John Frangoulis, a loyal associate of Greek shipping icon Stavros Niarchos, died in Athens on 11 August.
He was 98.
“John was a man of high principles and values and leaves behind a strong legacy,” it was said in a press release by Franman, an Athens-based shipping services company founded by his son Costis.
John Frangoulis is also survived by daughter Lisa and four grandchildren — George, Elli, Polly, and Athena.
With more than four decades of service at Niarchos group companies, John Frangoulis was one of the closest business companions of the renowned Greek owner.
He began serving on Niarchos tankers in 1952, soon after graduating from the Hellenic Naval Academy.
Frangoulis drew much closer to his boss three years later, when he became captain of the Creole, Niarchos’s famous sailing yacht.
Senior onshore positions with group businesses across the world quickly followed.
Those included posts at Hellenic Shipyards, also known as Skaramangas; Venus Shipping Co. in Monte Carlo; Niarchos (London) Ltd; International Operations SA; and International Maritime Agencies SA.
Rising through the ranks, Frangoulis became Niarchos’s head of shipping in 1976. He retired 20 years later, just one month after Niarchos died, following almost 45 years of service in the group.
Frangoulis was also a founding member of the Piraeus Marine Club and a board member at the Hellenic War Risks Club, the Union of Greek Shipowners (UGS) and his own family’s companies Franman and Imperium Shipmanagement.
