Theo Albrecht 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. Theodor 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 geographical locations. Theodor's Aldi Nord set to operate in the north of Germany and Karl's Aldi Süd, set to operate in Germany's south. The progression of Aldi under Karl and Theodor Albrecht stands as one of Germany’s greatest
Theo Albrecht success stories. Theodor retired from daily operations in 1993 and remained as chairman of the board. 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 the Bishop of Essen. His kidnappers were eventually caught by authorities, but only half of the money was recovered. Albrecht later successfully claimed the ransom as a tax deductible business expense in court. During World War II,