Yannis Retsas has studied Chemical Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens and holds an M.B.A. from Cardiff Business School in UK, as a Scholar of the “Alexander S. Onassis” Public Benefit Foundation. He speaks English and French.

 During the last 25years he has been a member of the Enterprise Greece (former Invest In Greece Agency) management team, a State controlled company with the mandate to attract and support foreign investments into Greece and promote exports. In 2022 he was appointed General Director of Strategic Trade Development, with a wide range of tasks for promoting Greek exports as well as securing and managing EU funds of over 20 million euros. Before that, he was Director of Investor Support and Ombudsman Unit, providing assistance and guidance to investors during all stages of the investment process.

From 2012 to summer 2014 he was, in parallel, Director of cabinet of the General Secretary for Strategic and Private Investments, in the Ministry of Development. Then, until January 2015, he was Director of cabinet of the Deputy Minister of Development.

 Yannis Retsas also carries with him many years of experience from the private sector. He started his career in 1990 with a short, one-year, assignment as a chemical engineer in Motor Oil Hellas oil refinery. Then he joined GLOBE Group of Companies, as an operation manager in the Food Sector, soon getting promoted to Assistant General Manager. In Feb. 95 he was appointed Member of The Board of Directors of one of the Group’s companies.

In the period 1995 to 1997 he worked in the marketing department of Procter & Gamble Hellas, holding Brand Management positions in Bleach and Hard Surface Cleaners Sectors. Next to that, he worked for Bell Atlantic Hellas, as Head of the Market Analysis and Control department.