Most of the world's wealthiest
people work hard to earn their bread. In fact, two thirds of this year's
1,826 billionaires are self-made. While many of these entrepreneurial
moguls had some advantages to start with -- a family business, an Ivy
league education or seed money -- some succeeded in spite of the
starkest odds.
Mohed Altrad
is a case in point. Altrad lived through his father’s abuse, his
mother’s death when he was 4, and his grandmother’s banning him from
school. An orphaned Bedouin, he lived on just one meal a day when he
first moved to France almost five decades ago. Today he heads one of the
world's leading manufacturers of scaffolding and cement mixers, with
revenues exceeding $1 billion. "I knew I was condemned and my only
chance was at school," Altrad told FORBES reporter Katia Savchuk this February.
Around
the world, several billionaires gave up some of their childhood and
began working early out of necessity. Asia's wealthiest person, Li
Ka-shing, for instance, was forced to quit school at age 12 to help
support his family after his father died of tuberculosis. In Italy, eye
wear mogul Leonardo Del Vecchio was sent to a Milan orphanage when he
was 7 -- his widowed mother couldn’t support him -- and began an
apprenticeship in an eyeglass factory at age 14. His empire today
includes Sunglass Hut, LensCrafters, Ray-Ban and Oakley.
Following are FORBES’ 10 picks for the best tales of rags to riches billionaires who persevered against tremendous odds.
HONG KONG
Li Ka-shing
NET WORTH: $33.3 Bil
Asia’s wealthiest man quit school at age 12 and took a job at a watch-strap factory to support his family. Li got his start selling plastic toys and other items in Hong Kong in 1950 and later retooled his factory to focus on making plastic flowers. Today his interests expand from retail to property, ports and technology, employing 270,000 people in 52 countries.
Li Ka-shing
NET WORTH: $33.3 Bil
Asia’s wealthiest man quit school at age 12 and took a job at a watch-strap factory to support his family. Li got his start selling plastic toys and other items in Hong Kong in 1950 and later retooled his factory to focus on making plastic flowers. Today his interests expand from retail to property, ports and technology, employing 270,000 people in 52 countries.
ITALY
Leonardo Del Vecchio
NET WORTH: $20.4 Bil
When Del Vecchio was 7 his mother sent him to a Milan orphanage because she couldn't afford to care for him. At 14 he began an apprenticeship in an eyeglass factory. Eleven years later he founded Luxottica. Now the company manufactures glasses for luxury brands around the world, including Burberry, Bulgari, Chanel, Coach, DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Tiffany and Versace.
U.S.
Jan Koum
NET WORTH: $6.6 bilWhatsApp's cofounder emigrated from Ukraine at 16 with his mother and swept floors in a grocery store to help pay the bills. They lived off her disability when she was diagnosed with cancer. Koum put himself through college and worked at Yahoo as a security and infrastructure engineer. In 2009 he started WhatsApp, the world's biggest mobile messaging service. Facebook bought it for $19 billion in cash and stock in 2014.
Leonardo Del Vecchio
NET WORTH: $20.4 Bil
When Del Vecchio was 7 his mother sent him to a Milan orphanage because she couldn't afford to care for him. At 14 he began an apprenticeship in an eyeglass factory. Eleven years later he founded Luxottica. Now the company manufactures glasses for luxury brands around the world, including Burberry, Bulgari, Chanel, Coach, DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Tiffany and Versace.
U.S.
Jan Koum
NET WORTH: $6.6 bilWhatsApp's cofounder emigrated from Ukraine at 16 with his mother and swept floors in a grocery store to help pay the bills. They lived off her disability when she was diagnosed with cancer. Koum put himself through college and worked at Yahoo as a security and infrastructure engineer. In 2009 he started WhatsApp, the world's biggest mobile messaging service. Facebook bought it for $19 billion in cash and stock in 2014.
RUSSIA
Roman Abramovich
NET WORTH: $9.1 bil
Abramovich was orphaned by age 4 and raised by relatives. After dropping out of college he served with the Soviet army before selling plastic toys from his apartment. Abramovich made a series of oil-export deals in the early 1990s and in 1995 teamed up with Boris Berezovsky to take over oil giant Sibneft at a fraction of its market value.
Roman Abramovich
NET WORTH: $9.1 bil
Abramovich was orphaned by age 4 and raised by relatives. After dropping out of college he served with the Soviet army before selling plastic toys from his apartment. Abramovich made a series of oil-export deals in the early 1990s and in 1995 teamed up with Boris Berezovsky to take over oil giant Sibneft at a fraction of its market value.
