Have you ever stopped to think about the story behind the 'Old Man of Havan'? Luciano Hang is one of those characters who has practically become synonymous with the brand he created. But there's an interesting thing: this guy's journey wasn't exactly linear.

Born in Brusque, Santa Catarina, in 1962, Hang grew up in an industrial environment where entrepreneurship was practically a must. The curious detail is that he faced dyslexia as a child — he only learned to read and write later. Even so, he continued studying and earned a degree in Data Processing at the Regional University of Blumenau. This technical background ended up being fundamental to how he thought about business afterward.

His career started early. At 17, he was working in a textile factory, and by 21, he had already acquired his own weaving company. Basically, the guy already understood operations, the supply chain, all that. In 1986, together with Vanderlei de Lima, he opened the first Havan store — the name came from combining the names of the two founders.

What’s impressive is how the company grew. From a small textile shop in Santa Catarina to a network with hundreds of stores across Brazil. In 1995, the first branch in Curitiba, in 2003 they launched e-commerce, and in 2017 they hit 100 stores. That unique architectural style — inspired by the White House, replicas of the Statue of Liberty — became a trademark.

The fortune? According to Forbes, it’s around US$ 3.2 billion. It’s not just Havan — the guy has stakes in shopping malls, energy distributors, media. But Havan is the core business.

What’s interesting is that they never did an IPO, even with an evaluation reaching R$ 45 billion in 2021. Hang always preferred to keep full control. Starting in 2017, he began appearing more in campaigns, online videos, and that’s when the nickname 'Old Man of Havan' exploded on the internet. At first, it was somewhat critical, but the businessman realized it became an incredibly effective marketing strategy.

In recent years, he gained quite a bit of visibility also for his political stance — publicly supporting Bolsonaro in 2018 and 2022 — which generated both support and heavy criticism.

But to sum up: a guy who started with dyslexia, had technical training in data processing, worked in a factory, created a small business that turned into one of the largest retail chains in Brazil. Luciano Hang’s story is basically about how to turn operational knowledge and market vision into a retail empire.