Leopoldo Fernández Pujals facts for kids

Leopoldo Fernández Pujals, born on December 3, 1947, is a successful businessman. He has Cuban, Spanish, and American nationality. He is best known for starting the popular pizza chain Telepizza.

Early Life and Military Service

Leopoldo Fernández Pujals was born in Havana, Cuba. His family was well-off, with his mother being an architect and his father a notary. When he was 13, his family moved to Miami, United States, after the Cuban Revolution.

In 1968, Leopoldo joined the United States Marine Corps. He trained at Fort Belvoir in Virginia. He was the top student in his class and later became an instructor. He fought in the Vietnam War and returned to the U.S. as a captain, earning a medal for his service.

From Finance to Pizza

After his military service, Leopoldo studied finance. He started working for big companies like Procter & Gamble and later Johnson & Johnson.

In 1987, he decided to try something new. He opened a small pizzeria in Madrid, Spain. He would make the pizza dough himself and give it to children in the neighborhood. During the day, he worked at Johnson & Johnson in a suit. In the evenings and on weekends, he wore an apron and made pizzas until late at night.

This small pizzeria grew into a big company called Pizzaphone, which later became Telepizza. By 1993, Telepizza had 100 stores in Spain. This number quickly grew to 150 stores a year later, and then 204 stores the year after that.

Growing Telepizza and New Ventures

In 1996, Leopoldo took full control of Telepizza after a disagreement with his brother. He helped the company grow even more. In 1997, he bought another pizza company called Pizza World. He also bought a transport company and a cheese supplier to help Telepizza. By mid-1998, Telepizza was very popular, holding 62 percent of the pizza market in Spain.

In 1999, Leopoldo sold all his shares in Telepizza. He received a large sum of money, about 300 million euros.

After Telepizza, Leopoldo explored other business ideas. In 2004, he invested in the telecommunications world. He bought a large part of Jazztel, a company that provides internet services. He invested over 60 million euros to help the company grow.

In 2009, Leopoldo returned to his roots in the pizza business. He helped create a new pizza chain called La Original. He worked with two former directors from Telepizza, Pedro Español and Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, on this new project.

See also

In Spanish: Leopoldo Fernández Pujals para niños