15 years ago, Marta Ortega Pérez took a job as a sales associate at one of the Zara stores, which are part of the multi-million dollar textile conglomerate Inditex, started by her father, Amancio Ortega, in 1975.

At the time, she said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that she thought she "wouldn't survive" the first week on the job.

In April 2022, however, the 37-year-old woman will take over as the new president of the group with a market value of US$100 billion, Inditex reported on Tuesday.

"You become somewhat addicted to the store," Ortega commented during that conversation in which the media cataloged it as the "secret to Zara's success."

Ortega, who will have the legal status of proprietary director (a figure in charge of ensuring the actions of her family in the company), will replace Pablo Isla, who led the company since 2011 when Amancio Ortega left office.

Together with her, Óscar García Maceiras, a lawyer who worked in the Inditex group holding various administrative positions, will also start as executive director.

Inditex shares fell almost 5% on Tuesday after the announcement.

"I have lived and breathed this company since my childhood and I have learned from all the great professionals with whom I have worked over the past 15 years," Ortega said after the news.

Under Inditex there are seven other powerful brands beyond Zara: Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Oysho, Zara Home, Stradivarius and Uterqüe.

Ortega will have more than 6,600 stores globally under her supervision, according to the company's website.

Inditex also owns factories, distribution and sales centers and suppliers.

Who is the woman who will become one of the most powerful businesswomen in the world?

the youngest daughter

Marta Ortega is the youngest of Amancio's daughters.

She was born in 1984, the result of the businessman's second marriage, with Flora Pérez Marcote, who previously worked as a seamstress in the first workshop founded by the millionaire in the 70s in A Coruña, northwestern Spain.

The businesswoman studied at the European Business School in London. Before that, she was also a student at a Jesuit school in A Coruña and went through a boarding school in Switzerland.

The heiress has been married twice. First with jockey Sergio Álvarez Moya, with whom she had a son and from whom she separated in 2015.

In 2018, she married Carlos Torretta, a model representative linked to the world of fashion, with whom she has just celebrated her third wedding anniversary.

What are her links with the company?

Currently, who will be the new president of Inditex works in the fashion design department of Zara.

She was in charge of leading several campaigns that strengthened the brand's image worldwide and the launch of Zara's limited collections such as SRPLS and Charlotte Gainsbourg.

"I think it's important to build bridges between haute couture and the street, between the past and the present, between technology and fashion, between art and its functionality," Ortega Pérez said in his interview with The Wall Street Journal.

"Not only some people should have access to high quality," she added.

The right choice?

Analysis by Vivienne Nunis, BBC business reporter

Marta Ortega Pérez began working for Inditex in a store in London 15 years ago.

Her new job will be her as president of the company, helping to run a retail giant with almost 7,000 stores, more than 8,000 factories and a market value of US$100 billion.

Is she the right person for the job?

She has said that she has grown up around the company and learned a lot while she formally worked there.

But some see the move as the Spanish version of the HBO series Succession, in which members of a family are chosen preferentially for the best positions over the best qualified people on the team.

Inditex shares definitely fell after her appointment.

Together with the new general manager, Óscar García Maceiras, Marta Ortega Pérez will face countless challenges.

At a time when consumers are mindful of the costs of fast fashion on the environment, Zara in particular is a rare case, with its reputation built on bringing style trends to London's High Street stores. quickly and cheaply.

There is also concern about the supply chain.

Just this week, French authorities in the city of Bordeaux rejected a plan for a Zara store to expand, following allegations that the fashion brand has profited from the forced labor of ethnic Uyghurs in China. denies].

The new CEO and president are unlikely to steer the Inditex ship without the help of founder Amancio.

When he stepped down as president in 2011, he didn't cut himself off entirely. Instead, the man known as "The Boss" has remained very connected to the company.

Although he is now in his 80s, he is a safe bet that he will continue to be, even with the appointment of the new executive team.