With the establishment of a new holding company, Nikos Vardinoyannis’s AVE is seeking to strengthen its presence in the broader pharmaceutical sector.
The newly established AVE PHARMA S.A., headquartered in Pallini, was founded last Thursday, June 25, with an initial capital of 2.05 million euros and the purpose of operating as a holding company and providing business and investment consulting services.
The incorporation document does not include the shareholder structure. However, the company name, registered office, and members of the board of directors point to the publicly traded AVE. The CEO is Mr. Thomas Roubas of AVE, supported by Mr. Apostolos Voulgaris, chairman, and Vasileios Papadopoulos, a board member.
As AVE Vice Chairman Thomas Roubas revealed to Euro2day.gr, the focus of growth is now shifting to the pharmacy sector, an industry with higher growth and profitability margins. As he noted in this context, AVE, together with Deca Investments, acquired Pharma Plus, a company specializing in pharmacy support that has a network of approximately 100 members. According to Mr. Roubas, the goal is for this network to gradually evolve into a franchise model.
The expansion into the pharmaceutical sector began last July, when AVE acquired a 15% stake in the Cypriot company ERINO Enterprises, investing 1.5 million euros in a company with a share capital of 10 million euros.
At the same time, the group—which has moved away from food retail—continues to expand its investment portfolio.
Through the Cypriot company AVE Participation, it has committed to contributing up to 5 million euros to Yalco’s share capital increase; it recently acquired a 24.98% stake in Probotek, which operates in the fields of drones and artificial intelligence, and holds a 30% stake in the newly established Studio Illum [HO.RE.CA], which operates in the hotel equipment and hospitality services sectors.