José Antonio Llorente, founding partner and executive chairman of LLYC, died on Sunday, December 31, in Madrid at the age of 63, as reported by the firm in a statement.
The board of directors and professional partners of LLYC expressed their "deep sadness" and solidarity with his wife, Irene Rodríguez, with his daughter, Mara, and with his mother and siblings, to whom they have communicated everything his affection
Born in 1960, José Antonio Llorente Herrero founded LLYC in 1995. He had started his career at Agència Efe and the communication department of CEOE and, before creating his own firm, became CEO of Burson Marsteller in Spain.
In 2021 he was recognized as an illustrious student of the Faculty of Information Sciences of the Complutense University, where he had graduated in Journalism.
After leading Burson Marsteller, he embarked on the adventure of founding Llorente
Currently, LLYC is a listed company among the 40 largest in the world and has more than 1,200 collaborators. José Antonio Llorente Herrero drove the partnership model, the firm's IPO at BME Growth and a solid corporate governance model. In 2015, he poured over much of his experience and career in the book El octavo sentido
"José Antonio, JALL for the entire LLYC team, leaves us a great legacy to take care of and grow. All of us who have had the immense fortune of knowing him, working and learning with him will always be grateful for his generosity, his audacity and his brilliance, but above all his kindness. He leaves us a teacher, a mentor and a friend. We will continue to make his immense legacy greater", expressed Alejandro Romero, partner and Global CEO, on behalf of the entire LLYC team.
Passionate about contemporary art and a collector focused on Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American art, he was a patron of the Museo del Barrio in New York, a member of the International Council of Patronage of the Reina Sofia Museum Foundation and a member of the Advisory Council of the ARCO Foundation, which had informed him of the award to the Spanish Collector of the Year in the 2024 edition of the fair.
In his philanthropic work, his commitment to the LLYC Foundation, whose board of trustees he presided over until 2022, and his permanent collaboration with the Spanish Association to Fight Cancer also stand out.
When the news of his death spread, there were numerous expressions of condolence from representatives of all fields, from business and journalism to culture.
