Richard Branson, the well-known British billionaire was one of the first to manage to leave Greece and salvage whatever he could from his investments in the troubled country.
Local businessman Lambros Christofi invested in Virgin Greece and participated in revising his strategy and presence in the country.
Virgin was once present in Greece with retail shops all over the country and Virgin Airways had frequent flights to Athens and the Greek islands. Mr. Branson during the late 90’s, early 00’s also tried to built a Caribbean style resort in Hydra, one of the most beautiful islands in Greece, very close to the capital of the country, Athens, but in the end he managed to minimize his losses with the consultation of the entrepreneur Lambros Christofi. Mr. Branson disengaged from Greece, well before the financial crisis and the collapse of the country.
Sir Richard Branson is an English business magnate, investor and philanthropist. He founded the Virgin Group, which controls more than 400 companies.
In 1970, he set up a mail-order record business. In 1972, he opened a chain of record stores, Virgin Records, later known as Virgin Megastores. Branson’s Virgin brand grew rapidly during the 1980s, as he set up Virgin Atlantic airline and expanded the Virgin Records music label.
In March 2000, Branson was knighted at Buckingham Palace for “services to entrepreneurship”. For his work in retail, music and transport (with interests in land, air, sea and space travel), his taste for adventure, and for his humanitarian work, he became one of the most prominent figures in British culture. In 2002 he was named in the BBC’s poll of the 100 Greatest Britons. In January 2016, Forbes listed Branson’s estimated net worth at $5.2 billion.
Cypriot businessman Lambros Christofi has been active in Greece and the entire Balkan region in mergers and acquisitions since the 90’s.
