Liliane Bettencourt

Liliane Henriette Charlotte Bettencourt (; née Schueller; 21 October 1922 – 21 September 2017) was a French heiress, socialite and businesswoman. She was one of the principal shareholders of L'Oréal. At the time of her death, she was the richest woman, and the 14th richest person in the world, with a net worth of US$44.3 billion.

Biography

She was born Liliane Henriette Charlotte Schueller on 21 October 1922 in Paris, the only child of Louise Madeleine Berthe (''née'' Doncieux) and Eugène Schueller, the founder of L'Oréal, one of the world's largest cosmetics and beauty companies. When Liliane was five years old, her mother died, and she formed a close bond with her father, who later married Liliane's British governess.The bitter family battle for the L'Oréal billion
, ''Evening Standard'' (London), 20 July 2009. Retrieved 27 June 2010. At the age of 15, she joined her father's company as an apprentice, mixing cosmetics and labelling bottles of shampoo.

In 1950, she married French politician André Bettencourt, who served as a cabinet minister in French governments of the 1960s and 1970s and rose to become deputy chairman of L'Oréal. Mr. Bettencourt had been a member of La Cagoule, a violent French fascist pro-Nazi group that Liliane's father, a Nazi sympathizer, had funded and supported in the 1930s and whose members were arrested in 1937. After the war, her husband, like other members of La Cagoule, was given refuge at L'Oréal despite his politically inconvenient past.Obituary: André Bettencourt
''The Daily Telegraph'', 22 November 2007; retrieved 7 July 2010. Eventually, the Bettencourts settled in an Art Moderne mansion built in 1951 on rue de Delabordère in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. They had one daughter, Françoise, who was born in 1953.

In 1957, Bettencourt inherited the L'Oréal fortune when her father died, becoming the principal shareholder. In 1963, the company went public, although Bettencourt continued to own a majority stake. In 1974, in fear that the company would be nationalised after the French elections, she exchanged almost half of her stake for a three percent (3%) stake in Nestlé
S.A.History of L'Oréal
''The Daily Telegraph'', 20 February 2006; retrieved 29 June 2010.

As of December 2012, Bettencourt owned 185,661,879 (30.5%) of the outstanding shares of L'Oréal, of which 76,441,389 (12.56%) shares are effectively held in trust (for her daughter). The remainder is owned as follows: 178,381,021 (29.78%) shares owned by Nestlé, 229,933,941 (37.76%) shares are publicly held, and the remainder are held as treasury stock or in the company savings plan. The Bettencourt family and Nestlé act in concert pursuant to a shareholders' agreement.2012 L'Oréal Registration Document, p. 225, 34 & 41
Retrieved 19 August 2013. Bettencourt ended her board director tenure on 13 February 2012 and her grandson, Jean-Victor, was appointed as board director. Bettencourt's daughter and her daughter's husband (Jean-Pierre Meyers) are also members of the board of directors.2012 L'Oréal Registration Document, p. 34 & 41
Retrieved 19 August 2013.

Bettencourt generally shunned media attention and granted few interviews. From 2007, she faced intense media scrutiny and publicity over her relationship with François-Marie Banier, the estrangement with her daughter Françoise and her alleged funding of conservative French politicians, including former French president Nicolas Sarkozy. In August 2012, she sold her private island, D'Arros Island, to a Seychelles-registered conservation business linked to the Swiss Save our Seas Foundation, for £60 million.

Bettencourt died on 21 September 2017. The funeral service was held at Église Saint-Pierre in Neuilly-sur-Seine.

Philanthropy

In 1987, Bettencourt, together with her husband and daughter, founded the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation (la Fondation Bettencourt Schueller) to support and develop medical, cultural and humanitarian projects. The foundation is based in Neuilly-sur-Seine. The foundation, which benefits from assets of €150 million and an annual budget of approx €15 million devotes approximately 55% of its funds to scientific education and research, 33% to humanitarian and social projects and 12% to culture and arts.

In 2008, the foundation helped fund the new Monet wing at the Musée Marmottan Monet.Because he's worth it?
''The Daily Telegraph'', 15 December 2008. Retrieved 30 June 2010. Conversely, in 2007 Bettencourt was jointly "awarded" a Black Planet Award, an award given for destroying the planet, along with Peter Brabeck-Letmathe for proliferating contaminated baby food, monopolising water resources, and tolerating child labour.

Art collection

Bettencourt had an art collection that was said to include Matisse, Picasso, Fernand Léger, Derain, Soutine, Mondrian and Ruhlmann furniture.

"L'affaire Bettencourt"

By most accounts Bettencourt met François-Marie Banier, a French writer, artist and celebrity photographer, in 1987 when he was commissioned to photograph her for the French magazine ''Egoïste''.Heiress Case Delayed, With Medical Tests Ordered
''The New York Times'', 11 December 2009; retrieved 8 July 2010. Over the ensuing years, Banier and Bettencourt became friends and she became his benefactor, bestowing gifts upon him estimated to be worth as much as €1.3 billion. These gifts include, amongst other things, a life insurance policy worth €253 million in 2003, another life insurance policy worth €262 million in 2006, 11 works of art in 2001 valued at €20 million, including paintings by Picasso, Matisse, Mondrian, Delaunay and Léger, a photograph by surrealist Man Ray,Because she's worth charming
The Times, 21 December 2008. Retrieved 8 July 2010. and cash. The life insurance policies were allegedly signed over to Banier after Bettencourt was recovering from two hospital stays in 2003 and 2006. In April 2013, Forbes magazine listed Liliane Bettencourt as the world's richest woman in 1999 at a value of $30 billion.

In December 2007, just a month after the death of her father, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers lodged a criminal complaint against Banier, accusing him of ''abus de faiblesse'' (or the exploitation of a physical or psychological weakness for personal gain) over Bettencourt.Joshua Levine
Une affaire de famille
''Forbes'', 11 March 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2010. As a result of her complaint, the Brigade Financière, the financial investigative arm of the French national police, opened an investigation and, after interviewing members of Bettencourt's staff, determined to present the case to a court in Nanterre for trial in September 2009.Generous to a Fault?
''The New York Times'', 21 August 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2010. In December 2009, the court delayed ruling on the case until April 2010 (later extended until July 2010) pending the results of a medical examination of Bettencourt's mental state. However, Bettencourt refused to submit to these examinations.Secret Tapes Delay L'Oréal Heiress Case
''The Wall Street Journal'', 2 July 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2010.

In July 2010, the trial was adjourned again until autumn 2010, at the earliest, after details of tape recordings made by Bettencourt's butler, Pascal Bonnefoy, became public. The tapes, which were turned over to police, consisted of over 21 hours of conversation and were made because the butler had feared that Bettencourt was suffering from Alzheimer's disease and was being duped. The tapes allegedly reveal that Bettencourt had made Banier her "sole heir", excluding the L'Oréal shares which make up the bulk of Bettencourt's estate and which had already been signed over to her daughter and two grandsons.Embarrassment for Sarkozy as £1bn L'Oréal feud comes to court
The Independent, 2 July 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2010.

On 6 December 2010, Bettencourt reconciled with her daughter, ending a series of lawsuits. It is reported that Bettencourt and Banier had separated, and he was eventually written out of Bettencourt's will.L'Oreal heiress Bettencourt and daughter 'end feud'
BBC
...