The professional and social ‘climbing’ though didn’t infatuate him and didn’t change his character. Despite his huge success and public recognition, in particular the designation to the post of Honorary Consul of Greece in Crimea (that he took as his obligation more than like privilege and right), Pantelis Boumbouras always remains a simple and sincere man, a flaming patriot who divides his attention and a large part of his capital between the two native lands, lavishly funding the numerous and varied events that are aimed at the support of the Ukrainian Hellenism and the further rapproachement of the two friendly nations – Ukraine and Greece.
CAREER
Pantelis Boumbouras was born in 1955 on the island Limnos that is situated in the north part of the Aegean Sea, where he spent his infant and pupillary years.
In 1970 he moved to Athens, the city that was developing intensively those days. A young isleman at once saw his future in the developing sphere of construction. He began to work as a simple builder, gaining his first experience, and at the same time received the compulsory education, entered the High Technical School and in a year completed the diploma of Electrical Engineering.
In 1981 having obtained certain skills and inspired by the ideas that the key to success lies in the independent entrepreneur activity and not in the hired labour, he established his own company that dealt with the electrical work both in domestic premises and in more complicated industrial facilities. Each year the company’s turnover has been increasing, as well as the power of the industrial group, that in the middle of 1990-ies had more than 200 workers.
In spring 1997 he decided to accept the invitation of one of the biggest Greek construction companies “MICHANIKI”, that was developing its activities in Ukraine, and to become the general constructor.
By prominent chance the first works are completed in Greek Square in Odessa before the building of “Filiki Eteria”. Since then these two sightseeing places that symbolize the historic fraternal relationship between the two nations inextricably connect him with his new native land.
These strong ties could not have been weakened even by the plane crash in December 1997, where 23 Greeks (his colleagues and friends from “MICHANIKI”) and 50 Ukrainians died. On the contrary, the tragedy convinced him to move forward and work for those who died and those who feared to come back.
At the end of 1997 having estimated the perspective of the development of Ukraine and its colossal demand for contemporary domestic, office and other buildings, he established the company “Gefest” with the main office in Odessa. Today, after about 20 years of successful activities and sustainable development, “Gefest” ranks among the biggest construction companies of Ukraine, whose plans comprise the realization of construction projects of more than 450 000 sq. metres of the real estate.
The construction projects that are already built and those that continue to be built in Greece, Odessa, Kiev and Mariupol (domestic, office buildings, trade centres, restaurants and hospitals) are notable for the high quality of construction work and distinctive aesthetic decisions and have made “Gefest” the synonym of reliability, high professionalism and innovation.