Honorary President
YUSUF ÖZER
Yusuf Özer was born on June 18, 1934 in the province of Afyonkarahisar, Turkey. He attended primary and secondary schools in the same province, and started his professional life at an early age.
Yusuf Özer is known as YUSUF AĞA (Master Yusuf) not only in Afyonkarahisar, but also in Turkey’s business circles. He played a pioneering role in the commercial and industrial development of the province, and became one of its most prominent industrialists, having made considerable contributions to its economy.
His first executive role was as the general manager of a family business factory commissioned in 1950 to manufacture rubber shoes.
He served as Chairman of Board of the Özerler Family Group of Companies for 63 consecutive years, overseeing its expansion into various sectors in 1978 and beyond.
Yusuf Özer, the architect of the Özerler Holding A.Ş brand, attracted attention with his investments in the industrial branches of Turkey where there was a foreign dependency. In 1973, with the co-founding of the Fastaş Shoe Factory with French investors, he brought the very first foreign investment to Afyonkarahisar.
He created the Derby brand, which has been manufacturing rubber shoes and boots in Afyonkarahisar for 63 years, and also created Özerband A.Ş. to manufacture rubber conveyor belts, further reducing foreign dependency.
In 2005 he oversaw the purchase of Newko Balkan L.L.C. from the Privatization Administration of Kosovo, a production company engaged in the manufacture of conveyor bents, V belts and cord fabric, with over 500 employees, thus opening an European chapter in the company’s export history after its launch in Anatolia.
Yusuf Özer had a special bond with Afyonkarahisar, and cared deeply about the social development of the city, founding three primary schools in the province: one in the city center and two in the Sincanlı Serban Village. Furthermore, Özerler Mosque, which has a capacity of 1,000 people, has been serving adherents in Afyonkarahisar since 1999.
He was the Chairman of the Turkish Gendarmerie Foundation, the Afyonkarahisar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and a Member of the TOBB Board.
He was awarded the “TBMM Medal and License of Distinguished Service” by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey for his continuous contributions to political, social, commercial and industrial life in Afyonkarahisar.
He was a family man, fathered three children. He passed away on September 7, 2014.
LIFE OF YUSUF ÖZER, HONORARY PRESIDENT OF THE COMPANY