Hey Everyone! “How you doin’?”
Last Monday, Forbes released a list of the world’s wealthiest women in the World, and boy oh boy, these women ROCK. Well, I couldn’t have thought of a better time and moment to write about these “women of substance!” – Why not? Its Women’s History Month y’all! Yayyyyy! I agree, we all have our unique ways of acknowledging “women power” and “sisterhood”. Appreciating and valuing (and of course, showing off) their hard work and effort works just fine for me. Woot! Woot!
Ready to feel inspired? Let’s take a look at some of the World’s Richest Women, 2018!
1. LILIANE BETTENCOURT
Liliane Henrietta Charlotte Bettencourt (21 October 1922 – 21 September 2017) was a French heiress, socialite and businesswoman. She was one of the principal shareholders of L’Oréal. At the time of her death, she was the richest woman in the world (and the 14th richest person), with a net worth of US$39.5 billion! As the daughter of Eugene Schueller, the founder of L’Oreal, Bettencourt inherited a massive fortune when her father passed away in 1957.
2. ALICE WALTON
Alice Louise Walton (born October 7, 1949) is an American heiress to the fortune of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. She is the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton and while she focuses on curating art, she also co-manages the family’s holding company Walton Enterprises. As of March 2018, Walton had a net worth of US$33.8 billion, making her the second wealthiest woman in the world, and the 18th-richest person in the world.
3. JACQUELINE MARS
Jacqueline Mars (born October 10, 1939) is an American heiress and investor. She is the daughter of Audrey Ruth (Meyer) and Forrest Mars, Sr., and granddaughter of Frank C. Mars, founders of the American candy company Mars, Incorporated. She owns a third of candy company Mars, and Forbes estimates her net worth at US$27 billion. She worked for the company and served on its board for a while, but these days she’s better known as a philanthropist.
4. MARIA FRANCE FISSOLO
Maria Franca Fissolo (born 1941) is an Italian billionaire, the widow of Michele Ferrero, who turned a simple chocolate-and-hazelnut spread called Nutella into an iconic brand, not to mention Ferrero Rocher chocolates! Her net worth is estimated at US$25.2 billion securing her the forth spot on the Forbes list.
5. SUSANNE KLATTEN
Susanne Klatten (born Susanne Hanna Ursula Quandt on 28 April 1962) is a German heiress, the daughter of Herbert and Johanna Quandt. As per Forbes, her net worth is US$20.4 billion, making her the richest woman in Germany and the 35th richest person in the world. She owns 19.2% of automaker BMW; her brother, Stefan Quandt, owns 23.7%. Klatten is the sole owner and deputy chairman of Altana, which pulls in more than US$2.5 billion in annual sales.
6. LAURENE POWELL JOBS
Laurene Powell Jobs (born November 6, 1963) is an American businesswoman, executive and the founder of Emerson Collective, which advocates for policies concerning education and immigration reform, social justice and environmental conservation. As you could’ve guessed from her last name, Laurene Powell Jobs is the widow of Steve Jobs, in addition to being the co-founder and former CEO of Apple Inc. While she’s had a respectable career of her own, Laurene Powell’s wealth stems from what she gained when Steve Jobs passed away in 2011. After the death of her husband, Steve, Laurene inherited the Steven P. Jobs Trust, which had a 7.3% stake in The Walt Disney Company and around 38.5 million shares in Apple Inc. Her net worth is estimated at US$20 billion in the latest Forbes report.
It isn’t always easy being a successful woman in business. It’s a fatiguing climb to the top. Less pay compared to men. Long working hours. Mastering the art of managing the “work-life” balance. And umm, don’t get me started on the high heels you need to wear! Life’s is tough and these women work though it with oodles of poise and panache! It does not matter how they attained their status of being rich women – be it through inheritance or by working for it. What matters, however, is the fact that women are big decision makers and play a crucial role in wealth creation and affluence. Hail womankind!
“The day will come when men will recognize woman as his peer, not only at the fireside, but in councils of the nation. Then, and not until then, will there be the perfect comradeship, the ideal union between the sexes that shall result in the highest development of the race.”
Disclaimer : The details and the ratings have been collected/collated from Wikipedia. The images are from Google.
Here’s to womanhood and scaling new heights!
Love,
4 Comments
Good ones here. And many of them are doing really great things to help others.
One of my favourites wasn’t in the list – probably because she doesn’t quite have the same level of wealth – but she does have a fair bit of fame. She’s been a huge advocate for children’s literacy – just recently the program she founded – one that gives free books to kids from birth until they go to school – gave away it’s 100 millionth book! As a huge fan of books and reading she’s a real hero of mine.
https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/03/01/589912466/dolly-parton-gives-the-gift-of-literacy-a-library-of-100-million-books
Dolly Parton has always been an inspiration to the World – be it for her looks, songs, good deeds or the charity work that she does. I will be visiting Gatlinburg the next month and I am so stoked be able to see “Dollywood”
Guess, this list (from Forbes) only talks about the “business women” around the World.
Thank you so much for your comment, I really appreciate it! 🙂
I have been hesitant to mention this, and not to discount the work any of these women have done, but have you noticed they’re all heiresses?
I agree! (They did get a good start and did not have to work as hard as someone else) But then yeah, it is not easy to maintain and live up to the name of the “brand” and sustain the competition these days. Its a tough life with too many huddles! For example – The Vanderbilts, The Pulitzer, The Hartfords – they all have failed to maintain their status-quo with the passing generations!
Thank you for your comment, I really appreciate it! 🙂