Hellenic Entrepreneurs Association (E.EN.E) Working Trip to Chicago & Washington D.C. Opportunities & Prospects for Greek businesses in all areas.

The Hellenic Entrepreneurs Association (E.EN.E) completed a highly successful working trip to the United States which took place the week  15-20  November. The business delegation involved entrepreneurs in the areas of construction, technology, aerospace & defense, as well as personal care products and services. More specifically, the participants were: Christian Hadjiminas, President, EFA GROUP, Nataly Vagioni, CEO, Fresh Line, Alexandros Sakellariou, Managing Director, Paradox Kinetics, Evangelos Gizelis, CEO, Gizelis Robotics, Nikos Anastasiou, Manager, Epexyl – Architectural Wood Works, and Alexandra Prokaki, Managing Director, Prokaki.

E.EN.E’s first destination was Chicago, and included a table at the “Wings at the Cure Gala” organized by the Hippocratic Cancer Research Foundation, led by distinguished medical scientist, Dr. Leonidas Platanias. The high visibility and impactful social networking event is held annually and the revenues support the Foundation’s philanthropic cause. Distinguished personalities, such as Archbishop Elpidoforos of America, influential politicians and senators, government representatives and ambassadors, Hellenic-American businessmen, prominent officials and community leaders and associations, were among this year’s participants, and the members of EENE engaged in extensive and highly productive networking.

Next on the agenda was a stop at Washington D.C., underpinned by E.EN.E’s participation in the “Southeast Europe & East Med: New strategies, New perspectives” Conference, organized by the Delphi Economic Forum and the Greek daily newspaper Kathimerini,  in association with the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC). The forum aimed to establish a platform for dialogue and communication as well as exploring the long-term significance of establishing a safe, secure and prosperous region.

Over the course of the seminal two-day event, important political, business and social leaders representing a wide range of sectors and industries discussed strategies and a call-to-action for strengthening ties between the USA, Southeast Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean with main emphasis on Greece.

Government officials both from the US and Greece, eminent scholars, academic luminaries and business leaders engaged in extensive discussion and rigorous analysis with a view to generating recommendations for U.S. policy-making for Southeast Europe and East Med; fostering private-sector development and international co-operation as cornerstones for the revitalization of both regions; and, finally, facilitating technical and high-level dialogue and transferring knowledge across various policy and business areas.

In the context of the conference, EENE took initiative to organize a number of parallel B2B meetings for its members and a number of firms participating in the workings of the forum. The purpose of the meetings was the exchange of business information and the development and prospects of cooperation in various fields. The entrepreneurs had the opportunity to present their companies, exchange views and establish contacts with the Hellenic Society of Washington D.C. and  President, Harry Mylonas and its members, Senator Leonida Raptaki (State of Rhode Island), the President of  HALC Association, Endy Zemenides, members of  Brookings Institution, representatives of the World Bank Company & Investment Advisory Group , technology and consulting companies such as KYS and BlankRome – the latter specializing in shipping.