Founder of Apivita on how bees inspired her products

The founder of Apivita, Niki Koutsiana, has described how she was inspired to create products harnessing the natural properties of bee propolis.

"No one believed it would sell in Greece - not a soap that was black and has no fragrance!"

However, Niki and her husband overcame tough times and differences in business philosophy and now employ 200 people.

The firm grew slowly as they did not want to take on debt or outside investment.

"If you do something well and put your heart and soul into it, you will surely succeed," she said.