Karl Albrecht in Germany, and the fourth-richest in Europe. Karl Albrecht Karl Hans Albrecht (; 20 February 1920 – 16 July 2014) was a German entrepreneur who founded the discount supermarket chain Aldi with his brother Theo. He was for many years the richest person in Germany. In February 2014, he was ranked the 21st-richest person in the world by Hurun Report. 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
Theo Albrecht hobbies such as golf and pastimes including the collecting of antique typewriters. Theodor had, as do members of the Albrecht family now, a highly secure estate overlooking the Ruhr valley. Obsessed with frugality, Theodor is said to have collected and used pencil stubs frequently. He was also known to wear cheaper, poorly fitting suits and preferred plain meals with many potatoes. When he was asked to approve the plans for a new store in the Netherlands, he stated that the design was good but the paper it was drawn on was too thick: "If you use thinner paper we will