Karl Hans Albrecht Jr. (born 1948 in Essen) is a German billionaire, and the son of Karl Albrecht, who founded the discount supermarket chain Aldi with his brother Theo.
Albrecht worked for Aldi Süd in various roles until his resignation due to a cancer diagnosis (from which he subsequently recovered). He and his sister Beate Heister control the family trust, the Siepmann Stiftung (named for their mother), which, in turn, controls Aldi Süd, the source of their joint fortune.
According to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, he has an estimated net worth of US$14.3 billion, making him the 149th wealthiest person in the world, as of June 2021.
He is married to Gabriele Mertes, and they have no children.
Albrecht’s fortune is derived from a half stake in Aldi Sued, part of the German food retail chain. Aldi Sued had revenue of 72.8 billion euros ($86 billion) in 2021, according to retail consultants Edge by Ascential Retail Insight.
Albrecht controls Aldi Sued with his sister, Beate, and her husband and oldest son, through their Eichenau, Germany-based Siepmann trust, according to an interview with his late father in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper in 2014.
The valuation of Aldi Sued is based on the average enterprise value-to-sales multiple of two publicly traded peer companies: Carrefour SA and J Sainsbury PLC.
Carolin Kunsleben, a spokeswoman for Aldi Sued, declined to comment on the net worth calculation.
Biography
Karl Albrecht Jr.’s father, also named Karl, was born in Essen, Germany, in 1920, to Karl Albrecht, a miner, and Anna Albrecht, who owned and ran a local supermarket. His father served in the German Wehrmacht during World War II and was wounded on the Russian front. He returned to Essen in 1946 with his younger brother Theo to take over their mother’s grocery shop. By 1953, the brothers had expanded the business to about 30 discount supermarkets under the name Albrechts.
In the early 1960s, the company’s name was changed to Aldi — short for Albrecht Discount. The brothers subsequently split Aldi into two separate companies: Aldi Sued and Aldi Nord. Theo took the northern part of West Germany, plus western and southern Europe. Karl owned and operated the stores in southern and southwest Germany, the US, UK, Australia and Eastern Europe.
Aldi Sued’s retail expansion outside Germany started with the opening of a store in Austria in 1968. The first US store opened in 1976, followed by the UK in 1989, and Australia in 2001.
Albrecht stepped down as Aldi Sued CEO in 1994, and as chairman in 2002. He shunned public life after Theo was kidnapped and released in 1971. Theo died in July 2010, at age 88. Karl divided his time between Essen and his villa in Germany’s Black Forest before his death in July 2014. He was married with two children, Karl Jr. and Beate, and six grandchildren.
Karl Jr. and Beate each received half of their father’s fortune, and serve on Aldi Sued’s supervisory board. Karl Jr. is childless. Beate is married with six children.
Milestones
- 1913 Grandmother Anna opens grocery shop in Essen, Germany.
- 1920 Father, Karl, born to Karl Sr. and Anna Albrecht.
- 1946 Albrecht brothers take over their mother’s grocery store in Essen.
- 1960 Supermarket chain “Albrechts” renamed Aldi and split in separate companies.
- 1971 Uncle Theo kidnapped; family pays 7 million deutsche mark ransom.
- 1973 Father creates Siepmann trust to manage family wealth.
- 1976 Aldi Sued opens first store outside Europe: in the U.S.
- 1994 Father becomes Aldi Sued chairman and steps down as CEO.
- 2010 Uncle Theo dies; sons Berthold and Theo Jr. inherit Aldi Nord.
- 2014 Inherits half of Aldi Sued after father Karl Albrecht dies.
