Wearing tortoiseshell glasses and a tweed blazer, Isak Andic didn’t look much like a titan of the Spanish fashion industry when he appeared at the Association of Young Entrepreneurs of Catalonia in 2011. The Mango founder laughed warmly as he fielded questions from fresh-faced students and admitted that even he, on occasion, got it wrong.
The clothing brand had recently chosen the Barcelona footballer Gerard Piqué to front its latest advertising campaign. But Isak Andic readily admitted: “It was the idea of my son, Jonathan.” The billionaire businessman explained that he had been reluctant, preferring Rafael Nadal, the tennis player, but his eldest son insisted on Piqué. The campaign was a hit, and Isak was proved wrong. He told students with a shrug and a smile: “You never know.”
