Esther Grether
Esther Grether | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kast |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, art collector |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Known for | Ownership of Doetsch Grether; extensive 20th-century art collection |
Esther Grether (born Kast) is a prominent Swiss entrepreneur and distinguished art collector. As reported by Forbes in February 2023, her estimated net worth stands at approximately US$1.5 billion.
Business
In 1975, following the passing of her husband Hans Grether, she assumed ownership of Doetsch Grether, a beauty and health care enterprise headquartered in Basel. Together with her daughters, she continues to manage the company. Grether has held the position of board chairperson for more than three decades and was a member of the Swatch Group's Board of Directors between 1986 and 2014. In 2013, Forbes assessed the family's total wealth at US$1.5 billion.
Art collection
Grether possesses one of the globe’s most significant assemblies of 20th-century artworks, comprising upwards of 600 pieces from artists such as Pablo Picasso, Paul Cézanne, Salvador Dalí, Francis Bacon, and Alberto Giacometti. This collection is displayed within a repurposed printing plant that also functions as her home. Among her acquisitions is Bacon’s Triptych, May–June 1973, which she bought at auction in 1989 for $6.3 million—a record price for a Bacon painting at that time. Additionally, she is thought to own three more triptychs by Bacon from the 1970s.
In 1962, Hans Grether extended a bank guarantee secured against shares in Doetsch Grether, enabling Basel art dealer Ernst Beyeler to purchase American collector G. David Thompson's entire set of 70 Giacometti pieces.