Leonardo Del Vecchio’s rags-to-riches tale where he grew up at an orphanage and went on to lead a successful business empire, seems like a story from another time
Italy’s Leonardo Del Vecchio, who rose from childhood poverty to build the eyewear empire that owns brands such as Ray-Ban and Oakley, has died at the age of 87, his company said on Monday.
Fashion designer Giorgio Armani was among those to pay tribute to Del Vecchio with whom he had worked since the 1980s. “Leonardo Del Vecchio was a great Italian. His story, from orphanage to leadership of a business empire, seems like a story from another time. But it is an example for today and tomorrow. RIP,” European Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said on Twitter.Del Vecchio had remained an influential figure in Italian business and his death came as a shock.
Del Vecchio’s influence extended beyond his own business and at the end of 2021, he was Italy’s second richest man behind Giovanni Ferrero of the Nutella-making group, according to Forbes.