Board of Directors

Cengiz Solakoğlu graduated from the Istanbul Academy of Economics and Business Studies in 1964 and started his career in sales at Beko Ticaret A.Ş. in 1967. In 1977, he was appointed General Manager. In 1983, he was appointed General Manager of Atılım under Koç Group, pioneering efforts to restructure and strengthen Arçelik’s “Authorized Dealer System.”

Solakoğlu took office as Vice Chairman of Koç Holding Consumer Goods Group in 1991, and as Chairman in 1994. After 38 years of service, he retired from Koç Group in 2004 due to the mandatory retirement policy at age 60. Solakoğlu chairs the Board of Şok Marketler Ticaret A.Ş. as well as Bizim Toptan. He is among the founders of TEGV and 1907 Fenerbahçe Association, and was named Leader of Civil Society by Ekonomist in 2003.

Mehmet Tütüncü holds a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from Gazi University and an MSc in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Maltepe University. He attended IRI scholarship training in Italy, completed executive programs at Harvard Business School, IMD, INSEAD, and completed the “Leading from the Chair” program at INSEAD/France in 2025.

He joined Yıldız Holding in 1996 as Business Coordinator at Ülker Gıda A.Ş., subsequently serving as General Manager of Ülker Biscuit and Chocolate plants, President of Food and Beverage Group, and President of Ülker International. In 2016, he became regional CEO at pladis, and in 2018 became CEO and Vice Chairman of Yıldız Holding. As of May 2025, he serves as Chairman of the Board and CEO of Yıldız Holding and Vice Chairman of Şok Marketler.

Born in 1959, Murat Ülker graduated from Boğaziçi University Department of Business Administration. He studied sector-specific subjects at the American Institute of Baking (AIB) and ZDS in Germany, and interned at Continental Baking in the United States, inspecting approximately 60 plants across the US and Europe.

Mr. Ülker joined the Group in 1984 as Control Coordinator, later becoming General Manager and leading cornerstone investments under the “Vertical Integration” model. In 2000, he became Chairman of the Executive Committee, and served as Chairman of the Board from 2008 to 2020. Since January 2020, he continues as Board Member of Yıldız Holding and Chairman of the Board at pladis and Godiva.

Graduating from Koç University Business Administration in 2016, Yahya Ülker worked in banking and food manufacturing in London and Switzerland. In 2018, he joined Yıldız Holding at Northstar Innovation, driving university-industry technology collaborations. In 2019, he founded and led Yıldız Ventures, focusing on corporate venture capital and venture incubation.

Having previously led sales operations and e-commerce at Şok Marketler, he serves as Vice Chairman of the Board and Chief Transformation and Technology Officer at Yıldız Holding. In 2026, he was appointed Managing Director, Europe for pladis. He is a member of TÜSİAD, DEİK Digital Technologies, and President of the Sabri Ülker Food Research Institute Foundation.

Dr. Uğur Demirel graduated from Ankara University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and completed his doctorate at Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa in Food Hygiene and Technology. Following managerial roles at Maret, Aytaç, Gima, and CarrefourSA, he joined Yıldız Holding in 2010 as General Manager of Pasifik Tüketim.

He has served as CEO of ŞOK Marketler since 2015. Following the consolidation of all retail companies within Yıldız Holding in 2024, he was appointed President of the Retail Group, overseeing ŞOK Marketler, Bizim Toptan, Seç Market, and g2m. He completed Harvard Business School AMP and INSEAD leadership programs, and serves on the board of directors of Yıldız Holding and its retail subsidiaries.

Graduating with honors from Boğaziçi University Department of Management in 1986, Tayfun Öktem received his MBA on full scholarship from the University of Minnesota (UMD) in 1988, and holds a Strategic Marketing Management certificate from Harvard Business School.

He held senior executive, CEO, and board positions domestically and internationally (London, Prague, Riyadh, Copenhagen) at Unilever, ReckittBenckiser, Ülker International, and Alliance Healthcare. He served two terms as Independent Board Member at Nokia Turkey (Alcatel-Lucent Teletaş) and served as Chairman of Darüşşafaka Society from 2019 to 2022.

Fatma Füsun Akkal Bozok earned her master’s degree from Boğaziçi University and her doctorate from Istanbul University Faculty of Business Administration. She began her career in 1980 at Arthur Andersen and joined Koç Group in 1983.

She served as Audit and Financial Group Coordinator (1992-2003) and Finance Group Director (2003-2006) at Koç Holding. She served as Board Member of Yapı Kredi Bank between 2004 and 2019. Currently, she serves as an independent board member at Otokar, Gözde Girişim, Kocaer Çelik, and Lila Kâğıt, and previously lectured at Sabancı University.

Born in 1966 in Izmir, Adile Esra Tözge graduated from Izmir American College and Boğaziçi University Department of Economics. She brings 12 years of executive experience in strategic planning, logistics, sales, and marketing from Henkel Turyağ and Saint Gobain Weber.

For 20 years, she has served at Kale Group as strategic advisor, Vice President, and Executive Board Member reporting to the President & CEO. She serves as Board Member at Kaleseramik, Kalekim, and Bodur Gayrimenkul, and is a Board of Trustees member at SEV, BUVAK, and KSV.