Mango Founder’s Son Steps Away from Roles, Family ‘Reiterates His Innocence’

As the investigation into the death of Mango founder Isak Andic continues, his son, Jonathan, has temporarily stepped down from his executive roles at Mango. The Andic family is standing by him.

The family-owned fast-fashion brand has been besieged with publicity following Jonathan’s May 19 arrest in relation to his father’s fatal fall from a cliff while the pair were out hiking in the Montserrat region in December 2024. Days after being released on a 1 million-euro bail, the company announced that the 45-year-old has temporarily relinquished his roles as vice chairman and as a member of the board of directors.

The probe into a possible homicide is ongoing.

Mango has no immediate plans to have another executive handle Jonathan’s former responsibilities. A company spokesperson said Tuesday, “As this is a temporary decision, the positions of vice chairman and board member will remain vacant.”

How the global media coverage swirling around the investigation will impact Mango remains to be seen. Last year, the Barcelona-based retail chain generated revenue of 3.8 billion euros, representing a 13 percent year-over-year gain.

GloblaData’s managing director of retail Neil Saunders said Tuesday, “There is a lot of interest around this case so there is no way Mango can avoid being under the spotlight.”

However, Saunders said Jonathan stepping down as vice chair was the right decision and that “has put some distance between the business and the situation. Mango has been broadly supportive of Jonathan, which is understandable, but it has stopped short of being drawn into the matter.”

After starting Mango with his brother Nahman Andic, by selling embroidered shirts from his car, Isak created a multibillion-dollar operation with 2,800 stores in 120 markets. Spanish officials initially deemed Isak’s death an accident, but then reopened the inquiry last year, due to alleged inconsistencies in Jonathan’s account of the events.

Following Jonathan’s arrest, a spokesperson for the Mossos d’Esquadra told WWD on May 19, “Now the judge has to decide whether he is guilty or not.”

Through a spokesperson, the Andic family said Tuesday that they wish “to reiterate Jonathan Andic’s innocence. The appropriate procedural stage is now opening to demonstrate his innocence.”

In a statement provided by the Andic family, his attorney Cristóbal Martell said, “the conjecture of homicide is unfounded but, above all, it is painful. It stigmatizes an innocent man. Now the real judicial process truly begins, and the truth and innocence will prevail.”

The statement continued, “Accordingly, the defense’s arguments will be set out at the appropriate procedural stage and before the court.”

Martell, whose notable clients have included Lionel Messi and Dani Alves, and members of the Andic family declined to comment further at this time. Jonathan’s sisters, Sarah and Judith, are also executives at Mango.

Jonathan joined the company in 2005 and became head of menswear in 2007. In 2014, he was one of two vice chairs at the company and was reportedly acting as chief executive officer. Over the next two years, Mango faltered and racked up a substantial amount of debt before Toni Ruiz led a turnaround.

Following the cofounder’s death in December 2024, the board of directors at Mango’s parent company Punto Fa S.L. unanimously voted for Ruiz to take on the additional role of chairman. Ruiz had initially joined the company as chief financial officer in 2015, was promoted to general manager in 2018 and then CEO in March 2020. Ruiz was instrumental in the company’s robust growth, which in 2023 recorded a record turnover of more than 3.1 billion euros, up 15 percent on 2022. 

Ruiz holds a 5 percent stake in Punto Fa and Mango through Ionian Investments S.L.U., an operation first proposed by Isak. Mango MNG Holding S.A.U. retains the remaining 95 percent shares and its board had appointed Jonathan as chairman and his sisters as vice chairwomen last year.

Other members of the family, including Nahman, have also been integral to the company. His daughter, Violeta, also worked at Mango for a period of time and introduced the fast-fashion company’s plus-size Violeta label. After exiting the company in 2019, Violeta cofounded the fashion label Gavriella. 

Jonathan’s wife, Paula Navarro Tarrés also works in fashion. More widely known as the influencer Paula Nata, she is cofounder of the creative consultancy and public relations firm All About Management and MesAmies. The couple reportedly wed in a civil ceremony in September 2024, and had their first child in September 2025. A media request to All About Management was unreturned Tuesday.

Nahman, niece Violeta and Isak’s ex-wife and the mother of their three children, Neus Pais Tarrago, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.