Michael Bodouroglou, the founder of Paragon Shipping, has been involved in the shipping industry in various capacities for more than 35 years. He has been the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of  Paragon Shipping since the Company was founded in April 2006. He is also the founder of  Βox Ships and has served  as  the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of  Box Ship since the company's inception  in May 2010.

Mr. Bodouroglou has owned and operated drybulk and tanker vessels since 1993. He created Allseas Marine S.A, the  technical and commercial management company for Paragon and Box Ships. Prior to 1993, Mr. Bodouroglou was employed as a technical superintendent supervising both tanker and drybulk vessels for various shipping companies.

In 1977 Mr. Bodouroglou graduated with honours from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in the United Kingdom with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering and in 1978 he was awarded a Masters of Science in Naval Architecture. Mr. Bodouroglou is a member of the Cayman Islands Shipowners' Advisory Council, the DNV GL Greek Committee and the Lloyd's Register Hellenic Advisory Committee. He is also a member of China Classification Society Mediterranean Committee (CCS), the RINA Hellenic Advisory Committee (Registro Italiano Navale) and the Greek Committee of Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK).

Mr. Bodouroglou is the Honorary Consul for the Slovak Republic in Piraeus and the President of the HellenicAustralian Business  Council (HABC).