George & Alexandros Kikizas | A leadership with vision and values

How Georgios and Alexandros Kikizas turned a family business into the leading Greek pasta industry

This year the Kikizas family is celebrating 100 years in the food business. A journey that has been full of strategic growth moves, acquisitions, exports and development goals that have led the Melissa brand under the leadership of Georgios Kikiza to become the No. 1 pasta brand in Greece, ahead of its Italian competitors. The new generation of the company's management under Alexandros Kikiza, launched its cooperation with the leading American retailer Walmart, confidently turning its gaze abroad.

The company was launched in 1923 by Athanasios Kikiza, who created a food store on Lenormann and Palamidiou streets in the area of Metaxourgeio in Athens. However, the first factory of the Melissa Pasta Company was created in 1947 when Alexandros Kikiza founded the Melissa Pasta Production Facility in Athens. A milestone in Melissa's development is considered to be 1974 when a semolina mill was built in Larissa.

The vision of Georgios Kikiza

In 1975 George Kikizas -son of Alexandros and Constantina- took over the management of the company and put in place a plan for the company's development. In 1977, he acquired the Thessalian pasta factory 'Deveta'. Three years later, in 1980, he completely transferred the company's production from Athens to the Thessalian town. Thus Melissa owns the first vertically integrated pasta mill and factory complex in Greece with a capacity of 20,000 tons per year, gaining a significant competitive advantage.

Indeed, it became the No.1 pasta producer in Greece and was ranked among the 10 most profitable food companies. Georgios Kikizas listened to the need of the then emerging hospitality industry in time, by creating a branch of Food Service products sales to hotels, restaurants and the entire catering industry. In 1998 already, Melissa Kikiza's total annual exports exceeded 15,000 tonnes.

Under the leadership of Georgios Kikizas, the company proceeded to acquire in 1999 the Stella pasta company, which held the third place in the market at that time. He ensured the development of partnerships with major foreign food companies. In 2000 the company took over the representation of Del Monte products in Greece, while it acquired the Polish distribution company Atlanta, as well as the traditional pasta producer Vlacha of the Bekkiaris family. Seven years later Melissa acquired the pasta industry ABEZ, which held a dominant position in Northern Greece.

While it played a leading role in a joint acquisition, when it was active in the tomato sector in cooperation with the Italian company Star Prodotti Alimentari, as the two companies jointly acquired the tomato products production plant "Pelargos" in Gastouni, Ilia. This acquisition marked the beginning of the creation of one of the most successful brands in the Greek food market, Pummaro. Its success was so great that ten years later, in 1999, it was sold to Unilever and Deca Investments.

The company's further growth and search for new products led to the launch of the wholemeal pasta range (2007), the popular Melissa Pasta Kids children's pasta (2009) and the completion of the five-year €11 million investment programme at the Larissa plant. The dawn of the 2010s found Melissa Kikizas increasing its annual capacity to 90,000 tonnes of pasta.

Alexandros Kikizas, the modernist

In 2013, the grandson of the founder and son of George Kikizas, Alexander Kikizas, joined the company as Managing Director, with his father remaining President. During that year the company entered into a cooperation and distribution agreement in Greece with the multinational company Kraft-Heinz, and launched gluten-free pasta, demonstrating in practice its alignment with new trends and consumer needs.

These trends spoke of sustainability, 'green' choices, education and investment. That's why the company collaborated with the American Farm School of Thessaloniki for the launch of the Melissa Golden Choice range, while specialising in whole wheat pasta, with products made from two-grain wheat and launching pasta with beta-glucan complex and high protein (+50% protein).

Entering olive oil market with Terra Creta

Melissa Kikiza's intention to evolve into a group that will offer the best products of Greek nutrition to the whole world was signalled in December 2021, when Melissa Kikizas entered the olive oil category with the acquisition of 100% of the share capital of Terra Creta by the business group of Yannis Grylos (the current IOGR group).

