Athens, Greece
What Athens is made of: the communities whose institutions are here, the sectors its 25,614 businesses sit in, the franchises already on the ground, and the services a newcomer could start.
Business register for this city: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL 1.0 — named shops, offices, trades and services, which undercounts businesses that are not mapped.
25,614 businesses on file · 191 trades · 27 sectors · · built from geonet.athens on 2026-10-27
Visiting rather than moving? The free guidebook for Athens → — the free guidebook for this region: why go, what to see, what is open when it rains.
The local economy
What the business base is made of, what it is specialised in against the national pattern, and what that mix implies. This is the part a development office would read first.
Composition, not health. geonet records what trades exist and where; it does not record formation, closure, employment or revenue, so none of those appear here. What makes this economics rather than a directory is the NAICS coding: it lets the local mix be read against the BLS survival curves and against the 323 industry groups this research has screened.
Every industry group on this page links through to its NAICS page, and to the screened market report where this research has one — that is what the trait-to-NAICS coding buys.
What this city is specialised in
Location quotient is this city's share of a trade divided by the same share across 26 metro tables worldwide. Above 1.25 is the conventional threshold for a local specialisation.
Thin against the national pattern
Common trades that are under-represented here. For someone deciding what to open, this is the more useful half of the table — though a gap can mean unmet demand or a market that does not work here, and this does not tell you which.
The base against the entry screen
Businesses by the entry signal of the industry group they sit in, from the /markets screen. A large "structure decides" share means most local trades are ones where being better than the incumbent does not by itself win. A trade is matched to the screened record at whatever level the research wrote it — the same code, a broader one, or a narrower one. Where a group holds several screened sub-markets the count is shown, because no single one of them speaks for the whole group.
How to read the survival figure
Each sector's five-year establishment survival rate, weighted by how many of this city's businesses sit in that sector. It is a property of the MIX, not of these businesses — it says what survival this composition would imply at US private-sector rates, because no Canadian equivalent series exists.
Weighted over 100% of the coded base — public administration carries no curve. Source: Business Employment Dynamics — Table 7, Survival of private sector establishments by opening year, US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
And what it does not measure
A "mixed" trait is one that genuinely spans codes — "computers" covers systems design, repair and supply. The clear share is how much of this reading rests on unambiguous coding. Business density also reflects how completely the directory covers a place, not only how many businesses are in it — so it compares poorly between a city the register knows well and one it does not.
Who lives here, and who the city is for
The census: the only figures on this page that count people rather than businesses, and the three cohort readings they make possible.
No census subdivision is mapped for gr-athens in local/census-map.json, so this page carries no census figures. The mapping is kept explicit because Canada has several places called London, Toronto and Kelowna, and attaching the wrong one would put another city's demographics on this page.
People and languages
Who lives here and the languages business runs in: population and age from the statistics offices, and the share who can hold a conversation in English and other languages from the EU’s 2024 language survey. Each figure says whether it covers the city, the region or the whole country.
Languages spoken
- Official: Greek
- The census here does not ask about language, so no shares are given.
Doing business in English (and other languages)
- English 51% can hold a conversation (country, 2023) European Commission
- German 7% can hold a conversation (country, 2023) European Commission
- French 6% can hold a conversation (country, 2023) European Commission
Special Eurobarometer 540: share of residents aged 15+ who can hold a conversation in English as a non-mother-tongue language (EU27 average 47%). Fieldwork Sept-Oct 2023, published May 2024.
Age: under 15 13.2% · 15–64 68.9% · 65 and over 17.9% (metro, 2011) Eurostat · 1,082,872 households
Not established: Population and age figures are the Urban Audit 'greater city' (2.62 million, 2013), not the Municipality of Athens; Eurostat has no newer Athens city figure. ELSTAT 2021 census municipality figure not fetched.
The communities the register shows
A community appears in the business register before it appears in prose — a national church, a society, a credit union, a newspaper. Those are counted as institutions, and they are what suggests residents. A restaurant serving a cuisine is counted separately as trade, because every city has those and they say nothing about who lives nearby. The ranking is by institutions.
| Community | Institutions | Worship | Trade | Where it shows |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| German | 1 | — | 2 |
Deutsche Buchhandlung |
| Greek | — | — | 31 | |
| Arabic-speaking | — | — | 5 | |
| Chinese | — | — | 4 | |
| Italian | — | — | 4 | |
| Swiss | — | — | 4 | |
| Thai | — | — | 3 | |
| Brazilian | — | — | 3 | |
| Polish | — | — | 3 | |
| Spanish-speaking | — | — | 2 | |
| Afghan | — | — | 2 | |
| Indigenous | — | — | 2 | |
| Korean | — | — | 1 | |
| Vietnamese | — | — | 1 | |
| Filipino | — | — | 1 | |
| Czech | — | — | 1 | |
| Dutch | — | — | 1 | |
| Armenian | — | — | 1 | |
| Turkish | — | — | 1 | |
| Persian | — | — | 1 | |
| Caribbean | — | — | 1 | |
| Scottish | — | — | 1 |
Where the communities are
Streets, not neighbourhood names. The data knows that Greek institutions sit on one street and Greek restaurants on another; it does not know the word "Greektown", so it does not use it.
