Corona founder makes every resident of native village a millionaire

Corona founder redefines munificence

Ever heard the phrase from rags to riches? Well, every resident of this village just became a millionaire due to the munificence of an erstwhile resident.

Corona founder Antonino Fernández left a staggering £2 million to every resident of his native Spanish village of Cerezales del Condado. According to reports, Fernández is believed to have left £169 million to the 80 residents when he died in August at the age of 98.



Maximino Sanchez, the owner of the only bar in the village, told a local newspaper ,"I do not know what we would have done without Antonino. We used to have no Pesete." Fernández was born and raised in the northwestern Spanish village along with 12 other siblings.

Cerezales del Condado, in Spain PHOTO: GOOGLE

As his family battled poverty, a 14-year-old Fernandez had to leave school because his parents could no longer afford it and needed him to work in the fields. At the age of 32, he moved to Mexico in 1949, to work for his wife's uncle at a warehouse.

Rising through the ranks, Fernandez became the CEO of Corona in 1971, and helped make it one of the largest beer brands in the world. He continued to preside over the company's board till 2005.



Revered for his charity work, Fernández was honoured by the former king of Spain Juan Carlos for his philanthropic initiatives. He established schemes in both, Spain and Mexico to find jobs for people with disabilities.

This article originally appeared in The Telegraph.