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- this is an old article but still and interesting read.
- my question is, how would you lead your life if you had billions in the bank?
The World's Richest People
The Frugal Billionaires
Sure, billionaires fly private jets, live in massive mansions, dine at the world's finest restaurants and shop at Gucci, Prada and Louis Vuitton. After all, they're rich. But some of the world's wealthiest people aren't so flashy. They're frugal--for billionaires, at least.
Take John Caudwell, who got his start as an auto-repair shop owner and went on to create a $2.2 billion fortune (when last measured by Forbes in March) by selling his 85% stake in cellphone outfit the Caudwell Group in 2005. An avid sportsman, he used to bike 14 miles to work every day. He cuts his own hair because going to a barber is a waste of time. He buys his clothes off the rack at British retailer Marks & Spencer
"I don't need Saville Row suits," he tells Forbes, adding that splurging on extremely pricey bottles of wine is often a waste. "I don't need to spend money to bolster my own esteem."
Caudwell does have his indulgences. He owns both a Ferrari and a Bentley.
Jim C. Walton, the Wal-Mart scion and member of America's richest family, has different taste in vehicles. He inherited his money--and spending habits--from father Sam. Worth $16.4 billion when we valued his fortune for the Forbes 400 list in September, Jim prefers pickup trucks to sports cars. Reportedly, he drives a 15-year-old Dodge Dakota.
Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad built a $33 billion fortune selling affordable furniture to the masses. Yet the self-made Swedish tycoon drives a 15-year-old Volvo, flies coach, tries to avoid wearing suits and often eats meals at lower-tier restaurants.
Indian billionaire Azim Premji made his $17.1 billion fortune through tech-services giant Wipro. Despite being one of Asia's richest men, Premji drives a Toyota Corolla, flies coach and stays in company guest houses instead of five-star hotels when traveling on business. He even served food on paper plates at a lunch honoring his son's wedding.
Famously frugal investor Warren Buffett has been making headlines recently for railing against the Bush administration's tax policy and sticking up for the middle class. And he walks the walk: Despite earning $46 million in taxable income last year and boasting a net worth of $57 billion, he lives in the same home he bought for $31,500 nearly 50 years ago.
Stanford professor David Cheriton made his billions by introducing Googlefounders Sergey Brin and Larry Pa ge to the venture capitalists at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. He was rewarded with a sizable chunk of Google stock.
Canadian Cheriton says he prefers to ride his bike around his Palo Alto, Calif., neighborhood, and relies on an old Volkswagen van or a Honda sedan when he needs to get behind the wheel. He says he only flies commercial, prefers jeans to designer clothes and claims to reuse his teabags. He also cuts his own hair to save time going to a barber. His indulgence: two windsurfers.
When contacted about this story, Cheriton cited the Wikipedia definition of frugality: "The acquiring of and resourceful use of economic goods and services in order to achieve lasting and more fulfilling goals." He says, "That's certainly something I aspire to."
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[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/Seth Wenig
[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/IKEA
Courtesy of Wal-Mart
- my question is, how would you lead your life if you had billions in the bank?
The World's Richest People
The Frugal Billionaires
Sure, billionaires fly private jets, live in massive mansions, dine at the world's finest restaurants and shop at Gucci, Prada and Louis Vuitton. After all, they're rich. But some of the world's wealthiest people aren't so flashy. They're frugal--for billionaires, at least.
Take John Caudwell, who got his start as an auto-repair shop owner and went on to create a $2.2 billion fortune (when last measured by Forbes in March) by selling his 85% stake in cellphone outfit the Caudwell Group in 2005. An avid sportsman, he used to bike 14 miles to work every day. He cuts his own hair because going to a barber is a waste of time. He buys his clothes off the rack at British retailer Marks & Spencer
"I don't need Saville Row suits," he tells Forbes, adding that splurging on extremely pricey bottles of wine is often a waste. "I don't need to spend money to bolster my own esteem."
Caudwell does have his indulgences. He owns both a Ferrari and a Bentley.
Jim C. Walton, the Wal-Mart scion and member of America's richest family, has different taste in vehicles. He inherited his money--and spending habits--from father Sam. Worth $16.4 billion when we valued his fortune for the Forbes 400 list in September, Jim prefers pickup trucks to sports cars. Reportedly, he drives a 15-year-old Dodge Dakota.
Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad built a $33 billion fortune selling affordable furniture to the masses. Yet the self-made Swedish tycoon drives a 15-year-old Volvo, flies coach, tries to avoid wearing suits and often eats meals at lower-tier restaurants.
Indian billionaire Azim Premji made his $17.1 billion fortune through tech-services giant Wipro. Despite being one of Asia's richest men, Premji drives a Toyota Corolla, flies coach and stays in company guest houses instead of five-star hotels when traveling on business. He even served food on paper plates at a lunch honoring his son's wedding.
Famously frugal investor Warren Buffett has been making headlines recently for railing against the Bush administration's tax policy and sticking up for the middle class. And he walks the walk: Despite earning $46 million in taxable income last year and boasting a net worth of $57 billion, he lives in the same home he bought for $31,500 nearly 50 years ago.
Stanford professor David Cheriton made his billions by introducing Googlefounders Sergey Brin and Larry Pa ge to the venture capitalists at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. He was rewarded with a sizable chunk of Google stock.
Canadian Cheriton says he prefers to ride his bike around his Palo Alto, Calif., neighborhood, and relies on an old Volkswagen van or a Honda sedan when he needs to get behind the wheel. He says he only flies commercial, prefers jeans to designer clothes and claims to reuse his teabags. He also cuts his own hair to save time going to a barber. His indulgence: two windsurfers.
When contacted about this story, Cheriton cited the Wikipedia definition of frugality: "The acquiring of and resourceful use of economic goods and services in order to achieve lasting and more fulfilling goals." He says, "That's certainly something I aspire to."
[table][tr][/tr][tr][td]
[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/Seth Wenig
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[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/IKEA
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Courtesy of Wal-Mart
[h4]Jim C. Walton [/h4]
$16.4 billion
Country: United States
The Wal-Mart scion and member of America's richest family inherited his billions--and spending habits--from his father Sam. Like his billionaire sister Alice, Jim prefers sturdy pickup trucks to flashy, expensive sports cars. He reportedly drives a 15-year-old Dodge Dakota.
[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/Joe Nicholson
Courtesy David Cheriton
[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/Joe Nicholson
[h4]Azim Premji [/h4]
$17.1 billion
Country: India
Parsimonious Premji inherited a cooking-oil business from his father and transformed it into technology-services giant Wipro. He drove a Ford Escort for eight years before trading it in for a new Toyota Corolla, but he usually walks to work from his nearby home. Premji often stays at budget hotels when traveling in India. he reportedly wears non-branded suits and flies economy. Paper plates were used at a luncheon in honor of his son Rishad's wedding a few years ago.
[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/Adam Bird
[h4]Frederik Meijer & Family [/h4]
$2 billion
Country: United States
The reclusive retail tycoon was raised to be a penny-pincher. His father Hendrik was a barber, but switched to supermarkets after the Depression reduced his clientèle, opening Meijer Grocery in 1934, where he kept prices low. The father-and-son duo launched Meijer Thrifty Acres in 1962; the store is believed to be one of the first to offer "one-stop shopping;" it sold food and general merchandise under the same roof. Today, Meijer is known to drive cars with exceptionally high gas mileage. He also wears inexpensive suits bought off the racks of his stores and prefers to stay in budget motels when on the road.
[emoji]169[/emoji] Jo Hale/Getty Images
[h4]John Caudwell [/h4]
$2.2 billion
Country: U.K.
The former auto-repair shop owner and Michelin engineer entered the cellphone business in 1987. Caudwell sold his 85% stake in the Caudwell Group last year. An avid sportsman, he used to bike 14 miles to work. He cuts his own hair because, he says, going to a barber is a waste of time, and buys his clothes at affordable British retailer Marks & Spencer. Eschews three-figure bottles of wine when a two-figure bottle will do just as nicely: "I don't need to spend money to bolster my own esteem."
[emoji]169[/emoji] AP Photo/David J. Phillip
[h4][/h4][h4]Richard Kinder [/h4]
$2.9 billion
Country: United States
The former Enron president left the firm in 1996, claiming he was uncomfortable with its "asset-light" strategy. He then bought the Enron pipeline business with college friend William Morgan and later acquired more pipe from ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil and Shell. This year, Kinder took the pipeline firm private for $22 billion with management and investors; he renamed the firm Knight Inc. He believes in efficiency, flying coach on company business.
