With a Bocconi MBA, I Get Business Travellers Moving
Mike Koumartzakis earned his MBA at SDA Bocconi in 2006 after which he returned to Athens where he founded Figame.com, a travel organization, of which he is CEO. Since 2013 he is Chapter Leader of the BAA (Bocconi Alumni Association) in Athens.
Why did you choose SDA Bocconi and how was your experience in Milan?
The MBA had a really good reputation and I had a preference to study in Italy. This proved a fantastic year. We were exposed to top-level education and had the chance to interact with many top companies during the year. We had the opportunity to make some great friends and created a good, long lasting network. My company was born from a business plan I drew up as my final dissertation for the MBA, which proved a really useful exercise in analyzing my idea in-depth.
Why did you decide to enter the travel sector?
Opening a company was always something I wanted to do. I ended up being a travel organization because of an opportunity I saw in the market. I reckoned there was a lot of room for improvement and therefore a lot of potential.
What is Figame.com's business?
It was born as an online travel agency for the leisure sector but I soon realized this wasn't the most profitable path for my venture and so I readjusted the business and today we work almost exclusively for corporate clients, around 90% of our business, and only 10% of our business is online. Right now we exist in six countries (through 888vola.it, easyair.com, Figame.de, figame.es, figame.fr, figame.at, figame.gr).
What kind of period is the sector going through?
As is well-known, Greece's economy hasn't been enjoying a favorable period in recent years. Consumption in general, and thus travel, has been in downturn for some while. So the moment has been difficult. Luckily we are one of the largest operators, and as an entrepreneur even in rough times you have to lead from the front. We have worked on new travel software products and expanded into niche markets like convention travel. And to push forward we will soon be opening a new office in another country. We are already active in Italy where we operate the 888vola.it website dedicated to airline tickets for leisure travel. We have also recently signed a partnership with the easyGroup to operate the easyair.com online travel agent portal.
Why did you decide to become active in the BAA chapter?
I have a strong tie with Bocconi and with the time spent there. I really wanted to raise the visibility of Bocconi in Greece and to strengthen the network of alumni. It is not so well-known, but many Greeks go to study at Bocconi. The chapter meanwhile is growing and becoming better organized. We have close contacts with the Italian embassy in Athens and with the Hellenic Italian Chamber of Commerce of Athens. We organize important events, like last November 23, with the President of the Greek Parliament and the Italian Ambassador, on the topic of the survival and growth of SMEs.