Amancio Ortega

Ortega and Rosalía Mera opened the first Zara store in 1975, joining clothing production to direct retailing. Coordination between design, purchasing, distribution and shops allowed Inditex to respond to demand without relying entirely on long seasonal commitments. Ortega's large holding in the listed group connected those operations to personal wealth, while dividends funded property investments. The fortune therefore combines a retail ownership base with assets accumulated outside fashion.