Eczacıbaşı
Eczacıbaşı Holding is a Turkish industrial group of companies founded in 1942. The group with 44 companies has 11,400 employees and a combined net turnover of TL 11.1 billion in 2020. Group. Eczacıbaşı's core sectors are building products, pharmaceuticals and consumer products. Additionally, the group is active in finance, information technology, welding technology and real estate. Eczacıbaşı has distribution networks for pharmaceuticals, building products and fast-moving consumer goods. Internationally, Eczacıbaşı is known for its flagship VitrA brand, a contender in global bathroom and tile markets. It is also an exporter of tissue paper, pharmaceuticals, welding electrodes, electronic  smart cards and industrial raw materials such as clay and feldspar. International partnership is a central component of the Eczacıbaşı Group's growth strategy. Eczacıbaşı has four international joint ventures and numerous cooperation agreements with international companies. Founder. Dr. Nejat Eczacıbaşı (1913–1993), the founder of the Eczacıbaşı Group, used to say that "the real measure of private entrepreneurship is the success with which it increases the wealth of the community as a whole". Süleyman Ferit Eczacıbaşı was the first university-educated pharmacist in the city of Izmir and had a long career of public service during the early years of  the Turkish Republic. He later on, was appointed "chief pharmacist" (Turkish: "baş eczacı".) With the introduction of the Surname Law in 1934, Süleyman Ferit adopted his title "Eczacıbaşı" as family name. Corporate social responsibility. Sports. Established in 1966, the Eczacıbaşı Sports Club trained many of Turkey's best sportsmen and women in the fields of basketball, volleyball, gymnastics and table tennis before focusing its resources exclusively on women's volleyball in the early 1990s. During this period, the Club won 13 National Championships in table tennis, eight National Championships in men's basketball, 12 National Championships in men's volleyball , and three National Championships in chess. Since 1968, the women's volleyball team has won 27 National Championships, seven National Cups and played in eight European Cup Finals, winning the “European Cup Winner’s Cup” in 1999. In addition to its A-team, the Club has three junior teams that have contributed players over the years to the A team, other first division teams and the Turkish National Volleyball Team. Public policy and scientific research. Eczacıbaşı Scientific Research and Medical Award Fund The Eczacıbaşı Group established this fund in 1959 to promote high caliber medical research. The fund has supported  171 medical research projects and presented 65 awards to Turkish scientists for research in health and medicine. Since 2002, the Scientific Research and Medical Award Fund is also supporting research carried out by medical students. The Eczacıbaşı Scientific Research and Medical Award Funds are presented every two years at Eczacıbaşı Medical Day. This biannual event organized by the Eczacıbaşı Group aims to provide a forum for scientists and health professionals in Turkey to discuss medical topics and developments in the health sector and to recognize the medical and health-related research of their colleagues. Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation  (TESEV) Eczacıbaşı is a supporter of the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation, an independent, non-profit think-tank dedicated to conducting and supporting research on public policy issues. TESEV is the successor of the Economic and Social Studies Conference Board, which Dr. Nejat Eczacıbaşı founded in 1961. Every year, the Eczacıbaşı Group sponsors a competition organized by TESEV to promote public policy-oriented research and encourage young researchers in this field. Turkish Informatics Foundation The Eczacıbaşı Group is a corporate sponsor of the Turkish Informatics Foundation, established in 1995 through the efforts of the Group's vice-chairman, Faruk  Eczacıbaşı, also the foundation's current chairman. The foundation's main goal is to contribute to the development of the legal, technical and physical infrastructure required for Turkey's transition to an information-based society.