shop talk
ZEENAT MOORAD: Something to Choo on
The tale of the Reimann family and the shoe that simply doesn’t fit
You’re unlikely to ever have heard of the Reimann family. They are rich (old money) and intensely private. They are, according to some, almost an urban myth among the world’s wealth dynasties. You will, however, have heard of the consumer goods companies in which the German family has interests. And you probably own and use some of these products. Through their investment arm, JAB, the Reimanns own stakes in Coty (its portfolio includes nail varnish kingpins OPI and Sally Hansen), Durex and Dettol-owner Reckitt Benckiser, Jacobs Douwe Egberts (the coffee with the green lid), Krispy Kreme and Swiss shoemaker Bally. Told you so. The Reimanns are a curious bunch — not so much because of their eye-watering wealth, which is estimated at just over €20bn, but also because of their aversion to the public eye and because of how the company "came into money". Family policy dictates that members stay out of the public eye as far as possible — this, allegedly, by signing a contract on their 18t...
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