The company was started in 1913 as a family grocery business in Essen. In 1946, brothers Karl Albrecht (1920-2014) and Theo Albrecht (1922-2010) took over the business from their mother. Theo had been held by the US in a prisoner of war camp. They started the idea of discount shops in Germany. They decided to have a limited range of goods and sell them at a discount price. In 1960, the company was split into Aldi Nord (Aldi North) under the control of Theo, and Aldi Süd (Aldi South) under the control of Karl. The brothers became billionaires. In 2009 Karl's wealth was estimated to be €25 billion. Theo was kidnapped in 1971 and held prisoner for 17 days until a seven million mark ransom was paid. The family have avoided publicity and there are few known photographs of them.