What the city is made of
Every business on file, grouped by the sector it trades in. This is the economic-development view: where the 25,614 businesses actually are, and the specific trades inside each sector.
| Sector | Businesses | Share | What is in it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail | 7,600 | 29.7% | pharmacy (868) · bakery (827) · supermarket (696) · convenience (451) · jewelry (431) · books (289) · electronics (162) · gifts (118) |
| Dining | 2,898 | 11.3% | restaurant (2823) · deli (64) · pasta (5) · food (3) · coffee shop (2) · burger (1) |
| Beverage | 2,613 | 10.2% | coffee (2481) · alcohol (95) · wine (19) · beverages (18) |
| Fashion | 2,047 | 8% | clothing (1742) · shoes (302) · wig (3) |
| Beauty | 1,423 | 5.6% | barber (892) · beauty salon (318) · cosmetics (129) · tattoo (47) · pet grooming (35) · piercing (1) · interior design (1) |
| Living | 1,023 | 4% | furniture (216) · theatre (176) · florist (164) · houseware (85) · dry cleaning (82) · sewing (58) · locksmith (34) · photography (30) |
| Business | 1,001 | 3.9% | association (74) · consulting (14) · research (6) · foundation (5) · staffing (3) · logistics (2) · religion (2) |
| Health | 857 | 3.3% | optician (310) · doctor (201) · hospital (54) · massage (21) · speech therapist (17) · physician (4) · nursing home (3) · podiatrist (2) |
| Travel | 856 | 3.3% | hotel (354) · museum (111) · laundry (96) · car rental (60) · travel agent (40) · bed and breakfast (13) · boat (7) |
| Automotive | 736 | 2.9% | car repair (369) · auto parts (125) · motorcycle (84) · car wash (81) · tires (75) · truck (1) · golf cart (1) |
| Entertainment | 703 | 2.7% | bar (451) · cinema (94) · nightclub (86) · music (29) · lottery (10) · video (7) · gambling (7) · charity (5) |
| Construction | 599 | 2.3% | electrical (92) · paint (58) · HVAC (39) · carpet (34) · plumbing (27) · electrician (21) · carpentry (12) · flooring (11) |
| Energy | 530 | 2.1% | fuel (530) |
| Finance | 483 | 1.9% | accounting (163) · financial advice (1) |
| Food | 429 | 1.7% | candy (242) · ice cream (85) · seafood (40) · health food (31) · spices (22) · cheese (8) · catering (1) |
| Education | 414 | 1.6% | driving school (136) · university (53) · library (52) · college (31) · music lesson (31) · training (2) · trade school (1) · art school (1) |
| Sports | 164 | 0.6% | sporting goods (104) · bicycle (48) · fishing (8) · hunting (4) |
| Media | 140 | 0.5% | printing (123) · publisher (15) · sign (2) |
| Realty | 100 | 0.4% | real estate (37) · apartment (37) · studio (18) · property management (8) |
| BioTech | 74 | 0.3% | laboratory (74) |
The franchises already here
Brands from a register of 2,024 franchise systems, matched into this city by name. A high count is a signal in both directions: the territory works, and it may be taken.
36 of these brands are a single common word — Metro, Avenue, Budget — so their counts include businesses that merely share the word. They are marked rather than dropped.
