Anton Schlecker
Anton Kut Schlecker | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 28, 1944 Ehingen, Germany |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Known for | Founder and proprietor of Schlecker drugstore chain |
| Spouse | Christa Schlecker |
| Children | Lars Schlecker, Meike Schlecker |
Anton Kut Schlecker (born 28 October 1944 in Ehingen) is a German entrepreneur best known as the founder and proprietor of the Schlecker retail drugstore chain in Germany.
He is married to Christa Schlecker and has two children, Lars and Meike Schlecker, both of whom have participated in the management of the family business.
At the age of 21, he achieved the status of "Meister" butcher and assumed control of his family's butcher shop. In 1975, he launched his initial drugstore in Kirchheim unter Teck, rapidly expanding to more than 100 outlets within two years. By , Schlecker had grown to operate over 13,000 locations throughout Europe, employing around 50,000 staff members and generating revenues near €6.55 billion.
In July 2012, Anton Schlecker and his family filed for bankruptcy; subsequently, all Schlecker stores were shut down and transferred to court-appointed receivers.
Schlecker kidnapping
In 1987, his children Meike and Lars were abducted and later freed following the payment of a ransom totaling 9.6 million marks. In 1998, Wilhelm Hudelmaier and Herbert Jacoby were apprehended and convicted for their involvement in the kidnapping and extortion, receiving prison terms amounting to 13.5 years.
Court case
In 1998, Anton Schlecker and his wife were sentenced by the Regional Court in Stuttgart to suspended ten-month jail terms along with fines of €1 million for fraud. They had been found guilty of deceiving employees regarding their wage levels by paying less than was represented.
External links
- Forbes.com: Forbes World's Richest People
- "Familie Schlecker: Knüppeln, knausern, kontrollieren", Manager magazin, 4 December 2003 (in German)