Almacenes Arias

On September 4, 1987, the last vestige of a commercial empire burned to the ground, the symbol of the power of a saga, the Arias, who made that building on Montera Street in Madrid the nerve center of one of the largest businesses in the city. Francoist Spain. Under that rubble, ten firefighters lost their lives, turning the end of an incredible post-war story of manners into an unforgettable tragedy. That was in fact the end of an astonishing story of poverty and success, and also of family dramas and conflicts, which Fede Arias, journalist, television collaborator and great-grandson of the founder of Almacenes Arias, now brings to this book with testimonies and unpublished images. A narrative that starts from a simple street stall in the Rastro that Esteban Arias would transform into a company with thousands of employees. This is a story of effort, work, sacrifice and business, of balances and great offers, yes. But also of whims, of eccentricities, of wealth and luxuries, of unleashed ambitions and passions, of family struggles and fights, and, of course, of tragedies.