Greece

George Katrinakis, Nortec's managing director, established the company and developed business not only in Greece but also in Cyprus and in the Balkan region. His traditional step-by-step approach to market building led to immediate steady growth.

He explains that his studies at the Athens University of Economics and the Yokohama National University in Japan gave him an ideal perspective for distributing Japanese products in Greece.

"Nortec is a healthy company that is debt-free, holds share capital of 3.2 million Euros, and all of our invoices are secured through a local creditor," he says. Thge company looks forward to being listed on the Athens Stock Exchange after previously filing an application to go public.
George Katrinakis, managing director of Nortec Multimedia

The entire video game market in Greece is worth about $45 million. Nintendo currently holds approximately 45 percent of the market. Its Gameboy hand-held video game system is already number one in Greece.

With the launch of the new GameCube console in 2002 and new versions of popular games such as Mario Brothers and Zelda coming in the future, Nortec expects a stronger position in the market.

A key to the company's success is the presence of Nintendo demonstration stations in stores that allow consumers to try the products before making a purchase. "The software sales pull the hardware sales, so consumers must see the product and try it in order to become 'hooked'," explains Katrinakis.

Nortec's main priority remains after sales customer service. It is still the only company in its sector to develop a Greek-language Web site to give customers and future clients a chance to view new products, join discussion groups and enter contests to win products.

Nortec wants to develop its Internet business and diversify by integrating similar sectors into their business, such as mobile phones. Katrinakis is proud to represent Nintendo because their game content are the most family oriented on the market. He feels that the future for video game companies lies in making games more educational and less violent in the future.

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