Ashot Karapetyan is the first District Governor from Armenia taking the reign of District 2452 and has made incredible strides since he attained the position. He is also the CEO of ABCommunications Advertising Holding, considered one of Armenia’s fastest developing advertising and marketing holdings. Karapetyan is a leading figure in the Rotary Club and has received many awards and recognitions due to his contribution to society and business that include: Special Award from Ministry of Defense of Armenia in 2020, Recognition Award from Government of Armenia in 2017, Major Advertising holding of Armenia by Finance Ministry Taxpayer magazine in 2015, International Standards in Business by Revenue Committee Taxpayer magazine in 2012 and Year Businessman by Business Class magazine in 2010.
Ashot Karapetyan hails from Armenia and has a Master’s degree in Engineering and also possesses a Business Leaders Development certificate program from the East-West Academy in Austria. Karapetyan has always been a determined individual achieving everything he sets his mind to, which led him to set up his food processing company after attaining his degree.
Given the rise of advertising in the early 2000’s Karapetyan then pivoted to start an advertising business in 2004. With the increasing success of his company in 2010, he, together with three other companies, decided to unite, putting forward the priority of becoming the leading advertising holding in Armenia by providing the best services to their customers. The organization is currently the most prominent advertising holding of Armenia, with the most extensive coverage of outdoor vehicles, large format print houses, digital marketing and event management agencies.
However, Karapetyan has always been an empathetic individual striving to serve others and did not forget his role in serving humanity while excelling in the corporate world. He joined the Rotary Club in 2000 to fulfill this mission and soon exceeded his ranks with his hard work and innate desire to help others in need. From 2001 to 2020, Karapetyan has had various roles in the club, including the TRF Chair, Community Service Chair, International Service Chair, Vocational Service Chair, Club Treasurer, Rotaract Chair, Friendship Exchange Chair and Trainer.
He is currently a member of the District Board of Governor/Advisory Committee for 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022. Karapetyan’s Rotary District 2452 includes 9 countries in three continents; Armenia, Bahrain, Cyprus, Georgia, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Sudan and the UAE. He has spearheaded several projects, including navigating challenges such as poverty, illiteracy, COVID-19 and polio, to name a few.
Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, DG Karapetyan was unable to visit all the clubs and had to resolve to meet all the Rotarians virtually as the DG of district 2452. He says, “Most of my club visits were held on Zoom application due to the third wave of COVID-19. However, I managed to visit Lebanon, UAE, Bahrain and, with the assistance of District Trainer Ignace Mouawad, to hold training assemblies there and further our mission.”
Karapetyan also has plans to grow the Rotary Family in keeping with the Rotary International’s President, Shekhar Mehta’s Initiative, ‘Each One, Bring One’, which asks every member to bring one person to join Rotary within the next 17 months.
He adds, “Since our strategy is to create new channels in Rotary, we are examining the creation of new club models such as hybrid clubs and cause-based clubs. Additionally, we will build on the success of the four new clubs which were already chartered in our District and several others which are in progress. We will also continue to build on the relationship that has been developed with our Rotaractors in order to grasp the countless opportunities for collaboration and sharing of knowledge as true partners within the Rotary family.”
While under DG Karapetyan’s commendable leadership, his home Rotary Club of Gyumri was recognized by Rotary International as the Number one club by contributions to Rotary Foundation, aiding their mission to serve others tremendously.
Among the many causes that Karapetyan is passionate about, he also highlighted World Polio Day in October 2021 to raise awareness and direct funds to this cause. He says, “In October, all Clubs in the District took special measures to celebrate World Polio Day and raise money to support polio eradication. Many clubs posted their polio story on their Facebook pages; many clubs hosted special meetings with updates on the fight against polio.” He continued, “I attended Polio walk at Dubai’s EXPO 2020 with Rotarians and Rotaractors from UAE clubs and beyond.”
In addition to his work as a Rotarian, Karapetyan is also a member of the Republican Commission Supervising the Observance of the Legislation on Social, Advertising Head of the Council of Armenian Outdoor Advertisers Association, German-Armenian Business Association, Founding member of Armenian-Egyptian Business Council, and a Member of the Board of Yerevan Outdoor Advertising Festival.
In conclusion, his essential life advice to all is, “Remember that each act of kindness is cumulative in our personal growth.” The ripple effect of which will be witnessed throughout the world.
