Bettencourt was born 1922 in Paris, France to the founder of the world’s biggest beauty and cosmetics company, Eugene Schueller. She started working for her father’s company from the age of 15. Her job was simple, she had to label shampoo bottles and mix cosmetics but this gave her an insight into the ways of business from a young age.The Jews, the hypocritical Pharisees, have no more hope," he wrote in 1941. "For them the matter is finished … their race has been sullied for eternity by the blood of the righteous. They will be cursed." Later that same year he wrote: "Denunciation [of Jews], is it a duty? Yes, if it serves the collectivity."Around 1944, the year of the Allied landings in Normandy, Bettencourt had a change of heart, joining the Resistance. He was later awarded a Croix de Guerre and given the Legion d'Honneur, though his role in the organisation is disputed.After the war Schueller faced prosecution for collaboration. Bettencourt, who was to marry Liliane in 1950, got him off the hook on the grounds that he had also been in the Resistance and had allegedly saved the lives of Jews.André Bettencourt, who became a minister under General Charles de Gaulle, later recanted his wartime antisemitism. "I was 20 years old in 1940: it was an error of youth. We thought the Marshal [Pétain] would lead us out of the mess … I always said I regretted what I wrote," he said.Much later, when his only daughter, Françoise, married Jean-Pierre Meyers, the grandson of a rabbi killed in Auschwitz, André Bettencourt was also fond of telling people his daughter had "married an Israelite [sic] who likes us a lot".The Bettencourts' luxury home became a centre for Paris's beau monde where politicians, financiers and artists mingled under the art deco chandeliers."She knew how to choose the right people," Jean-Françoise Dalle, son of the former head of L'Oreal, who stayed with the Bettencourt family for six years and witnessed their "wealthy but ordinary" life, told the Parisien newspaper.
He said the Bettencourts' daughter, Françoise, was "pampered and brought up by an English nanny". Françoise, described by her mother as "always a cold child", met Meyers in the chic Alpine ski resort of Mégève. Despite her strict Catholic upbringing, Françoise has adopted her husband's religion, raising her sons in the Jewish faith. Bettencourt married the French cabinet minister Andre Bettencourt in 1950 who later also served as the Deputy Chairman of L’Oreal. She inherited the fortune of her father which also included the company L’Oreal. After it went public in 1963, Liliane Bettencourt had the majority of the shares to herself. In 1974 however she exchanged half of these for a 3% share in Nestle in the fear that her company would get nationalized. Bettencourt became the member of the Board of Directors in 1995.Bettencourt and her husband established the ‘Foundation Schueller-Bettencourt’ that supports cultural, medical and humanitarian ventures. With an annual budget of £160 million, the foundation also devotes its resources to scientific research, education and cultural and art based projects. This philanthropic venture is one of her biggest achievements. Although Bettencourt does not like public appearances and media attention, she has been part of many controversies and notorious headlines. The infamous ‘L’affaire Bettencourt’ involved her relationship with French artist, photographer and writer François-Marie Banier after he photographed her for the magazine ‘Egoiste’. The rendezvous turned to friendship followed by a series of highly expensive gifts to François which included life insurance policies worth €253 million and €262 in 2003 and 2006 respectively, art work worth €20 million and cash. Bettencourt’s daughter filed a report against François in which she accused him of exploiting her mother’s psychological and physical weakness for his own gains. It turned out that Bettencourt had made François her heir. In 2010 the case ended with Bettencourt reconciling with her daughter and writing off François from her will.
Liliane with her Daughter
World Richest Person:
Liliane Bettencourt was also a victim of the Ponzi scheme by Bernard Madoff in which she lost € 22 million. In June 2011 her daughter filed an application that Bettencourt now 90 could no longer manage her fortune due to a declining mental health. Four months later Bettencourt was ordered to be placed under the guardianship of her family members. Francoise, Bettencourt’s daughter along with three of her grandsons were to control the property and wealth. However the case has not ended as Bettencourt’s lawyer has appealed again.Despite alleged charges and political charges, Liliane Bettencourt is a role model for young entrepreneurs. She is on number 15th in Forbes list of the world’s richest people with a fortune of approximately US$23.5 billion. She is Europe’s richest woman and the second richest in the world. She was ranked amongst the world’s most powerful women by Forbes magazine in 2005.Liliane Bettencourt is a Paris born businesswoman, philanthropist, heiress, and socialite who has a net worth of $35.3 billion dollars. Liliane Bettencourt is a principal shareholder of L'Oreal, a shareholder in Nestle, and one of the richest women in the world. She co-founded the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation with her husband and daughter to support scientific research, humanitarian projects, and the arts.Liliane Bettencourt's net worth has largely been accumulated through her interest in the company L'Oreal, which is the largest cosmetics manufacturer and brand in the world.
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