HORECA hosted on Sunday, February 12, in conference room C1, “The Greek Hospitality Ecosystem Forum” by the Hellenic Entrepreneurs Association (EENE).

The opening talk of the conference was from Mr. Alexandros Angelopoulos, Vice-President of EENE, CEO of Aldemar Resorts, who began by joking that although in Greece we usually say the phrase “I do my count without the hotelier” as a joke, this time EENE decided to make it a reality, and to examine what happens before and after the use of the hotel facilities, in the industries connected to the hospitality space. Immediately after, Mr. Christian Hatziminas, President of ΕΕΝΕ, President of EFA GROUP, greeted the forum, referring to the 2 main trends in tourism: export of the tourist product as a whole, with the help of digitization, and the export of the Greek lifestyle, i.e. the Greek way of entertainment, referring to the example of Dubai, where many Greek businessmen and employees in the entire spectrum of the tourist product (chefs, DJs, hospitality managers, etc.) excel.

Then Christos Dimas, Deputy Minister of Research & Technology, took to the podium, speaking about the innovation ecosystem, explaining that until recently there was not even a definition of what a start-up business means. Today a registry has been created, investors are motivated, and important actions are being organized.

In the first panel “Economy of hospitality, a response to a national challenge”, the opening speech was made by the Deputy Minister of Development and Investments, Mr. Yannis Tsakiris, who stressed the need for the tourism sector to remain resilient, so that it can stand on its own two feet regardless crises, while referring to the role played by digital and green transformation in this effort. In the discussion that followed, moderated by the journalist of SKAI Radio Mr. Nikos Andritsos, the importance of “Made in Greece”, the contribution of maritime tourism, the importance of the use of water in the tourism product were mentioned, but also the importance of sustainability, which has emerged as an economic size, especially recently, due to the energy crisis and the increase in energy costs.

The panel included Mr. Armodios Giannidis, managing director of Vitex, President of SEXB, Mr. Antonis Stelliatos, President of the Association of Greek Tourist Boat Owners, Mr. Alexandros Yfantis, President & CEO of Synchem, Mr. Dimitris Bourandas, President of Endless EC, Mr. Giannis Smyrlis, Secretary General of International Economic Relations & External Affairs, Min. of External Affairs 2020–2022, and Mr. Nikos Vassiliou, vice president of Bright Special Lighting.

The second panel “From digital illiteracy to digitization” was moderated by Action24 journalist Mr. Nikos Hypofantis. Here it was emphasized that the tourism industry is a late entry into the field of digitalization (compared to other industries). Furthermore, the importance of digitalization in transportation, cultural services and the ease of management it provides to the operation of a hotel was discussed.

The panel included Mr. Alexandros Trimis, co-founder & CEO of Welcome Pickups, Ms. Dafni Tservenis, co-founder of Cliomuse, Mr. George Karathanasis, co-founder of Hotellisense, Mr. Yiannis Charalambakis, co-founder & CEO of Hoteltoolbox, and Mr. George Kontaxis, co-founder & CEO of Vivestia.

The third panel’s theme was “Hospitality and focus as transmitters of a multi-thematic Greece”, and the opening speech was made by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Mrs. Sofia Zacharakis, who emphasized that the field of hospitality, defined by the words quality, authenticity and intensity of experiences, is an integral part of the effort to recover the national economy. In the panel, moderated by the Open TV journalist, Ms. Alexia Tasouli, the participants explained the role of Greek wine, the Greek brewery and microbrewery, as well as the success of Greek restaurants abroad in the development of Greek tourist product as a whole.

The panel included Ms. Sofia Perpera, advisor of the Greek Wine Association, Ms. Dina Nikolaou, Chef of cooking and pastry, co-owner of restaurants, Mr. Alexandros Kouris, CEO of Cyclades Microbrewery, Mr. Thomas Douzis, founder & CEO of Ergon Foods, Mr. Giorgos Nyfoudis, owner of The Life Goddess, Ms. Mandy Kalliontzi, Director of Sympossio Gourmet Touring.

The event concluded with the discussion of the three journalists with Mr. Alexandros Angelopoulos and the moderator Mr. Konstantinos Deriziotis, publisher of the magazine Money and Tourism, who summarized the important points of the conference.