Famous Entrepreneurs Information

Ingvar Kamprad
Net Worth: $22 billion
Source: Ikea/Sweden
Age: 83
Marital Status: Divorced, remarried; four children

Peddled matches, fish, pens, Christmas cards and other items by bicycle as a teenager.

Started selling furniture in 1947.

Opened first Ikea store 50 years ago; store's name is a combination of initials of his first and last name, his family farm and the nearest village.

Retired in 1986; company's "senior adviser" still reportedly works tirelessly on his brand.
Discount retailer now sells 9,500 items in 36 countries; prints catalog in 27 languages. Revenues up 7% to $27.4 billion in fiscal-year 2008.

Opened 10th store in China this February; planning to open first in Dominican Republic later this year.

Three sons all work at the company.

Thrifty entrepreneur flies economy class, frequents cheap restaurants and furnishes his home mostly with Ikea products.

by Luisa Kroll, Matthew Miller, and Tatiana Serafin

Labels: famous entrepreneurs, ikea, ingvar kamprad, sweden, world's richest