Zara’s Owner Was the Richest Person in the World for a Hot Sec
It’s pretty obvious why Armancio Ortega is so happy. Photo: Getty Images
For a hot sec there on Friday morning, fast fashion was more lucrative than the personal computer when Armancio Ortega surpassed Bill Gates on the list of world’s richest men. According to Forbes, the Spanish owner of Industria de Diseño Textil, the parent company to Zara, Pull&Bear and Massimo Dutti, hit a net worth high of $80 billion as stocks reached 33.99 Euros per share. But the Microsoft founder stole his spot back in just a matter of hours when the price quickly dipped down to 33.80.
Industria de Diseño Textil, also known as Inditex was started in 1975 by Ortega and his wife Rosalia Mera selling nightgowns, baby clothes, lingerie, and robes. To this day, Ortega still owns 59 percent of the company, while his daughter, Sandra Ortega Mera, is also a significant stakeholder, making her the second-richest person in Spain (Rosalia passed away in 2013 and passed her stake on to Sandra).
While the company has long been successful, it wasn’t inducted into the billionaire boys club until it hit its fast fashion stride. Zara, the leader of the brands in Inditex’s portfolio, has managed to make itself a staple in everyone’s closet — men and women — from teenagers in the United States to the Duchess of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. Offering trendy pieces at a reasonable price, the company’s shares have jumped more than 50 percent in the past year and pulls in around $20 billion annually.
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