Lars Welinder

Lars Anders Christer Welinder is a Swedish born entrepreneur and businessman based in the United Kingdom. He was born on November 4, 1948 and grew up in Sollentuna outside Stockholm where he attained his college education followed by national service with the Swedish Navy.
In 1974 he married Margaretha and they have a grown up son.
Lars started his business career with Tektronix Inc, an American company in the electronics sector, where he assisted with the company’s European business planning and was then promoted to run the company’s Information Display Division in Scandinavia. He left Tektronix in 1974 to form Promote, a venture pioneering business-to-business marketing services. Promote expanded to become a dynamic international group, winning several awards.
Co-Founder of Europe Tax Free Shopping
In 1984 Lars co-founded Tourist Tax Free Shopping (ETS) in the UK (which later changed its name to Europe Tax Free Shopping) that provided a service to retailers for administrating, financing and marketing the refunding of VAT in order to maximise the trade potential from overseas visitors. ETS was acquired by FEXCO in 1991.
Taking Softvision Public
In 1992 he performed a “management buy-in” of Softvision, an IT learning video provider and spearheaded the transition of an entrepreneurial loss-making business to become a public company with subsidiaries in 9 countries. Softvision was floated on the Ofex (see PLUS Markets Group) market in London and in 1996 it was acquired by the publishing company Global Communications Plc. Lars acquired the Softvision production facilities and in 1997 he co-founded Itvision Group BV and became the Chairman of a venture pioneering interactive browser-based information and e-learning applications using video streams and animations. Itvision was acquired by Connecta/Adcore a public IT group in 1999.
Lars has served as a non-executive to several companies including Malaysia Enterprise Corporation, a company aiming to bring investments to Malaysia and to find new markets for Malaysian products and services. In 2004 he became a Freeman of the City of London and is now a Liveryman of the City’s Guild Company of World Traders.
Chairman of Mango Aviation Partners Ltd, Business Adviser and Mentor
After some 30 years’ experience in entrepreneurial businesses and management; both “hands-on” and at board level, Lars is now an advisor to businesses and mentor to business leaders. He is presently Partner and the Director of Europe, Middle East & Africa of Mango Aviation Partners Ltd, a consulting/resource practice servicing the global air transport industry.
Lars has completed a range of residential and non-residential courses in management, marketing and finance, including a Diploma in Company Direction (IOD, 1989) and Diploma in Marketing (CIM, 1990) and has extensive media training including for live press conferences, interviews and crisis management. He is a Fellow Member of both the Institute of Directors and the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
Lars has lived with his wife in the Thames Valley just west of London since 1983 and they now share their time between Maidenhead and Haverdal, just north of Halmstad on the southwest coast of Sweden.

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