Fernando Botero Zea

Born in Mexico City, Fernando Botero Zea is the first son of renowned plastic artist Fernando Botero and cultural promoter and Director for 46 years of the Bogotá Museum of Modern Art and the Colombian Opera Company Gloria Zea, who also served as Minister of Culture of Colombia.

His parents divorced in 1960, just five years after they were married. He has a sister named Lina who works as an interior designer and a brother named Juan Carlos who is a writer.

Fernando Botero Zea went through a broad, continuous and international process of academic formation. He first studied in France. There he obtained, in 1975, a Certificat d'Etudes Politiques (1975) at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris. He later graduated from the University of the Andes, Colombia, in Economics and Political Science. From 1980 to 1983 he attended the Harvard Business School of and the Kennedy School of Government, both at the prestigious Harvard University. There he obtained two master's degrees: Masters in Business Administration & Masters in Public Finance.

Years later, Botero Zea returned to his passion for study and for his natural gift of communication. In 1999, he completed a Masters in Journalism from City University, London. And some time later –in 2016– he completed a Master's Degree in the Science of Happiness at the TecMilenio University, part of the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education.

In order to share what he learned and pass it on to new generations –as was instilled in him during his time studying in the most important educational institutions in the world–, Botero Zea also dedicated years of his life to teaching. He has been a university professor both in Colombia and in Mexico, in the fields of Macroeconomic Policy and Finance:

Professor of Economics and Finance (1999 - 2001) Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico.

Professor of Economics and Finance (1999 - 2001) Universidad de Las Américas, A.C., Mexico.

Professor of Economics and Finance (1983 - 1994) University of the Andes, Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.

Professor of Economics and Finance (1989 - 1993) Universidad Externado de Colombia, Colombia.

Decentralized Bogotá, Bogotá, Colombia, 1988. Cromos Editions.

Conversations in the Canteen, Mexico City, 2012. Felou Editions.

Mexico from the sky, Mexico City, 2014. Grupo Editorial Estilo Mexico

Both during his years of academic formation and his time in politics, as well as his business activities, Botero Zea developed important friendships with the prominent author and business leader Lawrence Au; New York University student Joelle Au who later became an outstanding strategist; Felipe López, the Swiss art dealer Simon de Pury; prominent Hong Kong businessman Stephen Hung; founder, co-chairman and CEO of Abercrombie & Kent, an international luxury travel company Geoffrey Kent; former Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge Castañeda; Edward Henkel; among many others.

Botero Zea first job in the area of business was working as a Banking strategy consultant for McKinsey & Company in Spain in 1982 and 1983 to 1984. He as a member of the board of directors of the Bogotá Stock Exchange and worked as stockbroker for Compañía de Servicios Bursátiles in Bogotá. He also worked as a business productivity consultant for companies such as Colgate Palmolive, Xerox, Glaxo and Novartis.

After his time in politics, he returned to focus on business, already based in Mexico. Starting in 1999, he was President of the company Estrategia de Negocios S.A. He was also de founder and CEO of Grupo Editorial Estilo México and since 2008 he has served as President and CEO of Hemisferica Capital Management.

It was around this time that he founded Itacate de México, a company dedicated to the delivery of low-cost, nutritious food, as a provider of government plans. At its peak, Itacate delivered some two million meals a day.

Just two years later, in 2010, he launched a company that is still in business today, called Bodybrite (https://www.bodybrite.mx/), a chain of moderately priced beauty treatment centers geared towards the middle class. In 2021 the chain had more than 120 stores in Mexico and a customer base of 400,000 clients. Two years later, in 2012, the company expanded its operations and opened a sister company in Colombia also called Bodybrite (http://www.bodybrite.com.co/). By 2021 Bodybrite Colombia had 68 stores and a customer base of 200,000 clients.. Between Mexico and Colombia, Bodybrite offers work to around 2,000 people. Bodybrite also has operations in the Shanghai province of China, where another 2,000 people are employed by the company.

