Theo Albrecht

Albrecht died 24 July 2010, in his hometown of Essen.

In 1971, Albrecht was kidnapped for 17 days. A ransom of seven million German marks (approximately US$2 million at the time) was paid for his release. He was held at gunpoint by Heinz-Joachim Ollenburg, a lawyer, and his accomplice Paul Kron. The ransom sum was delivered by Franz Hengsbach, then Bishop of Essen. His kidnappers were eventually caught by authorities, but only half of the money was recovered. Albrecht later unsuccessfully claimed the ransom as a tax deductible business expense in court.

Albrecht's kidnapping in 1971 partially explains his and the family's hermit-like manner of existence. The kidnapping caused him to drive to work in an armored car, using a different route every day. Little is known about Theo and the Albrecht family's personal lives. The Albrecht family members are known to be very reclusive and have been described by Forbes as ‘more reclusive than the yeti’. Theo was rarely pictured by photographers, and he never made a public statement. The last published photo of Theo Albrecht dates from 1971, one day after his kidnapping. Another photo of the two Albrecht brothers together was taken in 1987 by journalist Franz Ruch.

Albrecht learned the grocery business from his mother, in order to escape the fate of his father in the mines. He and his brother Karl developed Albrecht Diskont, one of Europe's largest chains of supermarkets, with the motto "The best quality at the lowest price," and now known by its acronym, Aldi. Forbes has estimated Theo's fortune from the supermarket chain as approximately £11 billion. Theo and Karl Albrecht split the Aldi Company they founded in 1960 after a dispute about whether to sell cigarettes. The supermarket divided into two legally separate operating units with two distinct geographical locations. Theo's Aldi Nord set to operate in the north of Germany, while Karl's Aldi Süd set to operate in Germany's south. Theo retired from daily operations in 1993 and remained as chairman of the board.

Albrecht was raised in a Catholic household. At the age of 18, Theo was conscripted into the German Army and served in the North African campaign. Theo was captured by the Americans in Tunisia. In 1946 he returned to Germany.

Theodor Paul Albrecht (German: [ˈalbʁɛçt]; 28 March 1922 – 24 July 2010) was a German entrepreneur. He established the discount supermarket chain Aldi with his brother Karl Albrecht. In 2010, Theo was ranked by Forbes as the 31st richest person in the world, with a net worth of $16.7 billion.