The company, based in Kolymbari, Chania, is active in the production of extra virgin olive oil and has a state-of-the-art vertically integrated olive press and bottling complex. The Extra Virgin Olive Oil Terra Creta Grand Cru of the Koroneiki variety was ranked in 2020 among the ten best olive oils worldwide and as the No. 1 multi-awarded Greek olive oil in the world.

In 2022, Terra Creta's turnover increased by 31.2% to 21 million euros and volumes increased by 10% to 4,500 tonnes, while for this year an increase of around 30% is expected. 97% of its sales are export sales - it exports its products to 43 countries and cooperates with more than 100 food chains in Greece and abroad - while in 2024 the brand will enter the domestic organised retail market more dynamically. The best market for Terra Creta's virgin olive oil is Germany, while the company's products were among the top three in the top international Mario Solinas competition.

The export-oriented philosophy

The new generation of leadership under Alexander Kikizas has made it a priority to strengthen Melissa Kikiza's export activity. Last year, the value of exports increased by 80% to 40 million euros, with a target of 54 million euros this year. The best of the 35 markets for Greek pasta were Saudi Arabia - where it exports branded products - Germany - with a strong presence of private label products - Belgium, China, Poland and Cyprus.

It is the United States market, however, that is now emerging as the best export market for the traditional Greek pasta industry, due to the recent agreement with the leading retailer Walmart and two more good deals for the American market, which will start to run from next June.

The partnership with Walmart

After participating in a Walmart competition, with the participation of 900 pasta industries from all over the world, Melissa Kikizas was named at the beginning of the year as a Key European Supplier and among the 5 companies selected to work with the American retailer.

The American retail giant already absorbs around 10,000 tons per year of private label products with high profit margins for the Greek company and prospects for the promotion of branded products, while a high-level delegation of executives of the American group is due to arrive for discussions within the next few days.

The investments

In June 2022 the General Directorate of Development Laws and Foreign Direct Investment of the Greek Ministry of Development approved the inclusion of Melissa Kikiza's new investment in the provisions of the Greek Development Law. The investment concerned the expansion of the capacity of an existing production unit by 70,000 kg/day of pasta products by adding a new production line (cutter type) for pasta. The investment, which is being carried out at the industrial plant in Larissa, has a total eligible cost of EUR 5,642,967.

This move is part of a wider investment programme that started in 2018 and is expected to be completed in 2024 with a total cost of €45 million. The project also includes the creation of a new production line for long pasta, which will start in June and is expected to be completed by the end of the year, in order to further strengthen its production potential, which currently stands at 100 thousand tonnes of pasta per year, ranking Melissa among the ten largest producers in Europe.

What about now?

Melissa closed 2022 recording a significant 67% increase in revenue to EUR 119 million, a figure that includes the increased turnover of Terra Creta, which was acquired at the end of 2021. The company is now the largest wheat buyer in Greece, absorbing 100 thousand tonnes of wheat annually. It buys and processes around 100,000 tonnes per year, 15% of which comes from contract farming, in which it has been active for the last 10 years, working with 700 producers who cultivate a total of 60,000 acres in Thessaly, Kozani and even Serres and Kastoria.

The Wheat Academy and the Museum

In 2013, the company proceeded with the creation of the Wheat Academy, aiming to upgrade agricultural production in our country by offering free educational programs and scholarships in cooperation with the American Farm School of Thessaloniki and Perrotis College.

Completing this year a decade of successful operation, the Academy is currently collaborating with six startups in the agri-food sector, aiming to reduce the carbon footprint of crops.

Each year, around 20 farmers attend the Academy's seminars and the first one to attend the Academy's all-expenses-paid free training programs at the American Farm School of Thessaloniki.

On the occasion of this year's 100th anniversary of the founding of the company and the 10th anniversary of the Wheat Academy, the inauguration of the newly created "Wheat Museum" took place at the Melissa factory complex at the 5th km of Larissa-Farsala, realizing the vision of George Kikizas, who collected the exhibits one by one.

The two leadership periods of George and Alexandros Kikizas, developed the company and led it on an extroverted journey, dutifully following low tones, listening to the needs of consumers – in such a way that Greeks continue till now to admit "I'm a macaroni man - what can we do?", following the famous campaign tagline of 1990.