Amancio Ortega and Rosalía Mera co-founded Zara in Spain in 1975.
The first Zara store opened in A Coruña, Galicia. Ortega had previously worked in clothing manufacturing and retail, and the new store initially sold affordable versions of popular fashion designs. Its early model connected store demand with rapid production and distribution.
Zara became the flagship brand of the Inditex group, which Ortega founded in 1985. The company’s approach emphasized short design-to-store cycles, frequent deliveries, and relatively limited quantities. Those practices helped make new merchandise arrive regularly and encouraged customers to visit stores often.
Zara is sometimes incorrectly described as a brand founded solely by Ortega. Ortega was its principal business architect, but Rosalía Mera was a co-founder and an important early partner in the clothing enterprise.