The Remarkable Journey of Xanthos Sarris and EUREKA
The story of Xanthos Sarris is one of remarkable transformation from a celebrated footballer to a visionary entrepreneur. Born to a Greek father and a Cypriot mother in Egypt, Sarris moved to Famagusta at the age of 12. His early life was marked by his academic pursuit in accounting and his athletic passion, which saw him establish the first organized accounting firm in Famagusta at the young age of 24 while also excelling in football and track and field athletics.
His personal life was equally eventful, with his marriage to Andriani Michailidou and later to Zacharoula Neophytou, with whom he had three children. It was with Zacharoula’s support that Sarris found the stability to embark on his entrepreneurial journey, founding EUREKA in 1959. The company’s first product, the “EUREKA super-whitener,” was produced in a modest one-room facility, marking the beginning of an enterprise that would grow to become a household name.
In the 1960s, EUREKA’s product range expanded rapidly, introducing iconic brands like AROXOL and TIK TAK into Cypriot and Greek homes. Sarris’s progressive “Management Beliefs” set a precedent for corporate ethos, emphasizing respect and honest collaboration long before such concepts were mainstream.
The 1970s brought both expansion and challenges. Sarris ventured into the food market with SAFEWAY FOODS and faced the adversity of the Turkish invasion. Demonstrating resilience and leadership, he relocated EUREKA’s operations to Limassol within a month, providing employment and housing for displaced workers, and by 1975 had established a new factory there.
As EUREKA grew, so did its international reach, with exports beginning in 1978. The sad passing of Xanthos Sarris in 1981 left his eldest son Nicos to continue his legacy. Today, EUREKA maintains a dynamic presence in Cyprus, Greece, and Romania, with Sarris’s philosophy of innovation, integrity, and social responsibility still at its core.
The EUREKA group stands as a testament to Xanthos Sarris’s belief in the power of creativity, resilience, and positive societal impact—principles that continue to guide the company towards success. Cleaning products have been just one aspect of this extraordinary success story that began with the exclamation “Eureka, eureka!”