Hanzade Doğan Boyner
Hanzade Doğan Boyner | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1972 Istanbul, Turkey |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, business leader, philanthropist |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Known for | Founder and chairperson of Hepsiburada; Chair of Doğan Online Group Companies; Vice chairwoman of Doğan Holding |
Hanzade Doğan Boyner (born 1972) is a prominent Turkish entrepreneur, business leader, philanthropist, and a trailblazer in the e-commerce sector. She established and chairs Doğan Online Group Companies, which stands as the largest internet conglomerate across Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Additionally, she is the founder and chairperson of Hepsiburada.com, frequently referred to as “The Amazon of the East.” In July 2019, Forbes recognized her as “one of the world’s leading women tech entrepreneurs,” while Fortune Turkey acknowledges her pivotal role in advancing Turkey's digital evolution.
Serving as vice chairwoman of Doğan Holding, one of Turkey’s foremost conglomerates with interests spanning energy, media, industry, commerce, insurance, and tourism, Hanzade Doğan Boyner has also held leadership positions such as chairing the Doğan Media Group, which owns Posta, among Turkey's highest-circulation newspapers. She has further contributed as chairperson of Petrol Ofisi.
A regular participant in global business events, she delivered presentations at the 2020 World Economic Forum in Davos and the 2019 Fortune Global Forum held in Paris. She holds the roles of founding member and vice chairwoman at the Global Relations Forum, serves on the Board of Trustees at the Brookings Institution, and is a member of the Board of Overseers at Columbia University’s Columbia Business School.
Early life
Hanzade Doğan Boyner was born in Istanbul in 1972 as the third daughter of Aydın Doğan, a Turkish billionaire media magnate and founder of Doğan Holding, one of Turkey's largest business groups. Her mother, Sema Doğan, was a Board Member at Doğan Şirketler Grubu Holdings.
She completed her secondary education at Lycée Français Saint Michel in Istanbul before obtaining a bachelor's degree from the London School of Economics. She then pursued an MBA at Columbia University in New York City.
Business career
After finishing her studies at LSE, Hanzade began her professional journey as a financial analyst within the Chartered Market Technician (CMT) department at Goldman Sachs’ London office.
Following a short tenure working in the family enterprise, she founded Doğan Online, Turkey’s premier internet holding company. She launched Hepsiburada in 2001 and later established Nesine in 2006.
Hepsiburada
Hanzade founded Hepsiburada in 2000 and has been lauded by Fortune Turkey for driving digital innovation throughout the country. The platform is often dubbed "the Amazon of the East."
Under her guidance, Hepsiburada Group operates Turkey’s dominant e-commerce marketplace and extends its influence regionally. The company’s comprehensive ecosystem includes Hepsijet (last-mile logistics), Hepsipay (a licensed online payment service), and Hepsiexpress (offering a wide range of products from groceries to electronics).
Nesine
Established in 2006, Nesine leads Turkey’s sports betting sector and acts as the official e-ticket distributor for the National Lottery Administration. It delivers daily horse racing updates, statistics, race outcomes; streams Iddaa games online and via mobile; and hosts a coupon-sharing platform for Iddaa users.
Philanthropy
In 2017, Hanzade Doğan Boyner introduced the Women’s Empowerment through Technology initiative, which has supported more than 5,000 women entrepreneurs across 72 cities in Turkey. This program allows women to launch virtual shops on Hepsiburada without any fees while providing e-commerce training, commission discounts up to 75%, free shipping for six months, enhanced advertising exposure, SEO/SEM assistance, complimentary studio access for product photography, marketing support, and exclusive customer service channels.
As President of the Aydın Doğan Foundation, she leads philanthropic efforts focused on education and female empowerment within Turkey. Her campaign "Dad, Send Me to School" addresses economic and cultural obstacles by awarding over 50,000 scholarships and building 33 dormitories for girls nationwide—significantly boosting female school attendance.
Ms. Doğan Boyner has been honored multiple times as Turkey's 'Most Successful Woman in Business' by esteemed institutions such as Gazi University, Boğaziçi University, Istanbul Technical University, and Yıldız Technical University. In 2019, she was recognized among the world’s top women tech entrepreneurs.
Personal life
In April 2007, she wed Osman Boyner, a Turkish entrepreneur serving as the CEO of Boyner Sanayi A.Ş. The couple has two daughters.