Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou (Greek: Στέλιος Χατζηιωάννου; born 14 February 1967) is a British entrepreneur of Greek origin (from the island of Cyprus), who currently resides in Monaco. He is the scion of a wealthy ship owning family, but is best known for founding easyJet, a low-cost airline and the Stelmar shipping line, with start-up funds provided by his father. easyJet’s foundation in 1995 marked the beginning of a series of ventures marketed under the “easy” brand, managed by easyGroup and chaired by Haji-Ioannou.
Family and education
Stelios is the second of three children by Loucas and Nedi Haji-Ioannou. He was born in Athens, Greece. Stelios has an elder brother, Polys and a younger sister, Clelia. His father’s family originates from the village of Pedoulas in the mountains of Cyprus, while his mother is from the Potsos family of Laneia, a village outside the city of Limassol. After his secondary education in Athens, he studied Economics at the London School of Economics, graduating with a BSc in 1987. He went on to obtain an MSc in Shipping, Trade & Finance from Cass Business School.
Stelios has subsequently been awarded four honorary doctorates from Liverpool John Moores University, Cass Business School, Newcastle Business School and Cranfield University.
Early career
A self-labelled “serial entrepreneur”, Stelios started working in 1988 for his father’s already successful shipping business, Troodos Shipping Co Ltd. At 25, Stelios received £30 million from his father, that he used to set up his own shipping company, Stelmar Shipping. Haji-Ioannou floated the company on the NYSE in 2001. In 2005, Stelmar Shipping was sold to the OSG Group for approximately $1.3 billion.
Summary
| Sir Stelios Haji-ioannou Στέλιος Χατζηιωάννου |
|
|---|---|
| Born | 14 February 1967 Athens, Greece |
| Residence | Monaco |
| Nationality | Cypriot / British |
| Alma mater | Cass Business School, London School of Economics |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Known for | Founder & Owner of EasyJet Owner of Easyfoodstore.com Owner of Stelmar Shipping Ltd |
| Net worth | US$1.4 billion (November 2016) |
| Parent(s) | Loucas Haji-Ioannou Nedi Haji-Ioannou |
| Website | www |
Clelia Haji-Ioannou is a British billionaire of Greek-Cypriot descent who has a net worth of $1.06 billion in May 2016 according to Forbes.
Haji-Ioannou shares a stake on her brother, Stelios’ low budget airline, EasyJet. Along with her sibling, Polys who sold their shares during the conflict between Stelios and its management, she still earned from the company. She currently sits on the board of the Cyprus Marine Environment Protection Association.
Source:
- wikipedia
- .therichest