This morning I got to see the leading trading company in Cyprus, Vassos Eliades Ltd. This company had a huge building and warehouse that staffed around 400 employees. This company is an importing and trading facility that brings their goods in from the port cities of Cyprus. The founder, Vassos Eliades was able to make strong relationships with other people and companies which is what brought them the most success. Vassos Eliades Ltd partnered with Nestle back in the early 1900s. Since the passing of Eliades in 1975 the company has been passed down to his two sons who have expanded the business even further. Now they are not only importing and distributing Nestle products to Cypriot stores but also wines and other goods. This company really impressed me and got me thinking of how I could fit into a supply chain.
The second half of the day I was able to listen to the long history of Cyprus from a professor at the University of Nicosia. Dr. Solomou’s history lecture was quite different from classes I have had at Pitt. Being an engineering student, I have not taken a history class at Pitt. However, my math and science course do not operate in the soley lecture style. Often times, there are visual to follow along with. Problems to solve as a class to keep my mind engaged. I think that Dr. Solomou has had many years of experience and is a wealth of knowledge which was demonstrated in his throughout review of how Cyprus came to be its own republic.