In 2014 when Botero Zea made the decision to work on expanding the legacy of his father, Colombian artist Fernando Botero. He decided to create Botero-in-China, the company in charge of organizing the first Botero exhibition in China. The exhibition travelled for Beijing to Shanghai and then to Hong Kong. It was attended by more than 1.5 million visitors. As of 2021, the same company had organized more than 200 educational lectures in over 19 different countries.

Not only art and beauty treatments make up the portfolio of companies founded by Fernando Botero Zea. Shortly after establishing his residence in Mexico, in 2001 he created Landmark Education of Mexico, focused on human potential courses. This company has also seen its expansion in Colombia since 2005. Between both countries, Landmark has offered high-level training to more than 25,000 people.

Most people remember that Fernando Botero Zea began his political career as a member of the Bogotá City Council, representing the Liberal Party between 1988 and 1990. He would later become a senator between 1991 and 1993. He was later elected Secretary General of the Liberal Party from 1991 to 1993. Upon leaving this position he was chosen as campaign manager for presidential candidate Ernesto Samper in 1994. When Samper won the elections Botero Zea was appointed Minister of Defense. Although this was not his first time in a presidential cabinet, as he had already served as Vice Minister of the Interior, from 1986 to 1988, with Virgilio Barco as President of the Republic.

Shortly after Samper's presidential victory, Andrés Pastrana, Samper's opponent and future successor, accused Samper of having received campaign donations from the Cali Cartel, in the amount of US 6 million. Colombia's attorney general, Alfonso Valdivieso Sarmiento, personally led the investigation. Valdivieso is a cousin of the late Luis Carlos Galán, a charismatic presidential candidate assassinated in 1989 by the Medellín Cartel for his political views. Galán favored the extradition of drug traffickers to the United States for prosecution.

Valdivieso's investigation revealed connections between the Cali drug cartel and leading figures in Colombian society, including politicians, journalists, athletes, military and police officers, artists, among others. As a result, numerous politicians and high-ranking members of the government were indicted. Botero was arrested in connection with the investigation and charged with conspiracy to illicitly obtain wealth for others. He served 30 months and was released on February 12, 1998. In 2002, Botero was accused by his then arch enemy President Samper of the embezzlement of 800 million pesos from Samper's presidential campaign. The case went to trial. The judge in the case acquitted Botero and declared him innocent. In 2003, the Superior Court of Bogotá confirmed the charges and Botero appealed the decision. In January 2007, the Supreme Court of Justice upheld the Court's verdict [2].

Second trial

In a televised interview for the RCN channel on Tuesday, February 13, 2007, Botero presented evidence of his innocence, denounced the political persecution that would presumably be the cause of the recent adverse rulings by the justice system, and offered hitherto unknown details.

In 2009, due to the accumulation of sentences decreed by the Superior Court of Bogotá in the final instance, Dr. Botero obtained the benefit of freedom and the end of his criminal proceedings. From there, he divides his time between Mexico and Colombia.

Fernando Botero Zea currently resides in Mexico City, as director of Grupo Editorial Estilo México, which publishes the magazine Estilo México, Be!, Espacio Corporativo, and some other publications of brands such as Peyrelongue.

Botero married María Elvira Quintana in 1988. They had two sons, Fernando Botero Quintana and Felipe Botero Quintana. Botero also has a daughter, Camila Botero Llano, from a previous relationship. In 1999 Botero married Marinés Londoño Reyes, daughter of Fernando Londoño Henao. The Botero family comprises Botero`s three children, his wife`s three daughters, and seven grandchildren.

Botero Zea is an avid athlete and extreme sports enthusiast. Among the sports he practices are boxing, mixed martial arts, tennis, horse-back riding, motocross, skiing, diving, paragliding, paramotoring, sailing, mountaineering and rock climbing.

Following the legacy of Gloria Zea –who was an important promoter of the opera in her country–, Fernando Botero Zea has been, since the death of his mother in 2019, a regular sponsor of opera in Colombia.