2023-10-31 16:39:12
Brussels businessman Aldo Vastapane died this Tuesday at the age of 97, announces La Libre on its website, citing several relatives of the baron.
Aldo Vastapane, son of Italian immigrants, was born on February 1, 1926 in Molenbeek-Saint-Jean. Following in the footsteps of his father, who already imported the Martini into Belgium, he quickly launched into business by founding Etablissements Vastapane which then managed different brands of wines and spirits.
He quickly broadened his horizons by investing in the automobile sector (Simca and Mercedes importer), then in real estate, a market which would be particularly flourishing for his finances. It is notably part of the project “Manhattan“, which has transformed the Northern Quarter of Brussels into an office zone. But it also has marbles in Interparking and in “The Swan House“, one of the prestigious establishments on the Grand-Place.
At the end of the 1950s, he also obtained a monopoly on Duty Free stores at Zaventem airport (Skyshops), before acquiring them in other countries. It was in this context that he met the businessman Albert Frère, with whom he would subsequently do several business deals. Aldo Vastapane will notably become a director of the GBL holding of the tycoon Carolo.
At the beginning of the 2000s, Aldo Vastapane took over Sobelair, the charter subsidiary of Sabena. Four years later, on January 19, 2004, Sobelair was declared bankrupt by the Brussels commercial court. A decision which was overturned five months later by the 8th chamber of the Brussels Court of Appeal for “formal defects”. Sobelair then goes from bankruptcy to judicial liquidation with all that that implies, including for Aldo Vastapane.
In 2006, Aldo Vastapane was ennobled by King Albert II and received the title of baron.
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