Owner and CEO Angeliki Frangou What separates Angeliki Frangou from many of shipping’s larger-than-life characters is a trait that some believe is the key to her continued success as the head of the Navios empire.
“People relate to her because she is real,” said Sheldon Goldman, the senior managing director of Manhattan-based boutique S Goldman Advisors, which has been helping the Greek owner tap the capital markets for nearly a decade.
“I’ve been in lengthy meetings where she’ll sense someone is tired and asked if they needed a cup of coffee. Then she’ll personally serve it. Every time I see this, I think to myself here’s the chairman and CEO not only asking about someone’s welfare, but then taking care of it personally and not think anything of it.
“It’s a natural leadership quality, and I think it strikes everyone in the room when they see it or are the object of it. It represents a very interesting human quality that most people simply do not have.”
Outside the boardroom, those who know Frangou describe her as a “classic” who feels comfortable at the opera or roman ruins, an avid traveller and adventurer who “views the world through the prism of history”.
“There is tremendous personal warmth from Angeliki,” Goldman continued. “She takes great interest in people. She treats you well, she cares about you. It’s not put on, its natural, this is who she is. This often translates into great loyalty and a catalyst for excellence as people don’t want to let her down.”