Vassilis Vovos

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Vassilis Vovos was appointed Regional President of Western Europe at Japan Tobacco International (JTI) in 2014.1

Long-Standing Career in the Tobacco Industry

Vovos started working in the tobacco industry in 1991, when he joined tobacco company RJ Reynolds Greece, where he held various marketing positions.
In 1997 he became Senior Director at RJ Reynolds International, and soon after VP Marketing & Strategic Planning for Southern Europe & Northern Africa Region.
In 1999 he joined JTI after the acquisition of RJ Reynolds International by Japan Tobacco in that same year, and has held several senior management positions since, including:

  • Regional President of Western Europe (2010)
  • Regional President for Central Europe (2010)
  • General Manager JTI France (2002)
  • Vice-President and Deputy General Manager for JTI France (2001)
  • Vice President Marketing & Sales Europe (1999)

Criticised European Court of Justice Ruling on Tobacco Products Directive

In 2016, Vovos, alongside tobacco packaging lobbyist Mike Ridgway and a spokesperson for British American Tobacco (BAT) strongly criticised the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling on the validity of the European Union Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) in trade journal Talking Retail.2
The ECJ ruling dismissed claims made by Philip Morris International and BAT, formally supported by JTI, that the TPD was without legal basis and did not comply with the principle of subsidiarity.34
Vovos was quoted in Talking Retail saying: “This ruling goes against a fundamental purpose of the EU treaty, which is to further improve the functioning of the market by way of harmonised legislation”.5

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References

  1. ↑Japan Tobacco International, Our leadership: Vassilis Vovos, undated, accessed October 2017
  2. ↑Staff Writer, Trade braced for new tobacco restrictions, Talking Retail, 16 May 2016, accessed October 2017
  3. ↑BrickCourt Chambers, Administrative Court asks the Court of Justice of the European Union to rule on the validity of the Tobacco Products Directive, 4 November 2014, accessed October 2017
  4. ↑Court of Justice of the European Union, The new EU directive on tobacco products is valid, Press release no.48/16, 4 May 2016, accessed October 2017
  5. ↑To learn more about the tobacco industry’s opposition to the TPD, visit our page on the EU Tobacco Products Directive Revision.

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