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Reuters
Reuters
Business
Claudia Cristoferi and Silvia Aloisi

Del Vecchio rose from poverty to billions by adding style to spectacles

Del Vecchio Leonardo Del Vecchio Poverty Andrea Guerra Luxottica EssilorLuxottica Italy
FILE PHOTO: The Luxottica name is reflected in a pair of sunglasses in this photo illustration taken in Rome February 4, 2016. REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi/File Photo

Businessman Leonardo del Vecchio, who has died aged 87, created the glasses company that owns brands including Ray-Ban and used his billions to become one of the most influential figures in Italian finance.

Del Vecchio rose from a childhood in an orphanage to amass a fortune of tens of billions of euros in one of the most famous rags-to-riches stories in Italy's post-war economic recovery.

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