Theo Albrecht, the joint founder of budget supermarket giant Aldi, last seen in public after his release from kidnap nearly 40 years ago, has died aged 88.
The publicity-shy entrepreneur died on Saturday in the western German city of Essen, Spiegel said, after a long illness.
The Albrecht brothers, Karl and Theo, who co-founded Aldi, were the two wealthiest people in Germany, with fortunes of €17.35bn and €16.75bn respectively.
Very little is known about the two reclusive billionaires, with Theo's last public appearance in 1971, shortly after his release after 17 days by kidnappers who were reportedly paid a $3m ransom.
One rare photo of Theo Albrecht, from the 1980s, shows a nondescript-looking man with grey hair and glasses. He apparently devoted his spare time to collecting old typewriters, orchids and playing golf - reportedly on his own private course.
The two brothers owed their wealth to the sell-it-cheap Aldi chain, short for 'Albrecht-Discount', that sprouted up all over Germany and is now in nearly 20 countries after first appearing in the 1960s.
'Aldi mourns a person who was always decent with his business partners and employees and always treated them with respect,' the company said.
'We are losing in him our highly respected founder and a upright person,' a statement added.
