Françoise Bettencourt Meyers net worth is estimated at $89.1 billion, making her the world’s richest woman. How was she able to acquire such wealth? Read more about L’Oreal’s chief and Françoise Bettencourt Meyers net worth.
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers net worth is listed at $89.1 billion, making her the 13th richest person in the world and the wealthiest woman today. Her vast fortune is largely an inheritance from her grandfather and mother, who started the now gigantic French company, L’Oreal S.A.
To many, Françoise is a figurehead who happened to be born into the founding family of the famous cosmetic brand. Is she known for anything else aside from the Bettencourt name?
[Related Read: Kevin Feige Net Worth: $26.8 Billion Hollywood Producer]
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers Short Bio
In September of 2017, upon the death of Liliane Bettencourt, the matriarch of L’Oreal SA’s founding family, Meyers inherited her enormous wealth and became the richest woman on earth.
But who was Françoise before she was known as a famous heiress? Who was she as a person?
Family and Personal Background
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers was born on July 10, 1953, in Neuilly, Hauts-de-Seine, France. She is the only child of the former French politician, Andre Bettencourt. He served several government posts during his career, including as French Minister of Foreign Affairs for two short weeks.
Her mother was Lilliane Henriette Charlotte Schueller, daughter of French pharmacist and entrepreneur Eugene Schueller, who established L’Oreal S.A. on July 30th, 1909.
Françoise was born a billionaire. Her family was famous hosts to lavish, private parties attended by high-profile figures, eager to rub elbows with her socialite parents, and vice versa. But even as a child, Françoise never liked the glamorous lifestyle her parents enjoyed.
She was an academic. Françoise preferred to spend time away from everyone else. She loved to read books and play her piano. Perhaps immersing herself in stories and music provided a form of freedom from the heavy expectations of being born a daughter of Schueller-Bettencourt.
Françoise’s Relationship with Liliane
People would hope to read about an ideal relationship between mother and daughter, especially with Françoise being the only child and heir of the distinguished family. But the late matriarch has expressed dismay more than once when commenting about her daughter to the press.
Unlike Liliane, Françoise didn’t show as much enthusiasm about taking over the business one day. At a young age, Liliane worked for her father, Eugene, to learn the ropes of L’Oreal. In separate interviews leading to her daughter, she described Françoiseas as a “cold child” and “slow.”
Their distant relationship became even more estranged after Françoise married Jean-Pierre Meyers, grandson of a rabbi who was a victim of Auschwitz. The couple raised their two sons, Victor and Nicola, in the Jewish faith, not out of malice, but it did rub salt to the gaping wound.
Why was this an issue? Because the founding father of L’Oriel once supported the anti-semitic terrorist group, La Cagoule. The group played a big role in France during the second world war.
The group collaborated with the conquerors from Germany to purge the land of Jews. Eugene Schueller funded the movement, and the headquarters of L’Oreal was offered up as a meeting place to plan the group’s attacks.
In retrospect, the floors of the $38.3 billion company are painted in the blood of Jews. What makes it even more of an issue is that Schueller gave important company positions to members of La Cagoule. One of them is Jacques Correze, who served as CEO of US operations.
In 1950, his daughter Liliane married Andre Bettencourt, a former active member of the group.
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers Inheritance
At one point, Françoise was almost robbed of her inheritance. Liliane became enamored with French photographer, actor, and playwright, François-Marie Banier. He was initially hired to photograph Liliane Bettencourt and Federico Fellini for the French Magazine, Egoiste.
She became his benefactor, summing the gifts he received from the late L’Oriel matriarch to $1.71 billion. The gifts included famous artworks and millions of dollars worth of insurance. And if that wasn’t enough, he coaxed Liliane to make him the sole heir to her enormous fortune.
L’affaire Bettencourt
A butler of the family, Pascal Bennefoy, recorded an incident of Benier in the act of convincing Liliane to hand over her entire wealth. He took advantage of the estranged mother-daughter relationship and the fact that Liliane was in her twilight years, slowly succumbing to Alzheimer’s.
After the death of Andre Bettencourt, Françoise started an all-out war against Benier, and her mother, the elderly Liliane. But the courts finally ruled that Liliane was not in her right state of mind. The matter was eventually settled out of court, and Françoise secured her birthright.
Liliane Bettencourt died on September 21, 2007, at the age of ninety-four. On the same day, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers became the richest woman in the world.
[Related Read: Peter Schiff Net Worth]
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers Net Worth – Frequently Asked Questions
How Did Françoise Bettencourt Meyers Get Rich?
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers net worth is currently valued at $89.1 billion, putting her at the top of the list of the richest women in the world and 13th overall. She inherited her mother’s wealth, who was also the sole heir of L’Oreal’s founder, Eugene Schueller.
Who Are the Real Owners of L’Oreal?
The founding family still controls the company, summing their ownership to no less than 33% of L’Oreal’s total shares. Françoise Bettencourt Meyers currently sits as the Non-Executive Chairwoman and owner of the cosmetic giant.
What is L’Oreal’s Net Worth?
L’Oreal Paris’ brand value is presented at $38.3 billion, while Garnier, a separate brand under the same company, is valued at $9.13 billion.
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers Net Worth – Final Thoughts
Françoise Bettencourt Meyers boasts the title of the richest woman in the world. To her critics, it’s all in the name. Personality-wise, there’s not much about Françoise that measures up to the grandiose achievements of the Schueller forebears.
But is it so wrong to prefer a more grounded lifestyle? Change and asserting individuality is a sign of progress. Françoise does live up to the “if onlys” of modern society – if only they were kinder or more focused on doing better things, and if only they didn’t do this in the past.
More than Françoise Bettencourt Meyers net worth, she is an academic, an awarded book author, and a dedicated philanthropist who supports the progress of the arts and sciences. She carries this out under the Bettencourt-Schueller Foundation, which she started with her parents.
Related Read:
