Birth
on March 28, 1936, Ortega was born in Busdongo de Arbás, León, Spain, to Antonio Ortega Rodríguez and Josefa Gaona Hernández.
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History of Amancio Ortega
Friday Mar 27, 1936 to Thursday Mar 26, 1936
A CoruñA, Galicia, Spain
Amancio Ortega Gaona (born March 28, 1936) is a Spanish billionaire businessman. He is the founder and former chairman of Inditex fashion group, best known for its chain of Zara clothing and accessories shops.
Childhood
Ortega spent his childhood in León.
Ortega Left School
Ortega left school and moved to A Coruña at the age of 14, due to the job of his father, a railway worker.
First Job
Ortega found a job as a shop hand for a local shirtmaker called Gala, and learned to make clothes by hand.
Marriage
Ortega married Rosalia Mera in 1966.
Confecciones Goa
In 1972, Ortega founded Confecciones Goa to sell quilted bathrobes.
First Zara Store
In 1975, Ortega opened his first Zara store in 1975 in central A Coruña, Galicia.
Divorce
Ortega divorced Rosalia Mera in 1986.
Another Marriage
Ortega married his second wife Flora in 2001.
Industrias de Diseño Textil Sociedad anónima (Inditex Group)
In 2009, Zara was part of the Inditex group, of which Ortega owned 59.29%, and aside from over 6,000 stores included the brands Zara, Massimo Dutti, Oysho, Zara Home, Kiddy's Class, Tempe, Stradivarius, Pull and Bear, Bershka and has more than 92,000 employees.
Retirement
In 2011, Ortega announced his imminent retirement from Inditex, parent company of the Zara chain, stating that he would ask Inditex vice-president and CEO Pablo Isla to take his place as head.
Torre Picasso
In December 2011, Ortega purchased the Torre Picasso skyscraper in Madrid for €400 million.
philanthropy
In 2012 Ortega donated about €20 million to Caritas Internationalis, a Roman Catholic relief organisation.
Epic Residences and Hotel
Ortega purchased the Epic Residences and Hotel in Miami, Florida.
60% of Inditex
In 2016, Ortega owned around 60% of Inditex, which is the holding company for Zara and related chains.
Fighting Cancer
Ortega donated 300 million euros to fight cancer across Spain, which were invested in the purchase of 440 machines to detect the disease.
Lived with his Wife
As of 2017, Ortega has lived with his wife (Flora) in A Coruña, Spain.
AEF Award
In July 2017, for its second edition of the AEF awards, the Spanish Association of Foundations awarded Amancio Ortega in the 2017 Philanthropic Initiative category.