Eduardo Sanchez Junco
Encyclopedia
Eduardo Sánchez Junco spent his childhood in Barcelona, where his father, Antonio Sánchez Gómez, was the editor of newspaper La Prensa. It was there, in their living room at home, that Eduardo’s father and mother, Mercedes Junco Calderón, came up with the idea of a magazine showing life at its most beautiful, through reporting that would be both respectful and truthful. And so, on 8 September 1944, ¡Hola! was born. Since then, it has become a publishing empire in a class of its own.
Eduardo, just a year old when the magazine was launched, grew up surrounded by the tools of the trade, but his own interests focussed at first not on publishing, but on nature. He studied agricultural engineering. But while he always maintained a strong interest in this subject, he also felt drawn to his parents’ profession, and joined his father at work on ¡Hola!
, by then already a household name.
Following his father’s death in 1984, Eduardo took over the helm of the business. He chose to do so in the most hands-on way, as a journalist. While bringing up their three children – daughters Mamen and Cheleles, and son Eduardo – he and his wife, Mamen Pérez Villota, together studied for degrees in journalism.
Eduardo, a media visionary, then embarked on a new stage of his company’s expansion, propelling it onto the international stage. He launched Hello!
magazine, which, like ¡HOLA!, marked a true departure, being the first magazine of its kind in Britain.
By the end of his career Eduardo had become a publishing legend. Thanks to him, ¡HOLA! exists in no less than 14 different national editions across the world. As well as Spain and Britain, 12 more countries belong to the ¡HOLA! family: Russia
, Turkey
, Thailand
, Dubai
, Greece
, Morocco
, Canada
, India
, Malaysia, Mexico
, Serbia
and Brazil
. Published in ten different languages, the magazine is exported to a total of 70 countries, where it is read by 12 million people each week, making it one of the most-read publications in the world. Then there are the online editions, hola.com – the leading women’s-interest internet portal, with 60 million page hits per month – and its English-language version, hellomagazine.com.
Eduardo was recognised with numerous prizes (see below). Among them are the European Forum’s Gold Medal, the Gold Medal from the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute in New York and the Luca de Tena prize, presented to him by the King of Spain, as well as the International Press Directory’s International Publishing Award.
To understand Eduardo the media magnate one had to understand Eduardo the man. He thought of his company as an extension of his family, and in fact all three of his children, as well as his mother and his wife, play key editorial roles. This guarantees the continued success of a title which has already made history.
Along with his charismatic personality, Eduardo’s publishing philosophy was responsible for his extraordinary achievements. He knew to perfection what to offer his readers. He defined it as "the froth of life, nothing dense, nothing heavy. Not claiming to be anything more than entertainment, but always tasteful and discreet, never harmful nor judgmental, and never descending to gossip. A kind magazine, full of human interest."
Eduardo, just a year old when the magazine was launched, grew up surrounded by the tools of the trade, but his own interests focussed at first not on publishing, but on nature. He studied agricultural engineering. But while he always maintained a strong interest in this subject, he also felt drawn to his parents’ profession, and joined his father at work on ¡Hola!
¡Hola!
¡Hola! is a weekly Spanish-language magazine specializing in celebrity news, published in Spain and 13 other countries. It also has local editions in Brazil, Canada, Greece, Mexico, Peru, Britain, Russia and Argentina. It is the second most popular magazine in Spain, after the Pronto, the most sold...
, by then already a household name.
Following his father’s death in 1984, Eduardo took over the helm of the business. He chose to do so in the most hands-on way, as a journalist. While bringing up their three children – daughters Mamen and Cheleles, and son Eduardo – he and his wife, Mamen Pérez Villota, together studied for degrees in journalism.
Eduardo, a media visionary, then embarked on a new stage of his company’s expansion, propelling it onto the international stage. He launched Hello!
Hello!
Hello is a weekly magazine specializing in celebrity news and human-interest stories, published in the United Kingdom since 1988. Hello is sister magazine to ¡Hola!, the Spanish weekly magazine launched in Spain in 1944...
magazine, which, like ¡HOLA!, marked a true departure, being the first magazine of its kind in Britain.
By the end of his career Eduardo had become a publishing legend. Thanks to him, ¡HOLA! exists in no less than 14 different national editions across the world. As well as Spain and Britain, 12 more countries belong to the ¡HOLA! family: Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Malaysia, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. Published in ten different languages, the magazine is exported to a total of 70 countries, where it is read by 12 million people each week, making it one of the most-read publications in the world. Then there are the online editions, hola.com – the leading women’s-interest internet portal, with 60 million page hits per month – and its English-language version, hellomagazine.com.
Eduardo was recognised with numerous prizes (see below). Among them are the European Forum’s Gold Medal, the Gold Medal from the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute in New York and the Luca de Tena prize, presented to him by the King of Spain, as well as the International Press Directory’s International Publishing Award.
To understand Eduardo the media magnate one had to understand Eduardo the man. He thought of his company as an extension of his family, and in fact all three of his children, as well as his mother and his wife, play key editorial roles. This guarantees the continued success of a title which has already made history.
Along with his charismatic personality, Eduardo’s publishing philosophy was responsible for his extraordinary achievements. He knew to perfection what to offer his readers. He defined it as "the froth of life, nothing dense, nothing heavy. Not claiming to be anything more than entertainment, but always tasteful and discreet, never harmful nor judgmental, and never descending to gossip. A kind magazine, full of human interest."