Our Path in Time
1922
Mr. John D. Saracakis establishes in the city of Thessaloniki a business that will become one of the largest commercial and industrial Groups in Greece.
1922 – 1940
Many world-renowned companies, such as Renault, Fiat, Dunlop, Hudson και General Motors are represented and supported in Northern Greece from Saracakis company. In 1933, the relationship with DuPont de Nemours is initiated with exclusivity in Greece for automobile paints, along with other applications.
1941
The Head offices of Saracakis company are relocated to Athens.
1950
Volvo assigns to Saracakis company the exclusive import and distribution of passenger cars, trucks, buses and later on of marine engines, industrial engines and construction equipment.
1956
Volvo assigns to Saracakis company the exclusive import and distribution of passenger cars, trucks, buses and later on of marine engines, industrial engines and construction equipment.
1962
Ioannis D. Sarakakis meets Honda Motor during the first racing presence of a Honda motorcycle in Europe in the context of the Isle of Man T.T. At that point he decides to become the first Importer – Distributor of motorcycles of Japanese origin in Greece.
1963
Saracakis Group signs an official agreement with Honda as the exclusive importer for Honda motorcycles in Greece; the import actually started in year 1959. In the same year, Mitsubishi Motors awards the Group with the import and distribution of its passenger cars and commercial vehicles in the territory of Greece.
1965
The first Volvo buses with rear mounted engines are manufactured at the Group’s industrial facility in Athens. The buses are named SBAV. The total production of this bus model is to reach 1200 units. In the same year Saracakis Group signs an official agreement with Komatsu for the import and distribution of construction equipment and forklift trucks in the territory of Greece. The Group is their oldest distributor in the European region.
1968
The first Volvo buses with rear mounted engines are manufactured at the Group’s industrial facility in Athens. The buses are named SBAV. The total production of this bus model is to reach 1200 units. In the same year Saracakis Group signs an official agreement with Komatsu for the import and distribution of construction equipment and forklift trucks in the territory of Greece. The Group is their oldest distributor in the European region.
1977
The cooperation with Honda is expanded to include passenger cars, marine engines and power products.
1987
The Group starts officially its cooperation with Irizar buses.
1999
The industrial sector of Saracakis Group manufactures 120 articulated buses for the Athens bus company ( ETHEL ). The model was named ATHÍNA and was the first tri-axle articulated bus to be produced worldwide. The bus had a low bottom floor across its entire length.
2000
The industrial sector of the Group innovates again with the production of the first stainless steel bus (40 buses for the city of Thessaloniki).
2002
The industrial sector of the Group innovates again with the production of the first stainless steel bus (40 buses for the city of Thessaloniki).
2005
The Group expands its activities in neighboring Bulgaria with the establishment of a subsidiary company that handles the development of Renault Trucks in the country. In the same year, the group begins its cooperation with the Chinese manufacturer Anhui Heli for the import and distribution of their forklifts in the Greek market. This year also marks the development of various company owed retail sites for passenger cars throughout the country.
2007
Saracakis Group signs an agreement with Volvo Construction Equipment for the import and distribution of their products in the Bulgarian market.
2008
Saracakis Group signs an agreement with BAE Systems for the exclusive representation of their Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) which hold the second largest market share in Greece.
2009
The activities of the Group are expanded to the Cypriot market were it is awarded the import and distribution of Volvo Trucks and Buses.
2011
The Group becomes the official importer and distributor for the Italian warehouse equipment manufacturer OMG and the French generator set manufacturer SDMO.
2013
The Group expands in the battery and tire market and becomes the official importer and distributor of the following brands: Infinity, Titan, Apollo, and Kumho tires as well as Sigma Motion batteries.
2018
The Group expands into the agricultural sector and becomes the official importer and distributor for Massey Ferguson agricultural products in Greece.
2020
The Group expands its activities in the field of financing and leasing of commercial vehicles, passenger cars and motorcycles through a strategic partnership with Kinsen Hellas S.A.
2021
The Group expands its activities in neighboring Romania with the establishment of Sigma CVM Romania S.R.L in new, modern and functional facilities in Bucharest. The company’s main activity in Romania is the distribution of agricultural equipment while it is the sole official representative of Massey Ferguson in South East Romania and at the same time it represents other companies such as Mazzotti, Sumo, Siloking, Ziegler, Olimac, TopCon, Junkkari.
