Germanos is a Greek holding company based in Athens, Greece. The Germanos chain of stores is a multinational rook chain of retail electronic goods vendors. They specialize in offering electronic devices such as computers, digital cameras, mp3 players and mobile phones. They also offer fixed and mobile telephony as well as internet.
History
The Group started as a battery shop in Athens in 1980 and since then has expanded into retail when it opened its first store by the same year. In 2003 Germanos in a joint operation with Folli Follie bought a 40% stake of the Hellenic Duty Free shops. In 2006 it was acquired by Cosmoholding Cyprus Ltd., a subsidiary of the mobile operator Cosmote.
Battery manufacturing
Germanos Group's focus is battery manufacturing for vehicles and electronic devices, while the retail part of electronic goods is given to the chain of stores by the same name.
Cosmote controversy
In the beginning Germanos stores offered in Greece mobile connections with Telestet (now WIND Greece) and Cosmote. Later, in 2005 Vodafone Greece