Jerónimo Julio Arango Arias (1927 — 4 April 2020)[1][2] was a Mexican billionaire businessman, co-founder of the Aurrerá supermarket chain, with his younger brothers, Manuel and Plácido, known for a long time as three of Mexico's wealthiest men. His net worth was estimated at US$4.6 billion in 2006 by Forbes.[3]
Career
Arango founded his Aurrerá discount stores in 1958 after a trip to New York where he witnessed people standing in long lines to obtain discounts; he decided to open one that sold at discount, emphasizing cost over other niceties. The stores flourished and eventually, his family's company, Grupo CIFRA, was the largest supermarket chain in Mexico (including Aurrerá and Superama stores) as well as restaurants (VIPs and El Portón) and fashion stores (Suburbia).
By 1991, Arango partnered with Wal-Mart, a move that eventually brought the Wal-Mart retail stores to Mexico. The Mexican chain was later renamed Walmex and became the starting point for Wal-Mart's expansion in Mexico. By 1997 the Arango family decided to sell majority shareholding of CIFRA to Wal-Mart in a transaction worth over $2 billion.