| Brand | Category | Here | Worldwide |
|---|---|---|---|
| My Market | supermarket | 48 | 69 |
| McDonald's | hamburger | 15 | 31,800 |
| La Vie en Rose | retail | 8 | 150 |
| Cartridge World | retail | 5 | 1,400 |
| Marks & Spencer | retail | 5 | 742 |
| The Body Shop | retail | 4 | — |
| Best Western | businesshotel | 3 | 4,200 |
| Harley Davidson locations | motorcycle | 3 | — |
| Brooks Brothers | retail | 2 | — |
| JD Sports | retail | 2 | 400 |
| Tommy Hilfiger | retail | 2 | 122 |
| Crowne Plaza | upscalehotel | 1 | — |
| Delta Hotels | accommodation | 1 | 40 |
| Hard Rock Cafe | food | 1 | 140 |
| Hilton Garden Inn | businesshotel | 1 | — |
| Jack in the Box | fastfood | 1 | 2,079 |
| Laura Ashley | retail | 1 | — |
| Max Mara | retail | 1 | — |
| Michael Kors | retail | 1 | — |
| Polo Ralph Lauren | — | 1 | — |
| Spring Rolls | food | 1 | 8 |
| Intersport name only | retail | 18 | 60 |
| Benetton name only | retail | 10 | — |
| Honda name only | car | 10 | — |
| Starbucks name only | coffee | 8 | 3,500 |
| Carrefour name only | supermarket | 7 | 2,455 |
| MANGO name only | retail | 6 | 850 |
| Sephora name only | inc | 6 | — |
| Michelin name only | auto | 5 | — |
| Mothercare name only | retail | 5 | — |
| Lacoste name only | — | 3 | — |
| Mitsubishi name only | auto | 3 | — |
| Nissan name only | auto | 3 | — |
| Roots name only | retail | 3 | 145 |
| Volkswagen name only | — | 3 | — |
| Bebe name only | retail | 2 | — |
| Champion name only | supermarket | 2 | 1,000 |
| HSBC name only | bank | 2 | — |
| IKEA name only | retail | 2 | 250 |
| Manor name only | retail | 2 | — |
| Toyota name only | car | 2 | — |
| Armani name only | fashion | 1 | — |
| COSI name only | food | 1 | — |
| Diana name only | supermarket | 1 | 3 |
| Europcar name only | car | 1 | 2,825 |
| Fantastico name only | supermarket | 1 | 27 |
| Gucci name only | — | 1 | 207 |
| Hyatt name only | upscalehotel | 1 | — |
| InterContinental name only | luxuryhotel | 1 | — |
| Irma name only | supermarket | 1 | 71 |
| Jeep name only | suv | 1 | — |
| Krystal name only | fastfood | 1 | 400 |
| Lululemon locations name only | sportswear | 1 | 81 |
| Marriott name only | upscalehotel | 1 | 2,800 |
| Radisson name only | upscalehotel | 1 | — |
| Renaissance name only | upscalehotel | 1 | — |
| Wolford name only | retail | 1 | — |
Real estate as a local trade
Four unrelated jobs share the name: selling existing homes, owning and letting them, managing them for someone else, and building new ones. For anyone weighing a move or a licence these are the counts — and the ownership question goes to /property, which answers it building by building.
Real estate is a local job market in its own right, and four unrelated trades get the same name. Counts are businesses filed under each trade in the register, which lists a brokerage once however many agents work there — so this measures firms, not licensees.
Selling homes
5312Offices of agents and brokers — the resale market, and the biggest single trade in most Canadian cities.
Named in the register
- Check House
- City Value Real Estate — Πινδάρου 15
- DK ATHENS REAL ESTATE
- Doriki — Δημοφώντος 19
- Greek Property Group
- Green Estate — Ούλωφ Πάλμε 33
- Horizon
- Kaisaras
- Kings & Queens Properties — Φειδιππίδου 8
- LEVEL REALTY — Παράδρομος Λεωφόρου Βουλιαγμένης 604
- Ploumis Sotiropoulos — Πανεπιστημίου 6
- Realty4value — Αγνώστων Ηρώων 88
- Γιάννης Καλδέλης
- Γούτος
Owning and letting
5311Lessors of real estate: the buildings themselves, filed under the building rather than the owner.
Named in the register
- 11147 — Ύδρας 4
- Amvrosia — Σωκράτους 52
- Arma
- Authorwave Post-Production Offices — Υμηττού 190
- Authorwave Post-Production Studios — Αμάσειας 8
- Casa grecia airbnb
- Central Apartments In Psiri
- City Life Athens Apartments
- Hestia
- Nest Apartments
- Newel
- Studio17
- V2 — Αιόλου 54
- Zero Gravity Studios — Σερβίων 8
Managing for owners
5313Property managers, who run buildings the landlord does not.
Named in the register
- Action Διαχειριστική — Αλίμου 92
- doValue — Κύπρου 87
- Exodos Development
- Holihouse
- Itsios
- Άβακας Διαχείριση Κτιρίων — Κανάρη 44
- ΟΙΚΟεξέλιξις — Μήτρου Σαρκουδίνου 90
- Στέγη
Who actually owns it
The full property record →From the /property research for this city, which asks a different question: not who trades in property here, but who owns it. An owner is named there only where a document says so. Cadastre gated by legal interest; EUR 9.50 certificate; no open owner data.
