undertook the official representation of the institution “Voted Product of the Year” in Greece. Internationally, it is the greatest and most significant award with respect to product innovation based on consumer votes. “Product of the Year” was established in France in 1987 and is now being organised in more than 40 years in 5 different continents. It approaches more than 3.5 billion consumers around the world for the same purpose: to guide consumers to the best products in their market and reward manufacturers for quality and innovation.

Moreover, it should be noted that the Voted Product of the Year award can help mass market product manufacturers to promote their innovation and offer added value to consumers. This is achieved by making the participating products more appealing in relation to the competitive brands of the same category. It is for this reason that Voted Product of the Year Worldwide, the licensor of the well-known consumer “Voted Product of the Year” trademark, is acknowledged as a true “Fast Moving Consumptions Goods activation specialist”.

 

 

Philippe Gelder, President & CEO of Voted Product of the Year Worldwide, spoke in relation to the collaboration with Direction Business Network in Greece: “We are committed to innovation. With respect to our methodology, consistency and viability constitute our key axis, but we ought to “listen” to the markets and observe their trends. We believe in simplicity rather than complexity. We do not believe that we should receive the thousands of thoughts that are presented to us as expansion ideas, so that we can truly focus on the few ideas that are significant and mean something for the brands that trust us. Our philosophy is that every level of our organisation should work in an ethical and respectful manner, and honestly we do not settle for anything less. It is for this reason that we decided to start a new collaboration with a new partner in Greece. It is with great pleasure that I announce that Direction Business Network will hereinafter represent the Voted Product of the Year award in Greece, which is a beautiful and extremely promising country. Although Direction is a new addition to the POY Worldwide family, I believe that our brand will greatly benefit from the extensive experience and know how that this new partner has in the retail trade and FMCG area. I am certain that “Product of the Year” is in good hands and that this will continue for a long time”.

With regard to the collaboration, Direction’s Evangelos Papalios stated: “We are extremely pleased about the collaboration with Voted Product of the Year Worldwide and the product of the year award. The “Product of the Year” award is an event that completely coincides with our philosophy regarding business and the corporate world’s awards. Direction never had, nor will it ever have, the aspiration to convert into an distinctions industry. Awards are won, they are not granted. They are awarded to those that deserve them through transparent procedures thanks to meritocratic criteria and via a broad vote or survey. This is our mindset and we are pleased that we have our partners’ understanding in the organisation for the “Product of the Year” award. Their successful presence in more than 40 countries around the world constitutes an explicit and clear indication that this philosophy and strategy cannot be incorrect. Despite the difficult circumstances and adverse economic situation, the Greek market still has sound forces. There are businesses that invest in innovation and drive their categories toward growth. Once again, we will stand by the side of these businesses by rewarding and promoting those that have their sight set on innovation and growth. Those that continue to present products that stand out and are worth recognition. We are particularly proud that POY Worldwide selected us for this collaboration and we are determined to do our best in order for the institution to acquire the glamour and value that it deserves in the Greek market. I should note that in the context of this new partnership, the first Award Ceremony will take place in 2018, the year that we will celebrate our 25-year anniversary in Greece. This journey has given us the experience to overcome the high demands of such an important event and has provided us with the momentum that is required for big and better things”.

 

More information will be announced shortly about the first organisation of the event.

 

The winners of the HAIR AWARDS – ESTETICA HELLAS 2017

The Estetica Hellas magazine’s Hair Awards 2017, which took place in the Zappeio Hall for the second consecutive year and were presented by Takis Zacharatos, were attended by glamorous and distinguished guests.

Frini Latou, Estetica Hellas’ Publication Director, welcomed the guests to a great night of hairdressing art, a night which yet again promoted the hairdressers’ best products and services; while Vangelis Papalios, Publisher of Estetica Hellas stated that “these hair awards are the culmination of Estetica Hellas’ 15-year presence in the Greek market”.

The distinctions

The main distinctions and awards include:

Partner of the Year: Wella

Training of the Year: Wella

Campaign of the Year: MythicOil/Foureira – L΄Oréal Professionnel

Professional Tool of the Year: Steampod – L΄Oréal Professionnel

Innovation of the Year: SmartBond – L΄Oréal Professionnel

Best School of the Year: Vang

Extension Brand of the Year: High Life Hair Extensions

Oil: Μythic Oil – L΄Oréal Professionnel

Sun protection Products (Soleil): Kérastase

Μen’s Hair Care & Styling: Tea Τree Special Shampoo, Tea Tree Shaping Cream – Paul Mitchell

Creative styling:Tecni.Art Wild Stylers – L’Oréal Professionnel

Styling (Product) foam, hair spray, gel: Sculpting Foam – Paul Mitchell

Styling (Series) foam, hair spray, gel: EIMI – Wella Professionals

Dilution and Thickening Treatments: Nioxin – Wella Professionals

Special Hair Care treatments: Pro Fiber – L’Oréal Professionnel

Hair Care (shampoo, conditioner, masks): Absolut Repair Lipidium Mask – L’Oréal Professionnel

Lightening products: Blondor (Wella),

Permanent Oxidative Dye: Koleston Perfect – Wella

Semi-Permanent Tone-on-Tone: ColorTouch – Wella

New award category

The Best Hair Collection awards where given for the first time this year. Christos Michailidis and the Loveisinthehair team won the gold medal, GINO Hairandmore received the silver medal, while Myronas from Miro & Miro received the bronze medal. In addition, Honorary Awards were given to Giorgos Bouras from Gino Hair Salons (in recognition of his contribution to hairdressing art), to Zinovia Vassiliadou – Tsardoulia from Mod’s Hair, for her dedication to beautiful hair, and to Nikos Kourtis of the Greek Hairdressers’ Association, in recognition of his contribution to the art of hairdressing.

