Italy’s second richest man Luxottica founder Leonardo Del Vecchio dies aged 87

Leonardo Del Vecchio, the founder of Luxottica and second richest man in Italy has died aged 87 as reported on Monday June 27.

Italy’s Leonardo Del Vecchio, founder and chairman of Luxxottica, the world’s leading optical distribution centre , died on June 27 at the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan as reported by Fanpage.it

The American business magazine Forbes, ranked Del Vecchio as the second richest man in Italy, who owed most of his wealth to his eyewear industry (now renamed Essilux, following the merger with the French group Essilor).

Luxottica’s company Twitter account posted the following tweet after the death of their founder:

https://twitter.com/Luxottica/status/1541397486773964800

Credit: Twitter @Luxottica

Tributes from fellow Italians flooded Twitter with one user posting:

“#leonardodelvecchio was an ABSOLUTE LEGEND of the 🇮 and a LIGHTHOUSE in the industry 🕶.In the different encounters I had the privilege to have, he taught me the pursuit of perfection.A big Hug to all his Family and in particular to my Friend Leonardo. RIP🙏🏻🙏🏽🙏🏽”

#leonardodelvecchio è stato una LEGENDA ASSOLUTA dell’🇮🇹 e un FARO nell’industria 🕶.Nei diversi incontri che ho avuto il privilegio di fare mi ha insegnato la ricerca della perfezione.Un grande Abbraccio a tutta la sua Famiglia e in particolare al mio Amico Leonardo. RIP🙏🏻🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏿 pic.twitter.com/BpdJIlJvtG

— Lapo Elkann (@lapoelkann_) June 27, 2022

Credit: Twitter @lapoelkann

Another user posted:

“With Leonardo Del Vecchio’s death, we have lost a great protagonist of the Italian economic miracle, a man who with his extraordinary human and professional experience was able to transform a personal dream into an absolutely successful entrepreneurial model based on know-how.”

Con Leonardo Del Vecchio scompare un grande protagonista del miracolo economico italiano, un uomo che con la sua straordinaria esperienza umana e professionale ha saputo trasformare un sogno personale in un modello imprenditoriale di assoluto successo, fondato sul saper fare. pic.twitter.com/mhOESH3WF1

— Maria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati (@Min_Casellati) June 27, 2022

Credit: Twitter @Pres_Casellati

Another tweet read:

“Leonardo Del Vecchio has left us.
The son of a fruit seller, he had managed to build one of the largest companies in Italy and the world. But far beyond that, he was able to have a care, a human care, for his employees like few others have had.”

Ci ha lasciati Leonardo Del Vecchio.
Figlio di un fruttivendolo, era riuscito a costruire una delle più grandi aziende italiane e al mondo. Ma ben oltre questo, è stato capace di avere una cura, umana, dei suoi dipendenti come pochi altri hanno avuto. pic.twitter.com/IMBk2ADHpz

— Francesco (@we_ci65) June 27, 2022

Credit: Twitter @we_ci65

His wealth in 2021 is reported to have grown from $16.1 billion in 2020 to $25.8 billion.  The Italian Businessman also played an important role in Italian finance for years now, actively managing the Assicurazioni Generali group.

The title of Cavaliere dell’Ordine al Merito del Lavoro was awarded to Del Vecchio in 1986 by the President of the Italian Republic, and the businessman also received an honorary degree in Business Economics from the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice in May 1995.

His honorary academic achievements did not end there, with four further awards being bestowed upon him.

In 1999 he received an honorary Master’s degree in International Business from the MIB – Management School of Trieste, and in 2002 an honorary degree in Management Engineering from the University of Udine.

Leonardo Del Vecchio received another honorary degree in Materials Engineering from the Politecnico di Milano in March 2006, and in December 2012, the CUOA Foundation awarded him an honorary Master’s degree in Business Administration.

His business success also led him to become active in the world of charity, with the establishment of the Leonardo Del Vecchio Foundation to support charitable and non-profit initiatives in 2017.

He also worked in the capacity of chairman in various organisations including Delfin S.à r.l. and Aterno S.à r.l., the Leonardo Del Vecchio Foundation and Covivio S.A.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article, do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.