Landowners
- Hellenic Public Properties Company (HPPC / ETAD, Εταιρεία Ακινήτων Δημοσίου) — 36,000 real-estate assets being registered and valued; over 2,800 leases and concessions
- Growthfund – The National Fund of Greece (HCAP / Superfund; absorbed HRADF) — EUR 12.3bn AUM (2024); about 60 real-estate assets in its development book
- GAIAOSE (railway real estate; Hellenic Rail Estate) — 5,000 buildings; land plots over 100,000 stremmata (c. 10,000 ha)
- Hellenic Republic (Greek State) — Grantor of the AIA (to 2046) and Piraeus port (to 2052) concessions
Homebuilders
- LAMDA Development S.A. (The Ellinikon) — 671 units in Little Athens, 85–86% sold or reserved; EUR 291m residential revenue in 2025
- Dimand S.A. — 8 projects; fair value EUR 172.3m; GDV at completion EUR 964.3m (31.12.2025)
Commercial landlords
- PRODEA Investments S.A. — c. EUR 2.0bn AUM; EUR 1.05bn NAV; 1,269 hotel keys
- LAMDA MALLS Group (LAMDA Development S.A.) — EUR 1,761m GAV; 179k m² GLA in operation
- Premia Properties REIC — 79 properties; 580,000 m² GBA; EUR 722m investments
- Noval Property REIC — EUR 706.9m portfolio fair value (30.06.2026)
- Dimand S.A. — EUR 172.3m fair value; EUR 964.3m GDV (31.12.2025)
12 marquee buildings examined, 9 with an owner established.
On "how many doors"
How many doors a landlord holds is not in any of this. The register files an apartment building under the building, not its owner, and carries no unit count; there is no open dataset of Canadian landlords by portfolio. Where this research has established ownership it is in the Athens property record for the city, building by building, which is a different and much slower exercise.
Work on the go, mobile services
The Ultimate 411 half of local: everything where the customer does not have to come to you. Each service opens a page on Ultimate 411 to request a quote or book a time.
A shop needs the customer to walk in. These 186 services do the opposite — the mobile mechanic, the mobile groomer, the bookkeeper, the junk haul — and they are the ones a person can start without a lease. 3 of them already match a trait filed in this city's register.
The 186 Service=1 rows in search.local: work on the go, mobile services, where the provider travels to the customer. "present" counts businesses already filed under that exact trait name; a blank is a coverage gap, not proof of absence, because the two vocabularies were built separately.
home services
services
events
pets
luxury
healthcare
sporting goods
sports
business
outdoors
travel
construction
Schools and colleges
wander.schools is a post-secondary table — universities and colleges. K-12 public and private schools are not in it, and only 7 of its 1,686 rows carry coordinates, so these are listed and not mapped.
| Institution | Type | Students | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Technical University of Athens | University | — | — |
In the business register
Where schooling shows up as a business rather than an institution — which is where K-12, tutoring and childcare appear.
Health and care
What a person moving a parent here would ask first. The register files clinics and pharmacies; it has no category for a hospital at all, so hospitals are matched by name and the limit is stated rather than hidden.
Matched on the name "hospital"
- Doctors' Hospital
- Bike Hospital — Υμηττού 39
- Doctors' Hospital
- Metropolitan Hospital
- Metropolitan Hospital
- Metropolitan Hospital
geonet carries no 'hospital' trait, so these are matched on the business name. A distance-to-hospital figure needs a source that states hospital locations.
Mayor & politics
Who holds office here, from the official lists on /politics: the mayor and city council, and the national parliament members elected for the city. Each name opens its row there.
Christina Kefalogianni (Χριστίνα Κεφαλογιάννη) · Attiki Mprosta (Hardalias)
Georgios Vlachos (Γεώργιος Βλάχος) · Attiki Mprosta (Hardalias) +85 more
Funded & hiring here
Companies in this city that have raised money, and the careers pages of employers here, from the /employers research and the company database. For someone looking for work here, this is the shortlist.
Careers pages — 2 more employers here
Each link goes to the company's own careers page or official job board, not a third-party listing site. Largest local staff first.
| Company | Staff here | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Athens Stock Exchange (Athex)Finance | — | Careers → |
| Kaizen GamingEntertainment | — | Careers → |
What this record cannot tell you
Named in full, because the gaps are the part most likely to be misread as an answer.
- No census figures on this page: this region is not mapped to a census subdivision in local/census-map.json, so the community counts here are business-register institutions, which is a different measurement and cannot substitute for a population.
- wander.schools is now readable, but it holds universities and colleges only and 1,679 of its 1,686 rows have no coordinates. K-12 public and private schools need a separate source — in Ontario the Ministry of Education school finder, in British Columbia the provincial school list. wander.citytowns, hotels and territories remain denied to the ru user.
- No 'hospital' trait exists in geonet; distance to a hospital needs an external source such as StatCan's Open Database of Healthcare Facilities.
- 0.0% of businesses here carry no coordinates, so a map or address lookup would miss them. Postal codes reach 19.5%.
Built from
geonet.athens— the local business registerwander.regions— city name, population, metrosearch.local— trait vocabulary and the come-to-you servicessearch.cozfranchises— 2,024 franchise brands