International guests

The event was also attended by Roberto Pissimiglia, Publisher and Director of EsteticaItalia and legend John Paul DeJoria, co-founder and CEO of Paul Mitchell and Patron Spirits, who was awarded the “Protagonist of the International Economy” Excellence Award

The closing of the event was quite spectacular as models from nine hairdressing groups walked on stage, each presenting a different hair style, as they have been depicted over the Estetica magazine’s 70-year history.

Sponsors

L΄OréalProfessionnel and WellaProfessionals were the gold sponsors for the evening, while Paul Mitchell was the major sponsor. Vang, Farcom, Κyana and Imel Professional also sponsored the event. HighLife was the sponsor for the “Βest ΗairCollection” category, Panasonic was the supporting company and CommoInteriors was the supporter for the backstage equipment. Lastly, PressiousArvanitidis was the printing sponsor and the Amuse was the “EventSponsor”. It should be noted that the awards were conducted under the auspices of the Athens Chamber of Small and Medium Sized Industries, PSVAK and KEKE.

KPMG was the event’s auditing body for a second consecutive year

The “Protagonists of the Greek Economy” have been named

The real economy’s Top Businesses, the market’s Protagonists have been named in the third consecutive official “Protagonists of the Greek Economy” event that Direction Business Network organised on Monday, 15 May 2017. Businesses that continue to grow, to perform well and support the Greek economy, despite hardships and challenges, were awarded before 550 senior executives in the packed Banqueting room at the Athens Music Hall.

Initially, Industry Protagonists, comprising of leading businesses of the Greek economy’s key industries were honoured, taking into account their turnover, gross profits and cash on hand. The businesses Kotsovolos Dixons South-East Europe SA (Electronic and Electric goods), Barilla Hellas SA (Pasta), Plaisio Computers SA (Computers – Technology), Elais – Unilever Hellas SA (Fats-Oils), Pavlidis SA Marbles-Granites (Marbles-Granites), Sani SA (Hotel Enterprises), Athenian Bed Mattress Manufacturing SA – Media Strom (Mattress Industry), TUI Hellas SA (Tourist Agency) and Vivechrom – Dr Stefanos D Pateras SA (Paint Industry) received awards in this category.

In addition, Lamda Developments and Papastratos SA were awarded for their efforts in the Growth and Investment sectors, while Bic Violex SA, Karelia Tobacco Company SA, Kleemann Hellas SA and Sunlight Systems SA were honoured for their Business Extroversion. Lapsa SA and Papoutsanis SA received Turnaround Business awards in recognition of their achievement to bounce back and grow in the current difficult economic situation.

Moreover, businesses that managed to increase their turnover by more than 20% while increasing their profits by more than 50% in the 2013-2015 two-year period received Greek Business Champions awards. Specifically, the following companies were awarded in this category: Andrikopoulos SA, ANEDIK Kritikos SA, Venetis AB & EE, Viacar SA., Cosmote e–Value, Frezyderm SA, Goldair Handling SA., Inventor A.G. SA, Kaflas V. SA, KPMG Consultants SA, Leaseplan Hellas SA, MEGA Disposables SA, Megaplast SA, Moustakas N Georgios SA, Barba Stathis SA, Palirria Souliotis SA, Pescanova Hellas LTD, Westnet Distribution SA and Zancou Shoes ΙA Kourouniotis SA.

Hellenic Post SA (ELTA) was awarded as the most historic business in Greece since it was founded in 1828, almost alongside the foundation of the Greece State, while the International Greek Entrepreneur Excellence Award, which was established from this year to honour entrepreneurs of Greek origin who have excelled beyond Greek borders was awarded to Gabriel Chaleplis of B2B Gaming Services.

Lastly, the highlight of the evening was the award for Company of the Year 2016, which was awarded to I & S Sklavenitis. This distinction resulted from the Greek business world. For the first time in Greece, 5,500 senior executives from the largest Greekbusinesses were asked to cast their votes to elect the company that would receive this major distinction this year. The pre-selection process, which was made by the event’s Award Committee, resulted in the nomination of 20 major and influential Greek businesses.

The event was presented by the journalist Ritsa Bizogli, while the evening was launched by Evangelos Papalios, Publisher-Director of Direction Business Network, who highlighted that “awards were given to businesses that will pave the way to recovery and will lead the Greek economy to a new age. Companies that battled through the years of the greatest post-war recession that Greece had encountered and emerged as true Champions”.

Ilias Xanthakos, Secretary General of the Ministry of Economy and Development, Lois Lamprianidis, Secretary General of Strategic and Private Investments and Antonis Papaderakis, Secretary General of Commerce and Consumer Protection of the same Ministry also addressed their greetings at the beginning of the event. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, President of the New Democracy Party was represented by Lefteris Avgenakis, MP for the Prefecture of Heraklion and Secretary of the New Democracy Political Committee, while Elena Kountoura, Minister of Tourism, also honoured us with her presence.

The “Protagonist of the Greek Economy” event falls under the auspices of the Ministry of Finance & Development and the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV), while Volvo Car Hellas was the event’s Gold Sponsor. The companies Olympic Breweries (Kaiser Pilsner), Wind, Polichromo, Amvyx (Glenfiddich), Wundham Grand and Nespresso were also sponsors of the event.