Chrysanthos Panas (Greek: Χρύσανθος Πανάς; born 16 November 1968) is a Greek

businessman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for th ...

, art collector,

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

of Greek Islands book by Assouline, member of the Intangible Cultural Heritage committee of the Greek National Committee of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

from

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

. In his native country he is mainly known as the owner of restaurants and clubs in Athens city center and the southern suburbs (the latter also known as

Athens Riviera Athens Riviera is the coastal area in the southern suburbs of Athens, Greece from Piraeus to Sounio. It is located about from downtown Athens stretching from the southern suburbs of Athens to the southernmost point of Attica, Cape Sounio. Histor ...

Biography

Panas was born in 1968 in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

and grew up in the seaside suburb of

Vouliagmeni Vouliagmeni ( el, Βουλιαγμένη, meaning "sunken") is a seaside suburb and former municipality 20 km south of Athens city centre. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni, of which ...

. He is a descendant of the noble Panas family of

Cephalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It i ...

which origins are traced back to the 16th century. A graduate of Deree the

American College of Greece The American College of Greece (ACG) is a private college and high school in Agia Paraskevi, Greece. It was founded by United Church of Christ American missionaries in 1875. It was originally a primary and secondary school for girls. As of 2020, ...

(Bachelor's Degree), Panas is married to

jewelry designer Jewellery design is the art or profession of designing and creating jewellery. This is one of civilization's earliest forms of decoration, dating back at least 7,000 years to the oldest known human societies in Indus Valley Civilization, Mesop ...

Elena Syraka and he is father of one child, the

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, th ...

Lil Koni.

Business career

Chrysanthos Panas started his involvement in business at a young age along with his older brother Spyros, when they took over the management of a beach bar within

Nautical Club of Vouliagmeni NO Vouliagmeni or "NOV" (Greek: Ναυτικός Όμιλος Βουλιαγμένης, "NOB" = Nautical Club of Vouliagmeni) is a major aquatic sports club, founded by local sportsmen in 1937 in the seaside resort of Vouliagmeni, Athens, Greece. ...

facilities. Later in 1992 the two siblings founded the Panas Group Sophisticated Hospitality. Over the years, Panas Group got the ownership and management of various restaurants and clubs in the greater Athens region.

Other activities

Starting in 1990, Panas managed to acquire an art collection of over 300 artworks of various artists including

Marina Abramović Marina Abramović ( sr-Cyrl, Марина Абрамовић, ; born November 30, 1946) is a Serbian conceptual and performance artist. Her work explores body art, endurance art, feminist art, the relationship between the performer and audienc ...

Stephen Antonakos Stephen Antonakos ( el, Στυλιανός Αντωνάκος; November 1, 1926 in Agios Nikolaos, Laconia, Greece – August 17, 2013 in New York City) was a Greek born American sculptor most well known for his abstract sculptures often incorporat ...

George Bouzianis George Bouzianis ( el, Γιώργος Μπουζιάνης; german: Jorgos Busianis; November 8, 1885 – October 23, 1959) was a major Greece, Greek expressionist painter. Biography He studied painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts with t ...

, and

Thomas Helbig Thomas Helbig (born 1967 in Rosenheim, West Germany) is an artist based in Berlin. Helbig attended the charitable organization A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

''ELEPAP-Rehabilitation for The Disabled'' (Greek: ΕΛΕΠΑΠ). In 2018 he was awarded by the president of Elpida Association of Friends of Children with Cancer,

Marianna Vardinogiannis Marianna Vardinogiannis ( el, Μαριάννα Βαρδινογιάννη, ''née'' Μπουρνάκη ''Bournaki'') married to Greek shipping magnate Vardis Vardinogiannis, is a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and an activist for the rights of childre ...

for supporting children with neoplastic disease.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Panas, Chrysanthos 1968 births Living people Businesspeople from Athens Greek art collectors Greek philanthropists Athens University of Economics and Business alumni People from East Attica