Meeting of the Business in Gabrovo and the Region

Tanya Hristova

Mayor, Municipality of Gabrovo

Tomislav Donchev

Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria

Tomislav Donchev was elected Deputy Prime Minister on May 7, 2017, by the 44th National Assembly. He was elected Deputy Prime Minister for European Funds and Economic Policies on November 7, 2014, by the 43rd National Assembly. From May to November 2014 he was a Member of the European Parliament from the EPP Group. From May 2013 to May 2014 was MP from GERB in the 42nd National Assembly. In March 2010 he became Minister for Management of EU Funds in the government of Boyko Borissov. In 2007 he was elected mayor of Gabrovo. The main priority in his work as mayor was to attract external funding and develop quality project proposals, through which Gabrovo Municipality became one of the most successful beneficiaries in Bulgaria in terms of management of EU-funded projects in all areas of social and economic life. 21 proposals were prepared in only 2 years. Of them, 19 received funding. From 1997 to 1999 he worked as a teacher at St. Cyril and St. Methodius High School of Humanities in the town of Veliko Tarnovo, where he taught psychology, logic, ethics, and philosophy. From 1999 to 2000 he worked as editor at Radio Gabrovo. From 2000 to 2004 he was Executive Director of the High-Technology Business Incubator -Gabrovo, and from 2004 to 2007 he was a program director at the Open Society Institute. Mr Tomislav Donchev holds a Master’s degree in Philosophy from Veliko Tarnovo Univesity St. Cyril and St. Methodius with a second major in Journalism. In 2006 he received a second Master's degree from the same University, this time in Business Administration. In 1998 Tomislav Donchev completed a training course in Political Science at the International Summer School of Political Science and International Relations in Poland. In 2001 he completed a training course in Support of High-Tech Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Research and Development Start-Ups at the Institute in Negev, Israel. In 2005 he completed a course in Business Mentoring at the Academy of Business Mentoring in Oxford, UK. From 1995 to 2000 he worked as a volunteer, member of the management and staff of various NGOs in the field of Education and Science and was also collaborator of a sociological research agency.

Alexander Manolev

Deputy Minister of Economy of the Republic of Bulgaria

Alexander Manolev holds a Master‘s degree in Economics from The University College London, Great Britain. He has specializations in Bulgaria and abroad, amongst which: "Management of Structural Projects of the EU", "Business Communications and Media Connections", "Investments in Developing Markets", etc. He commenced his professional career in the National Association of the Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria, where he was responsible for the development of projects for European financing. He worked in the sphere of marketing and he has occupied positions at medium and superior managerial level in a number of companies in telecommunication and finance sector. He was appointed as Deputy Minister of Tourism of The Republic of Bulgaria in 2015. In 2016 he undertook the management of the State Agency for Metrological and Technical Surveillance. Elected as a Member of Parliament of the Republic of Bulgaria in March 2017. Appointed as Deputy Minister of Economy in May 2017.

Ivo Prokopiev

Co-owner of Economedia Publishing Group, Chairman of the BoD and CEO of Alfa Finance Holding

Mr. Prokopiev holds a degree in Banking and Finance from the University of National and World Economy in Sofia and Executive MBA from INSEAD. Mr. Prokopiev is Chariman and CEO of Alfa Finance Holding. He is also co-owner of Economedia Publishing Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Bulgaria and the largest business media company in the country, owner of business daily Capital Daily, the influential weekly Capital and the leading news site Dnevnik.bg. Mr Prokopiev has been a member of the Board of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), member of the Board of the Directors of the European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA). He has been a Chairman of the Confederation of the Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria (KRIB). He is the Honorary Consul of Canada for Bulgaria and a former member of the Board of Trustees of Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski".

Ognyan Georgiev

Editor, Capital

Kaloyan Ivanov

CEO of AMK Drives and Controls, Gabrovo

Kaloyan Ivanov has a master degree in Electrical and Power Engineering from the Technical University in Gabrovo and Executive MBA from Cotrugli Business School. Mr. Ivanov is CEO of AMK Drives and Controls, Gabrovo since 2015. He started his career at AMK Bulgaria 17 years ago, holding the positions of ED, CTO and Procurator. The company is part of the AMK Holding Group, Germany- a market and technology leader in electric drive systems, offers innovative solutions for the automotive industry. AMK Bulgaria produces components for electric motors, with more than 90% of annual turnover being with customers from Western Europe.

Vladimir Todorov

Co-owner and CFO of Grafixoft

Nikolinka Hinkova

Chairman of the Board of Directors of "LS Tubes"

Georgi Stoef

Georgi Stoef, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Trakia Economic Zone

Georgi Stoeff is a co-founder of Industry Watch, a strategic consultant of Trakia Economic Zone and a co-creator of the educational program Entrepreneur as a discoverer. He graduated from the University of Leuven, Belgium, and began his professional career in the Institute for Market Economics. Georgi Stoeff is part of the circle of Bulgarian economist, who have been strongly defending tax cuts, pro-market reforms and minimal state intervention in the economy

Martin Zaimov

Executive Director of "Regional Urban Development Fund" AD

Assoc. Prof. Iliya Zhelezarov, Ph. D.

Vice-Rector in Charge of Research and Development, Technical University of Gabrovo