Harel Wiesel, co-CEO of Fox Group, built Israel's largest fashion retailer. He oversees over 600 stores and 14,500 employees.
The Controlling Shareholder Who Built Israel's Largest Fashion Retail Empire
Harel Wiesel (הראל ויזל) is the co-CEO, director, and controlling shareholder of Fox Group (TASE: FOX), Israel's largest fashion retailer. Through Wizel Holdings A.Y.H. Ltd, he holds 19.6% of the company, according to Fox-Wizel's own disclosed shareholder structure, as compiled by Who Profits. Born in Israel, married with three children, Wiesel transformed a textile marketing company founded in 1942 into a 600+ store conglomerate operating in 10+ countries with roughly 15,700-15,800 employees and a market capitalization of roughly ILS 3.7-3.98 billion as of 2026, per TradingView's tracked company data.
The Operating Story
Wiesel's career at Fox spans the company's entire modern era. The original entity, Trico Fox Ltd. (טריקו פוקס), was a textile manufacturing operation established in 1942 during the British Mandate, according to Wikipedia's history of the company. Wiesel took the company from manufacturing into retail, opening the first Fox-branded fashion stores in the early 1990s. The 2002 IPO on the TASE gave him capital to execute an aggressive expansion strategy; company records show it was around this period that the business was renamed from Wizel Textile Marketing Ltd. to Fox-Wizel Ltd., per Simply Wall St's company profile. Wiesel has served as CEO and director of Fox-Wizel since January 1, 2000, Simply Wall St's leadership analysis notes, and has chaired subsidiary Retailors Ltd. since March 2015.
The pivotal decision came in 2006, when Wiesel diversified beyond fashion. Rather than competing as a single-brand retailer against international entrants like Zara, H&M, and Gap, he built Fox Group into a multi-brand franchise platform, acquiring or licensing the Israeli operations for global brands that needed a local retail operator.
The Franchise Architecture
Wiesel's strategy: become the indispensable Israeli retail operator for global fashion and sports brands. Fox Group now holds Israeli franchise rights for Nike, Mango, Foot Locker, American Eagle, Aerie, The Children's Place, Free People, Anthropologie, and Urban Outfitters, alongside owned and part-owned labels including Fox, Fox Home, Laline, Shilav, Billabong, Quicksilver, Converse, and Champion, per Who Profits' listing of Fox-Wizel's brand and subsidiary structure. The group also operates Terminal X (online fashion platform) and Dream Sport.
The model captures the margin between global brand equity and local retail execution. Fox doesn't bear the cost of building the brand; Nike and Mango do that globally. Fox captures the retail margin in Israel by operating the stores, managing the logistics, and serving as the customer-facing layer.
Fox Group holds the largest loyalty program membership in Israel, a data asset that spans all its brands and gives the company cross-category insight into Israeli consumer behavior.
International Expansion
Fox operates stores internationally under its own Fox fashion brand in Russia, Singapore, China, India, Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, Thailand, Panama, Canada, and Cyprus. Through subsidiary Retailors, the group manages franchise operations for global brands including Foot Locker across more than a dozen European countries, per Who Profits' subsidiary listing.
Wiesel's latest move: bringing Jumbo, the Greek discount home-and-toy chain, to Israel, with plans for 8 to 10 stores of approximately 10,000 square meters each, at an estimated investment of NIS 110 million over three years.
Key Facts
Name: Harel Eliezer Wiesel (הראל אליעזר ויזל)
Born: Israel
Position: Co-CEO and Director, Fox Group (TASE: FOX), since January 2000
Ownership: 19.6% via Wizel Holdings A.Y.H. Ltd, alongside co-founder Abraham Dov Fuchs's 22.48% stake
Fox Group scale: 600+ stores · 10+ countries · ~15,700-15,800 employees · ~ILS 3.7-3.98B market cap (2026)
Key decisions: 2002 IPO · 2006 diversification into multi-brand franchise model · Nike, Mango, Foot Locker franchise acquisitions · Jumbo Israel (upcoming)
Wiesel's profile is part of the Olam Founders & Companies reference layer, the canonical entity index for Israeli executives and the companies they control.
Sources
Who Profits, Fox-Wizel Ltd. shareholder and subsidiary structure; TradingView, FOX company financial data; Wikipedia, Fox (clothing); Simply Wall St, Fox-Wizel leadership analysis.
