The miser millionaire in the world Ingvar Kamprad — founder of IKEA

 

Ingvar Kamprad was born March 30, 1926. Entrepreneur from Sweden. One of the richest people in the world, the founder of IKEA stores that sell home goods. The acronym IKEA is made up of his own initials (IK) the name of the family farm, Elmtaryd (E) and Agunnaryd (A) the name of the nearest village.

Ingvar Kamprad said that he suffers from dyslexia and it left an imprint on his business. For example, Swedish-sounding manners the names of the goods sold in IKEA appeared due to the fact that he had difficulty remembering numerical references.





In one of his interviews he said that the car he's driving, age 15 years, he always flies economy class and requires subordinates to use both sides of a sheet of paper. All the furniture in his house from the store IKEA, except the old chairs and beautiful standing clock.

Ingvar, 32 years uses the same seat: I use them for 32 years. Wife thinks I need a new one, because the material is dirty. But otherwise it's no worse than new.

The idea of furniture Packed in flat boxes came to him in the 50-ies, when he saw how his fellow unscrewed the legs of the table to fit to the car buyer.

Owner of a chain of stores IKEA Swede Ingvar Kamprad is the richest man in the world. To such conclusion experts of the Swedish business weekly Veckans Affarer. In the list of most wealthy people in the world Kamprad ahead due to the depreciation of the dollar of Microsoft owner bill gates, with 400 billion Swedish kronor owned by the owner of IKEA, has now become a $ 53 billion — 6 billion more than the state of the American.

About Camrade sometimes said that his life was similar to the fate of characters from fairy tales of the brothers Grimm. Swedish billionaire has never studied at University (school teachers could not teach him to read), but the strategy of the business, which he applied to IKEA, studying in many higher education institutions in Europe. Kamprad's biographers believe that passion was transmitted to trade Ingvar inherited. But in 1897, the company which owned the future billionaire grandfather, was on the verge of bankruptcy. The head of the family was unable to pay the mortgage and committed suicide. But grandmother Ingvar managed to save the business. So she taught the grandson of will-power and work to defeat circumstances.

The first bargain young Kamprad made in school: he purchased wholesale pencils and matches, which are then more expensive resold classmates. And its first customer was the grandmother: when she died, in her things we found dozens of pencils, erasers, sharpeners, and boxes of matches purchased from Ingvar.

In 15 years, the future billionaire has opened the first firm that sold a variety of small directories. Two years later came IKEA. The name Ingvar coded uppercase letters of your first name, last name, farm where he was born and the village where he grew up. The first time a new company focused on mail products. Then Kamprad bought the old factory, where he began to produce cheap furniture. But this trade policy was the reason for the boycott in the late 50-ies announced Kamprad, the Swedish national Association of sellers of furniture, perturbed low prices on products IKEA.

In the end, the future billionaire took the unusual at the time for the Swedish business step: become part of the components required to build furniture on the cheap from Polish suppliers. So dad Ingvar, as it is sometimes called the IKEA co-workers for the first time carried out the future strategy of the company to place orders for goods in those countries where it is cheaper. Every crown is a crown, — often repeats his subordinates billionaire.

On his phenomenal frugality is legendary. Travel Kamprad lives in three-star hotels, with Breakfast (especially when he is included in the room rate) load up the blade to last until the end of the day, and if you still need to pay for food out of pocket, the billionaire goes to cheap restaurants and even allegedly buys hamburgers. Situated during travel, different countries, he rarely travels by taxi, preferring public transport, where, as explained to friends, you can learn the tastes of the people.

When traveling by train Kamprad buys tickets only to the second class, he carries the Luggage, gains on sales of cheap clothes, and the best vacation considers travel by bike in Sweden. How can I claim thrift from people who work for me, if I spend time in luxury and comfort, he explains.

The ability to appreciate the money Kamprad instilled in sons. The youngest of them, Mathias, recalls how, as a student, was rooted out on vacation the woods in the estate of the parents. And father paid him for the work less than salaried workers. After graduation Mathias on General grounds, he went to work in one of the shopping centers IKEA. My initial salary was so small that sometimes my wife had to live in poverty — rescued only cheap lunch in the cafe of IKEA — with a smile he recalls.

But a few dark spots in the biography of the billionaire, reporters still found. It turned out that in his youth — under the influence of the grandmother — Kamprad was a Nazi sympathizer (businessman apologized for that incorrect craze in 1994). Among other weaknesses — periodic binges that allegedly suffers from the owner of the IKEA. But these shortcomings do not interfere with Kamprad, who a few years ago, formally retired, passing the firm to the sons, to control their trading Empire, consisting of 180 stores in more than 30 countries. Kamprad proud when it is compared with Henry Ford: he believes that, as Ford has made available for the majority of goods that were once deemed luxury items.

However, the question — who is richer, or gates, Kamprad is still open. Forbes magazine, which annually are the richest people in the world, believes the findings of Swedish experts in relation Kamprad premature.

Experts Forbes assess the condition of the Swede only $ 18 billion (13th largest in the world). The differences in the definition of wealth Kamprad they explain different methods of calculation.

 

P. S. And remember, only by changing their consumption — together we change the world! ©

Join us in Facebook , Vkontakte, Odnoklassniki

Source: facebook.com/mihail.litvak.37/posts/1007790055982623