INDIA
Micky Jagtiani
NET WORTH: $5.2 bil
Jagtiani dropped out of accounting school to clean hotel rooms and drive a taxi in London before moving to Bahrain to help run his family's baby products shop. He was suddenly in charge after his brother, father and mother all died within a year of one another. Today his retail empire Landmark Group generates $5 billion revenues annually from more than 1,900 stores across the Middle East, Africa and India.
Micky Jagtiani
NET WORTH: $5.2 bil
Jagtiani dropped out of accounting school to clean hotel rooms and drive a taxi in London before moving to Bahrain to help run his family's baby products shop. He was suddenly in charge after his brother, father and mother all died within a year of one another. Today his retail empire Landmark Group generates $5 billion revenues annually from more than 1,900 stores across the Middle East, Africa and India.
U.S.
David Murdock
NET WORTH: $3.1 bil
A dyslexic, Murdock dropped out of high school in the ninth grade to work at a gas station before being drafted into the Army in 1943. When he returned from WWII, he borrowed $1,800 to open a diner. He eventually becoming the chairman of Dole Food, today the world's largest producer of fruits and vegetables.
David Murdock
NET WORTH: $3.1 bil
A dyslexic, Murdock dropped out of high school in the ninth grade to work at a gas station before being drafted into the Army in 1943. When he returned from WWII, he borrowed $1,800 to open a diner. He eventually becoming the chairman of Dole Food, today the world's largest producer of fruits and vegetables.
U.K.
Christos Lazari
NET WORTH: $2.1 bil
The London real estate investor moved to the U.K. from a small village in Cyprus at age 16 with 20 pounds on hand. In London, he washed dishes and waited on restaurant tables, saving enough money to enroll in a London Fashion Design course and to set up the hit Drendie Girl label. In 1978 he began investing in real estate. Today his Lazari Investments owns 2.5 million square feet of London real estate, mostly office rentals.
Christos Lazari
NET WORTH: $2.1 bil
The London real estate investor moved to the U.K. from a small village in Cyprus at age 16 with 20 pounds on hand. In London, he washed dishes and waited on restaurant tables, saving enough money to enroll in a London Fashion Design course and to set up the hit Drendie Girl label. In 1978 he began investing in real estate. Today his Lazari Investments owns 2.5 million square feet of London real estate, mostly office rentals.
U.S.
Sheldon Adelson
NET WORTH: $31.4 bil
The son of a cab driver, Adelson grew up sleeping on the floor of a Boston tenement house. He bought his first newspaper corner with a $200 loan from his uncle when he was 12. Over the decades he built a fortune running vending machines, selling newspaper ads, helping small businesses go public, developing condos and hosting trade shows. He now runs the largest casino company in the world, Las Vegas Sands.
Sheldon Adelson
NET WORTH: $31.4 bil
The son of a cab driver, Adelson grew up sleeping on the floor of a Boston tenement house. He bought his first newspaper corner with a $200 loan from his uncle when he was 12. Over the decades he built a fortune running vending machines, selling newspaper ads, helping small businesses go public, developing condos and hosting trade shows. He now runs the largest casino company in the world, Las Vegas Sands.
U.S.
John Paul DeJoria
NET WORTH: $2.8 bil
DeJoria spent a brief period of the 1980s sleeping in his car in LA's Sunset Strip. The navy vet sold shampoo door-to-door, transforming $700 in savings to hair giant John Paul Mitchell Systems, which he cofounded with Paul Mitchell. Today his empire extends from s and most recently the wireless phone business (ROK mobile).
John Paul DeJoria
NET WORTH: $2.8 bil
DeJoria spent a brief period of the 1980s sleeping in his car in LA's Sunset Strip. The navy vet sold shampoo door-to-door, transforming $700 in savings to hair giant John Paul Mitchell Systems, which he cofounded with Paul Mitchell. Today his empire extends from s and most recently the wireless phone business (ROK mobile).
U.S.
Oprah Winfrey
NET WORTH: $3 bil
The media mogul was born to a teenage mom and raised by her grandmother on a Mississippi farm. She became a TV newscaster in Nashville, Baltimore before joining a Chicago TV station and transforming a third-rated morning show into the nation’s No. 1 talk show. Today Winfrey's entertainment empire spans from broadcast to Hollywood and publishing.
Oprah Winfrey
NET WORTH: $3 bil
The media mogul was born to a teenage mom and raised by her grandmother on a Mississippi farm. She became a TV newscaster in Nashville, Baltimore before joining a Chicago TV station and transforming a third-rated morning show into the nation’s No. 1 talk show. Today Winfrey's entertainment empire spans from broadcast to Hollywood and publishing.
Culled from Forbes in Yahoo Finance
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