Mr. Sancak was born in 1954 in Siirt. He completed his primary and secondary education in the same city. He graduated from Istanbul University Faculty of Business Administration in 1976.
Having adopted the principle of domestic development in the business world and Turkey’s leadership in global competition, Mr. Sancak gave priority to the health sector and founded Hedef Ecza Deposu (Hedef Pharmaceutical Warehouse) in 1981, which he turned into an international brand in a short time and formed a strategic partnership with Alliance Boots in 2001. He served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hedef Alliance and a Member of the Executive Board of Alliance Boots until 2014. Having consolidated his investments in the healthcare sector in the Medical Park Hospitals Group first, Mr. Sancak then left the healthcare sector and focused his investments in sectors such as media and defense industry.
Having said “The New Turkey Vision can only be preserved with the power of defense industry and international media” in 2013, Mr. Sancak acquired Türk Medya (Turkish Media) and Star Media (Star Medya) Groups and established the “ES Media Group”. Later, he has also acquired BMC, a Turkish brand.
In the last quarter of 2017, he left the media sector and focused on investments in the agriculture and livestock sectors while continuing to invest in the defense industry.
Considering being active in non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as an indispensable area of civilisation, Mr. Sancak is actively serving in a very rich and wide-ranging portfolio of NGOs within the capacity of managerial and membership positions.
Mr. Sancak was selected as the “Business Manager of the Year” in 2001 and the “Entrepreneur of the Year” in 2005. He was awarded with the “National Sovereignty Outstanding Service and Honor Award” by TBMM (the Turkish Grand National Assembly) in 2007. He was honored with the “Rio Branco Order of Merit”, Brazil’s highest service medal, by Mr. Lula da Silva, President of the Federal Republic of Brazil, for his services as the Brazilian Honorary Consul in Istanbul between 2006 and 2010.
Together with Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin, who introduced the contributions made by the Islamic civilization in the establishment of modern science to the whole world, he established the Fuat Sezgin Islamic and Science History Research Foundation in 2010.
Furthermore, Mr. Sancak served as the Chairman of the Board of the Turkish Pharmaceutical Warehouses Association between 2004-2010, a Member of the Board of Directors of TUSIAD (Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association) and the Chairman of the Social Affairs Commission of TUSIAD between 2007-2008, the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Istanbul Museum of Modern Arts, a Member of the Board of Directors of İKSV (Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts), a Member of the Board of Directors of TEGV (Turkish Education Volunteers Foundation), a Member of the Executive Board of ERG (Education Reform Initiative), Founding Member of TUSEDAD (All Dairy, Meat and Breeding Cattle Breeders Association), a Member of the TESEV (Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation) Board of Trustees, a Member of the Darüşşafaka Society High Advisory Board and a Member of the AK Party Headquarters Intra-Party Democracy Arbitration Board (DHK). He was awarded the “Turkish Red Crescent Gold Medal” for his sensitivity and assistance during the earthquakes in India and Pakistan.
Mr. Sancak is married and has three children.
