Karl Albrecht

About Karl Albrecht

Birth Day: February 20, 1920
Birth Place: Germany
Died On: 16 July 2014(2014-07-16) (aged 94)\nEssen, Germany
Birth Sign: Pisces
Occupation: Entrepreneur
Known for: Co-founder of Aldi
Spouse(s): Mia Tenbrink (*1923; †2013)
Children: Karl Albrecht Jr. Beate Heister
Relatives: Theo Albrecht (brother) Theo Albrecht Jr. (nephew) Berthold Albrecht (nephew)

Karl Albrecht Net Worth

Karl Albrecht was born on February 20, 1920 in Germany. When Karl Albrecht returned from World War II, he found his mother's small corner store in Western Germany unscathed from years of air raids. He took it over with his brother, Theo, and together they expanded it into a chain of Aldi supermarkets, initially up and down the Rhine River. They soon realized further growth would require them to run their business on the cheap, and so started to price their goods with the same frugal mindset. By 1961, Karl and Theo split the businesses: Karl took the storefronts in southern Germany under the name Aldi Sud, as well as the rights to America, Australia and Britain; Theo got the stores in mainland Europe. Karl, a reclusive billionaire, saw his fortune continue to rise as Aldi expanded in America and overseas (to more than 1,300 stores in the U.S. and another 3,500 in eight other countries.) When he died in July 2014 at age 94, he was the richest person in Germany.
Karl Albrecht is a member of Fashion and Retail

💰Karl Albrecht Net worth: $25 Billion

2010 $23.5 Billion
2011 $25.5 Billion
2012 $25.4 Billion
2013 $26 Billion
2014 $25 Billion
2018 $25 Billion

Some Karl Albrecht images

Biography/Timeline

1961

Karl and Theo Albrecht were born and raised in a Catholic family in modest circumstances in Essen, Germany. Their Father, Karl Sr, was employed as a miner and later as a baker's assistant. Their mother Anna, née Siepmann, had a small grocery store in the worker's quarter of Schonnebeck (de), a suburb of Essen. Theo completed an apprenticeship in his mother's store, while Karl worked in a delicatessen shop. Karl served in the Wehrmacht during World War II and was wounded on the Eastern Front. After the war, the brothers jointly took over their mother's Business and founded Albrecht KG. They separated that company in 1961 into Aldi Nord, covering the part of Germany north of the Ruhr under Theo Albrecht, and Aldi Süd under Karl. The first Aldi (short for Albrecht Discount) was opened in 1962.

1976

Karl Albrecht was a very reclusive man who had not taken part in public life for several years prior to his death. As a result, little is known about him. Forbes magazine reported that he had two children, neither of whom was employed by Aldi. He reportedly lived in Essen, as did his brother Theo until the latter's death. Golf was one of his hobbies, and Albrecht played the sport on his own golf course, the Öschberghof, which he built in 1976. He also raised orchids.

1994

In 1994, Karl Albrecht removed himself from the daily operations of Aldi Süd and took the position of chairman of the board until 2002. At the beginning of 2002, he also relinquished this position, thereby completely ceding control of the firm. Today, the Business is no longer run by any of Karl Albrecht's family members.

2014

In 2014, Albrecht was listed as one of the richest people in the world with an estimated net worth of US$23.14 billion. Previously, Forbes magazine listed him as one of the richest men in the world, with an estimated net worth in 2011 of US$25.4 billion, which ranked him 10th in its 2012 list of billionaires – making him the oldest Billionaire in the Top 20 list. Albrecht was the richest person in Germany, and the fourth-richest in Europe.