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THE FIRST 25 YEARS (1978-2003)
Lou and Sam Fais enter the sporting goods industry. Under their father’s company, Elmec Ino Fais SA, they become one of the first distributors of Nike in Europe, taking over Greece and Cyprus.
Nike becomes the leader of sports shoes in Greece and Elmec Sport S.A. is founded.
Elmec Sport starts licensed production of Nike clothing.
Fanco SA is founded. It has a state-of-the-art sportswear factory in Komotini, which successfully supplies Elmec Sports and becomes the main supplier of Nike and Adidas international. The plant is later sold through the Athens Stock Exchange to a major clothing producer in the country.
Elmec Sport opens the first Nike store in Europe. Seventy more will follow in Greece, Cyprus, Romania and Bulgaria. It is a retail model so successful that Nike decided to follow it in the rest of Europe in the years to come.
In the same year, it introduces the Life Fitness brand for the first time in the Greek market with great success.
Elmec Sport S.A. enters the Athens Stock Exchange.
Elmec Sport takes over the distribution of Harley Davidson motorcycles and clothing. Soon it becomes the exclusive distributor of the Harley Davidson clothing collection for Europe.
At the same time it expands the distribution of Nike and all its other activities in Bulgaria and Romania.
Fais family launches a number of businesses, including Marlboro Classics and Fila.
At the same time, it expands into areas such as yachts, taking over the distribution of Princess Yachts.
Elmec Sport opens Factory Outlet. The first outlet center in Greece is located on a 14,000-square-meter plot on Pireos Street.
Elmec expands its portfolio acquiring various distributorships in casualwear, fashionwear and kidswear like Monalissa, Nike, Levis Kids, Helly Hansen, Liu Jo, Patrizia Pepe becoming a significant player in the kids apparel market.
TEN YEARS OF CONTINUOUS GROWTH 2004-2014
Elmec Sportcreates Attica, Athens’ premium department store near Syntagma Square, renovating a former state-owned Piraeus Bank building of 20,000 sq.m. Attica quickly became the leading department store in Greece and quickly evolved into a network of locations in Athens and Thessaloniki.
Elmec Sport takes over the distribution of Technogym in Romania, organizing a local Technogym division similar to the Greek one.
A second Factory Outlet is born, covering an area of 13,000 sq.m., this time in the new El. Venizelos.
Fais Group expands its brand portfolio, becoming rapidly one of the leading retailer/wholesaler in the greater Balkans region (Romania, Bulgaria and Cyprus).
Elmec undertakes the distributorship of Converse.
Lou and Sam Fais accept an offer from the Laskaridis Group to sell Elmec Sport. Later in the year, FFGroup bought the shares of Elmec Sport from the Laskaridis Group, and Fais family resigned from the company’s management at the end of the year.
Lou and Sam Fais invest in the shipping and real estate sectors. At the same time, they expand the companies not owned by Elmec Sport, such as Veto and Body Art – distributing the brands Fila, Saucony, Arena, Freddy, Banana Moon, Umbro, and Crep Protect, among others.
Lou Fais’ son, Sony Mordechai, takes over the distribution of Burberry in Romania while launching an exclusive store. At the same time, he establishes a new high-end multi-brand store, Sport Couture.
Fais Group launches the Z-Mall online store with a wide range of brands, incorporating new product categories on an ongoing basis.
Sony Mordechai continues its expansion in Romania by creating a chain of 5 Vans stores, followed by a New Era and Superdry store.
“Perivoli in Vari” is inaugurated. It is an innovative space where visitors can get in touch with nature, enjoy its “farm to fork” restaurant and café, and be introduced to permaculture principles.
Two Mango franchise stores are inaugurated through Sportswind in Athens.
Sportswind also takes over the distribution of Indian Motorcycles in Greece, and the first exclusive store opens.
THE RECENT YEARS 2015 -2023
Fais Group develops One Salonica under the newly established company, One Outlet SA. The largest outlet shopping center in Northern Greece gives commercial life and reshapes the retail landscape on the western side of Thessaloniki.
Fais Group establishes the Bufala Gelato ice cream chain. It creates three successful outlets (in Glyfada, Vouliagmeni, and One Salonica in Thessaloniki) and three franchises.
In addition, the Group acquires the representation of the legendary tennis brand Prince through Elsol SA, taking over the distribution for Greece and the Balkans.
Fais Group launches Looney Bean at One Salonica Outlet Mall. A destination of high aesthetics and gastronomy that is fast becoming one of the city’s most popular café-bars & restaurants.
In addition, it acquires majority ownership of the historic Agora Modiano to renovate and revitalize it.
Through its newly established company, Kalogirou SA, it also acquires Lemonis SA, the leader in Greece’s luxury footwear, apparel, and leather goods market. Fais Group under Kalogirou SA now operates three exclusive luxury stores in the center of Athens (Salvatore Ferragamo, Tod’s, Hogan), a GEOX store at The Mall Athens. At the same time, it takes over the management of the Haralas stores as well as the e-shops kalogirou.com, haralas.gr and allaboutshoes.gr.
The Group undertakes the exclusive distribution of the leading tennis brand Wilson through Elsol SA.
Finally, it enters the design and luxury furniture market with the launch of its online store and the Supreme Space showroom.
Kalogirou SA takes over the representation of DKNY in Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania. In addition to wholesale, it proceeds with the opening of an exclusive DKNY store at Golden Hall Mall Athens and two shop-in-shops at Attica department stores.
Fais Group, under Kalogirou SA, opens two new luxury boutiques: a seasonal Burberry boutique in the famous Nammos Village in Mykonos and a Philipp Plein boutique in the center of Athens.
In addition, it takes over the representation of two major lifestyle footwear brands: the American UGG and the British Dr. Martens.
It signs a distribution contract with Technogym, the world’s leading supplier of products, digital technologies, and services for fitness, sports and health.
Finally, a third Mango store opens at Larissa’s Fashion City Outlet Mall.
Fais Group invests in the beauty sector, acquiring the exclusive franchise of KIKO Milano, Italy’s No. 1 make-up brand. In this context, it is planned to open 38 physical stores in Greece, Cyprus, Romania, and Bulgaria within the decade.
In addition, as part of a new strategy, the Group is investing in the hospitality sector with two major projects: the renovation and operation of the historic Castello Bibelli in Corfu and the construction of the five-star Radisson Blu Zaffron Resort in Kamari, Santorini.
Fais Group under Unlimited SA opens the first UGG store in Kolonaki, showcasing the brand’s full range of products – footwear, apparel, and accessories.
Fais Group under Sportswind SA acquires the distribution of the iconic lifestyle brand Levi’s® in Greece and Cyprus. At the same time, it opens two new stores in the southern and northern suburbs of Athens (Glyfada and Nea Erythraia) and one more in Paphos.
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