Who is the CEO of Zara?

Amancio Ortega, the richest person in Spain and one of the richest persons in the world, is the founding chair of retail behemoth Inditex, the parent company of Zara, the largest worldwide fashion store. As one of the early and most successful forerunners of fast fashion – a retail concept centered on the quick creation and distribution of affordable versions of designs directly lifted from pop culture icons or fashion runways – Ortega developed a retail empire. Ortega was the 25th richest person in the world as of April 12, 2022, with a net worth of $46.9 billion.

The clothing chain Zara was founded in the Spanish province of Galicia. It represents the Inditex brand internationally and is the group’s flagship store. Brands including Pull&Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home, and Uterqüe are part of the fashion conglomerate’s portfolio. As of now, 2,220 of the company’s locations can be found in 88 different nations. Using a very flexible supply chain, Zara has always been ahead of the curve in fast fashion. Our innovative business approach revolves around our customers and encompasses product development, manufacturing, distribution, and retail sales.

CEO of Zara, Amancio Ortega – Childhood and Education:

Amancio Ortega was born in a tiny town in northern Spain in 1936, just as the Spanish Civil War was beginning, and his family later relocated to Galicia in northwest Spain. His mother worked as a maid, his father was an itinerant railway worker, and the family resided in a row home next to the tracks. The only official biography of Amancio Ortega claims that a terrible event that occurred soon after the family moved to their new town served as the catalyst for his lifelong ambition for success. 

He saw his mother pleading for a credit one evening as they walked home together, but the store owner wouldn’t extend her line, so she left the store empty-handed. Ortega was so humiliated at the time that he chose to quit school and go to work instead. This choice would later pave the way for one of the greatest retail careers in history.

CEO of Zara, Amancio Ortega – Career:

Ortega began working as an assistant to a high-end shirtmaker in his birthplace of La Corua in 1949 when he was just 13 years old. There, he learned how to create clothing by hand. As he advanced through the ranks over the ensuing 14 years, becoming Assistant Manager and Shop Manager, he gained firsthand knowledge of interacting with clients as well as buying fabrics and other supplies to make clothing.

Ortega launched his first Zara store across from La Corua’s most prominent department store in 1975. He became known for picking the greatest locations for his stores. Zara became known for selling affordable designer clothing. The GAP in the U.S. and NEXT in Britain had employed the model successfully, but it was new in Spain; Corte Inglés and Cortefiel controlled the midrange apparel market, but neither appealed to young fashion sense. In 1999, Ortega’s first annual report stated, “Zara democratized fashion. We offer an accessible design that reaches the high street, inspired by modern men and women’s taste, desires, and lifestyle ” (Nash, October 27, 1999). Ortega had 100 outlets in Spain by 1989.

Zara was so successful that almost little advertising was needed; the chain relied on returning consumers. Modus’ Julian Vogel told the Guardian, “The office girls know that new stuff arrives on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Guilt-free high ” (October 28, 2002). Zara products entered high fashion. 

Ortega’s commercial endeavors led to Inditex, the holding company he formed in 1985 to represent Zara and other smaller retailers. In the late 1990s, only Gap and Sweden’s HM were bigger than Inditex. The corporation had 12,000 employees globally. Zara and other Inditex chains have locations in Italy, the UK, the US, Latin America, Japan, and Kuwait.

Ortega’s Fast-Fashion Approach:

Inditex’s fast-fashion approach brought clothes from design to shop in weeks. In-house Inditex designers reproduced the most promising fashion show concepts. The company’s manufacturing base and distribution network could deliver new garments in weeks, 12 times faster than the competitors. Inditex supplied fewer things more regularly, avoiding high inventory expenses and frequent clearance discounts. Ortega’s automated system let him decide when to refill or drop a design; the company only made what it needed to sell. The Inditex CEO told Newsweek, “Our structure offers us a competitive advantage” (September 17, 2001).

Ortega’s model fought globalization. Post-WWII manufacturing used low-wage workers from underdeveloped countries. Ortega kept jobs in Spain and showed that speed, flexibility, and low inventories could be just as important in keeping expenses down. While Ortega spent up to 15% more on labor than his third-world-employing competitors, he saved by doing almost no advertising, quickly adjusting to fashion trends, and minimizing shipping costs by keeping production close to markets. Inditex dodged human-rights critics since it didn’t exploit employees in poor countries.

The Inditex model replaced one that required complicated global networks and nine months to get garments from design to retail. 

CEO of Zara, Amancio Ortega – Upcoming Goals:

Inditex has eight brands: Zara, Zara Home, Massimo Dutti, Pull&Bear, Bershka, Uterqüe, Oysho, and Stradivarius. All have agreed to use 100% sustainable, organic, or recycled cotton, linen, and polyester by 2025. 90% of their basic resources are these fabrics. Marta Ortega, daughter of Inditex founder Amancio Ortega, told Vogue, 

“We’re focusing on manufacturing products in an ethical, ecological way” “We’re all passionate about it personally and professionally. [We] are continually looking for ways to improve: developing new technologies, working with recycled materials, and creating new fabrics for our designers and others in the industry. 

We’re devoted to this morally and commercially sound strategy.” 

The promise continues. Inditex pledged for all of its head offices to acquire green building certifications and for all of its stores to be more ecologically efficient, utilizing 80% renewable energy. Zara has already stopped using plastic bags. By 2023, they aim to reuse or recycle all office and store garbage. Starting in 2020, customers can bring their used apparel into stores to be recycled, donated, or reused. Zara introduced 500 new designs per week, saving tonnes of garments from landfills.