Greeks have remained throughout their long history, mariners. They considered the sea a friendly and familiar environment and they quickly realized that the sea could offer them a way of life and a reasonable income. Seamanship came naturally to the Greeks and the reason is the landscape of their surroundings, the geographical position of Greece, the climate of the country and the endless coastline of it. Furthermore, the mountainous landscape of the country and the lack of farming area provided a poor harvest, something that further pushed the people of this area to set their eyes to the sea. This tendency remains until today. Greek shipping, from Piraeus, London and New York which are its key centers of operation operates a vast fleet which can fairly characterized as the backbone of world shipping.

Greek shipping is a domain of the Greek economy that shows great potential and dynamism. The main factor of the aforementioned dynamism is the internal cohesion and the common business philosophy that the Greek shipping entrepreneurs show. This fact created common economical and business entities which formed an international shipping network which operated with a common formality.

Furthermore, most of the Greek shipping companies are owned by Greek families. The management of them passes to the heirs of the family and in this way business practice also becomes a legacy of the family a fact that reinforces the commonly formatted practice of business.

This commonality helped Greek shipping companies to easily adapt to changes of external environment. Following the course of a successful compatriot with whom you actually share the same mentality and ethnicity and you trust his choices and course of action, can help you follow the same successful path like the one that he has already followed. Greek shipping has an international dimension as it developed in the international arena beyond the national boundaries of Greece. In the 1940s until 1960s Greek shipping operated from centers outside Greece, mainly New York and London. The aforementioned fact created a different mentality and culture to the Greek ship owners, which learned to operate in an extremely demanding environment. From mid-1960s the operational center of Greek shipping slowly moved in the country, to Piraeus. Nevertheless, its dynamism and international stimuli remained and always triggered the innovative spirit of Greek shipping.

On the other hand the Greek state is steadily trying to create the proper environment for the development of shipping entrepreneurship. Actually, Greek shipping policy has always been based on a steady institutional framework. Under this framework the Greek state established principals that guaranteed free and fair pricing and the abolition of any protectionism measures that hinter competitiveness. Greek shipping policy has always been orientated towards respect and compliance with International Convention for the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982) and the other international shipping conventions. The strategic target of this policy is to secure Greek ship competitiveness.

Greek shipping has always been an important part of the national economy. Additionally, it shaped the mentality of the Greek society by providing economical and social stereotypes. Therefore, it is domain of the Greek economy that should be examined closely.