ONCE Honors Top Sales Professionals for Social Impact and Workplace Integration
ONCE has honored Julia Díaz and 21 other top-performing sales agents across Spain, highlighting the organization's commitment to social integration and the employment of people with disabilities.
For ONCE sales agents, selling lottery tickets is about much more than business; it is a vital part of Spain’s social fabric and a key driver of workplace integration. This commitment was recently highlighted when Julia Díaz was named the organization’s top salesperson in Tenerife for the 2025 fiscal year. She is one of 22 professionals recognized nationally, representing a network that employs over 21,000 people across the country.
Díaz, a 53-year-old originally from Cuba, works at the El Meridiano Shopping Center in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Since joining ONCE in 2016, she has built an impressive track record, selling winning tickets worth more than eleven million euros. Beyond her sales figures, the award recognizes her personal journey. After moving to Spain at 24, she found that working for ONCE provided the professional and personal support she needed to turn her life around.
The awards were presented on June 5 at the ILUNION Pío XII Hotel in Madrid during an event themed "At Street Level." The ceremony, attended by ONCE’s leadership, celebrated the close, daily connection these workers have with the public. Hosted by presenter Luis Larrodera and the Yllana theater company, the event saw Director General Ángel Sánchez praise these professionals as the true ambassadors of the organization’s social mission.
These awards do more than celebrate sales performance; they highlight the importance of employing people with disabilities, a model that has made ONCE one of Spain’s largest employers. Díaz’s story of resilience and dedication reflects the spirit of a workforce that, from street corners and shopping centers across the country, serves as the backbone of the organization’s commitment to solidarity.