You want to be a millionaire? Learn from José Elías Navarro’s strategy

Making a millionaire from scratch, following the José Elías Navarro model, means mixing a strategic vision with the intelligent use of financial leverage through banks, as well as making smart investments in companies that offer good annual profitability and dividends. José Elías, a Spanish entrepreneur who suffered from ruin to lead an empire with Renewable Audax and other countries, is a clear example of how to use debt in a stratified way and reinvest in productive assets can lead to the creation of significant wealth.

1. Understanding financial leverage with banks

leverage is basically using money that is not yours to increase the profit potential of an investment. José He’s taken advantage of this strategy to buy companies and grow their businesses. An example of this is when he founded Orus Energía in 2009, after going through a personal crisis, and then acquired Audax, merging it to form a real giant in the energy sector.

• Initial step: Learn how bank loans, credit lines and business finance work. Banks lend money if they see a solid and active plan that supports the risk.
• Strategy of Elías: He identified opportunities in sectors with predictable cash flows (such as energy) to ensure that income covered debt payments. For example, Audax Renovables generates recurring revenues by energy marketing, which makes it easy to pay interest and main.
• Practical passage:
  1. Design a business or identify one with stable income.
  2. Prepare a detailed business plan to convince a bank.
  3. Request a small initial loan (e.g. 10,000-50,000 euros) to test your idea, using the revenue generated to pay the debt and reinvest.

Risk: leverage increases profits, but also the orders if the business fails. He was ruined in 2008, but he used that experience to recalculate risks.

2. Identify companies or sectors with good profitability and dividends

José Elías does not invest at random; it searches for companies with growth potential and more solid Algerians. Its approach includes sectors such as renewable energy (Audax) and food (La Sirena), which offer consistent profitability and, in some cases, dividends.

• Selection keys:
  • Positive cash flow: Companies that generate recurrent income (energy, logistic, basic consumption).
  • Scalability: Businesses that can grow without the need for massive reinvestments.
  • Split: Although not all its listed companies pay high dividends, it prioritizes reinvestment of benefits to increase value, an approach that you can replicate.
• Practical passage:
  1. Research sectors in boom (e.g. renewable energy, technology, health).
  2. Find small or medium-sized companies with solid balances (in bags such as the Continuous Market in Spain or even unlisted local businesses).
  3. Use platforms like Yahoo Finance or Bloomberg to analyze past profitability and projections.
• Example of Elias: With Audax, he took advantage of the liberalisation of the energy market in 2009 to sell energy to small consumers, a niche neglected by giants like Endesa. This gave him higher and faster growth.

3. Buy debt companies and improve them

Elías is known to acquire companies (such as La Sirena) using financing and then optimize them to increase their value. This method, similar to that of private equity funds, is accessible if you start small.

• Strategy:
  • Buy undervalued or crisis businesses with potential for improvement.
  • Use bank loans to finance the purchase, making sure future income pays the debt.
  • Optimizes operations (reduces costs, improves processes, expands market).
• Practical passage:
  1. Search for businesses for sale (portales like Milanuncios, networks of contacts or advisors of M ChildhoodA).
  2. Negotiates a low price and finances 70-80% with a bank loan.
  3. It implements improvements (e.g. digitalization, new customers) to double its value in 3-5 years.
• Elías case: With La Sirena, he identified that it was not only a chain of freezes, but a log business, customer service and maintenance. He spread these areas and created synergies with other companies of his own, generating a “circular economy”.

4. Reinvert profits and diversify

José He does not spend his money on excessive luxuries; he reinvests in new companies. His family office, Excelsior Times, controls 180 societies, from Audax to OHLA (construction) and real estate projects.

• Practical passage:
  1. Once your first business generates benefits, do not withdraw them; use them to pay debts or buy another asset.
  2. Diversify in complementary sectors (e.g. if you have a power company, invest in storage or distribution).
  3. Point to a portfolio of 3-5 businesses in 10 years.
• Lesson of Elías: “The more companies I have, the more I believe.” He uses the profits of some to finance others, reducing their dependence on long-term banks.

5. Mentality and sacrifices

He emphasizes that the success requires obedience for details and personal sacrifice. “There are 50 as a guy, and to stand out you must perfect every aspect,” he says. Its start from zero after the 2008 ruin shows resilience.

• Keys:
  • Patience: Wealth does not come quickly; He was late to build his empire.
  • Passion: Find a business you like, because you will work hard. He compares the work with eating paella: if you like it, you don’t need to “unconnect”.
  • Calculated risk: Use debt, but with a clear plan to pay for it.
• Practical passage: Evaluate your skills and contacts. If you don’t have capital, start with a service (e.g. consulting, trade) that requires little initial money and generate quick cash to leverage you later.

Simplified financial analysis

Suppose you follow this model:

1. Invests 10,000 euros (5,000 own + 5,000 loans at 5% per year).
2. You buy a small business that generates 2,000 euros annually (20% profitability).
3. You pay 250 euros of interest per year and reinvest 1,750 euros.
4. In 5 years, you buy another business with accumulated profits and additional debt.
5. In 20 years, with 4-5 businesses and constant reinvestment, you could reach a million euros in net value.

Reality: This requires impeccable execution and some luck. He had failures (it lost 3 million in 2008), but learned from them.

Pros and cons

• Advantages:
  • The leverage multiplies your ability to invest.
  • Companies with stable dividends or flows offer security.
  • You can start with little if you use debt intelligently.
• Risks:
  • The poorly managed debt leads to ruin (as happened to Elías initially).
  • It requires time, knowledge and tolerance for failure.
  • ECONOMIC intercess or crisis rates may complicate the plan.

Conclusion

Making a millionaire from scratch, like José Elías Navarro, means taking advantage of the banks to leverage you, investing in companies that offer good profits and dividends, and reinvesting without stopping. There are no shortcuts: it is essential to have a plan, run with discipline and be willing to learn from mistakes. It begins with small steps, just as he did with Orus Energía, and grows with patience.

Information post : Invest with responsibility or with an advisor.