Wealth: Who are the Richest Germans?

Germany has as many as 237 billionaires on the basis of the European currency Euro. An ‘old acquaintance’ is still at the top of the list.

Germany’s billionaires made their fortunes by selling hygiene paper, toys, beverages, industry cables, chicken, other food, packaging, campers, software, household appliances, real estate objects and sweets. Since Germany is the land of cars, it is no surprise that the owners of quite a few car parts suppliers made it on the list of the 1,000 richest Germans published by the ‘Welt am Sonntag’ weekly.

The very richest German national is Dieter Schwarz. It is not the first time he made it to the top of the list, with a fortune of 41.8 billion Euro (49.5 billion U.S. Dollars or 38.3 billion Pounds Sterling). His company, Schwarz-Gruppe, with an annual turnover of 113.3 billion Euro (134.1 billion Dollars or 103.8 billion Pounds), runs ths supermarket chain Lidl and Kaufland, a big box store chains.

The seventh and eighth places are being occupied by the families Heister and Albrecht who own the supermarket chain Aldi Süd.

Aldi Süd is the owner of the Aldi Grocery Stores we are seeing here in the US. There is an "Aldi Nord" that is unmentioned in this article but is the owner of the California-based "Trader Joes" Grocery Store Chain. These two chains were, at one time, a single chain grown by the pair of Albrecht Brothers from their mother's single post-war store.

The separation between the two chains came out of a disagreement over carrying heavily taxed cigarettes and one brother took the stores south of the Rhine River as Aldi Süd and the other chain became, obviously, Aldi Nord. While both brothers have died, while alive they were at the top of this list for years! Interestingly, the ONLY COUNTRY (outside Germany) that has both chains operating within its borders is the United States as Aldi (Aldi Süd) and Trader Joes (Aldi Nord). Every other country is exclusive to one or the other chain.

It is interesting information and good cocktail party fodder. But, if you don’t care just move on to the next thread.

So a Euro billionaire is only worth 85% of a US billionaire.

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