There was no shortage of conversations last night in Kolonaki and the northern suburbs about the loss of Panos Marinopoulos — “Panaras,” as everyone called him, though only his closest friends used the nickname.

His passing at the age of 74 closes a life that could easily have been a novel: rich in episodes, full of colour, and often lived to the extreme.

Perhaps it was because he was by far the most recognizable member of the Marinopoulos family — a larger-than-life figure who could spend long hours working at the FAMAR pharmaceutical company and then stroll through cosmopolitan Athens in the ’90s until dawn.

His health had deteriorated significantly in recent months, and yesterday morning he passed away in a private hospital, leaving behind a life full of stories.

The Beginning and the End

A third-generation member of the well-known business dynasty, Panos Marinopoulos was born in Athens in 1951. He grew up in a privileged family environment alongside his brothers, Panos and Leonidas.

After graduating from the Pharmacy School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, he continued his studies in Paris, at the Institut des Sciences Politiques, escaping the Greece of the Junta.

There, he fell in love with the good life — Parisian nights, bar culture, and fine dining — passions he kept even after returning to post-dictatorship Greece to work in the family businesses.

At FAMAR, he held key management roles, serving on the board and driving the company’s strategy for expansion in Europe through acquisitions and new production facilities. He also played a major part in the development of “Carrefour Marinopoulos” and served as chairman of “Sephora Marinopoulos,” strengthening the group’s presence in the Greek market.

Together with other family members, he also helped bring Starbucks to Greece through the company that acquired the chain’s Greek rights.

Love, Marriages, and Urban Legends

Unlike his brothers, who kept a low public profile, Panos Marinopoulos loved good food and nightlife. Those who spoke of him on Thursday recalled his unforgettable presence at glamorous parties, clubs, and nightspots in an Athens that no longer exists.

His first serious relationship was with the beauty of the era, Bella Adamopoulou, but it did not last. Shortly after their breakup, he met the charming Olga Goulandris, from the well-known shipping family. They married, though the union proved short-lived despite high expectations.

They had a son, Yiannis, and remained on good terms after their divorce.

Afterwards, Panos continued to enjoy Athens’s nightlife with friends and companions, until he met the woman who would become the great love of his life — even though they eventually divorced in 2014, two years before the collapse of the family group.

Their relationship was a textbook case of “love is blind.” His romance with Ioanna, who worked as a model, began in the late 1990s. Gossip at the time claimed she had been a supermarket cashier before meeting him — rumours that follow every society romance of that era.

Their marriage seemed like the natural outcome of a passionate love story. Over the years, the striking young woman evolved into a stylish figure, embracing Chanel, Gucci, and later Prada.

Panos, meanwhile, indulged wholeheartedly in food, something that earned him plenty of extra weight. Rumour had it his elegant wife repeatedly tried to put him on strict diets. One urban legend says that, unable to endure the diet, he once escaped to a Kolonaki hangout and ate two kilos of fried meatballs before Ioanna tracked him down — though she did eventually manage to slim him down for a while.

Ioanna experienced serious health complications during her attempts to become a mother. After losing a baby in her sixth month of pregnancy — reportedly due in part to dietary factors — she radically changed her eating habits, transforming her life.

Miami, Separation, and a Third Marriage

The births of their two sons, Panos and Leo — now 27 and 22 — brought the couple closer for years. Ioanna, who had studied architecture and interior design, began applying her talent to the family’s boats, which her husband frequently changed. Her aesthetic sense quickly became apparent and admired.

Their pre-crisis life in Greece was sprinkled with the glamour of the era: trips abroad, Christmases in London, New York or the Alps, summers on the boat or at their spectacular Mykonos home in Tourlos, where Ioanna hosted legendary birthday parties.

The couple also made appearances at top nightlife spots, often spotted alongside high-profile personalities like Eleni Menegaki — until they discovered Miami.

They purchased a stunning home there — reportedly acquired by his then-wife — which eventually became their permanent residence. Ioanna thrived professionally, decorating homes in Athens, Paris, New York and the Hamptons, and even receiving a nomination for Best Young Boat Designer.

Her website features interviews about her philosophy, childhood, and work — with no reference to her husband, unsurprising given that the couple separated quietly in autumn 2014, shortly before the group’s collapse.

Still, some were taken aback a few months later when the former couple appeared dining together at Ratka in Kolonaki. “Nothing between them seemed different,” one patron remarked. But in reality, much had changed — especially for Panaras, who gradually withdrew from social life.

What was not widely known until now is that another woman had entered his life over the past four years, and their relationship had steadily deepened. Last March, Panos Marinopoulos and his partner, Elena Nakou, formalized their relationship with a civil wedding in a northern suburb, attended by a few close friends.

Tragically, their married life lasted only a few months. Shortly afterwards, Panos was struck by a disease that gradually paralyzed his muscles and vital organs, ultimately leading him yesterday morning to the loneliest journey every human must take.

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