Ursula Bechtolsheimer-Kipp (born November 1951) is a German-born billionaire, businesswomen and

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...

ess. Bechtolsheimer-Kipp is the only daughter of German retail tycoon

Karl-Heinz Kipp Karl-Heinz Kipp (12 February 1924 – 11 October 2017) was a German billionaire, and founder of the department store chain. He sold the business but kept the property, and had a large property portfolio. In 2017, ''Forbes'' estimated his net we ...

, founder of the Massa department store chain. After her father died in October 2017, Ursula inherited much of his fortune. Bechtolsheimer-Kipp was married to Dr Wilfried Bechtolsheimer. Together, they are estimated to be worth £1 billion by the ''

Sunday Times Rich List The ''Sunday Times Rich List'' is a list of the 1,000 wealthiest people or families resident in the United Kingdom ranked by net wealth. The list is updated annually in April and has been published as a magazine supplement by British national ...

''.

Early life

Bechtolsheimer-Kipp was born in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. She is one of two children born to Karl-Heinz Kipp and Hannelore Kipp. Her father, Karl-Heinz Kipp, was a self-made billionaire who made his fortune in retail and property. He is most famous for owning the Massa department store chain in Germany, which he founded in 1965 and sold two decades later in 1985. Her brother, Ernst-Ludwig Kipp, died in 2003 leaving behind seven children.

Career

Tschuggen Hotel Group

According to ''Forbes'', Ursula took over the Tschuggen Hotel Group as its

chairwoman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

in 2016, having been operationally involved in the company for many years prior. Tschuggen Hotel Group is a luxury resort group and was set by Karl-Heinz Kipp in 1980. The group owns multiple resorts in Europe including the Tschuggen Grand Hotel in Arosa and the all-suite Carlton Hotel in

St. Moritz St. Moritz ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is a high Alpine resort town in the Engadine in Switzerland, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is Upper Engadine's major town and a municipality in the administrative region of Maloja in the Swiss ...

, Switzerland.

Horse breeding

Ursula and her husband Wilfried own and run a

horse training Horse training refers to a variety of practices that teach horses to perform certain behaviors when commanded to do so by humans. Horses are trained to be manageable by humans for everyday care as well as for equestrianism, equestrian activities ...

and breeding centre in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

Personal life

Dr Wilfried Bechtolsheimer died on April 8, 2020, aged 71 in Ascona, Switzerland. Ursula and Wilfred have three sons and one daughter. Her eldest son Felix is a member the gothic band, Curse of Lono. Another son, Gotz is an academic at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. Her youngest son, Till (b. 1982), a former racing driver, set up New York-based investment management company Arosa Capital Management. Bechtolsheimer-Kipp's only daughter is British dressage rider

Laura Tomlinson Laura Tomlinson MBE (''née'' Bechtolsheimer; born 31 January 1985, in Mainz, Germany) is a German-British dressage rider competing at Olympic level. As of 30 June 2012 the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI) ranked h ...

(née Bechtolsheimer), who won two medals at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in London. Laura married English professional polo player Mark Tomlinson in a ceremony in 2013, which was attended by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the

Duke of Sussex Duke of Sussex is a substantive title, one of several Royal dukedoms in the United Kingdom, royal dukedoms in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It is a hereditary title of a specific rank of nobility in the British royal family. It has been c ...

. Bechtolsheimer-Kipp moved her family to Gloucestershire from Germany in the late 1980s. According to ''Forbes'', she currently resides in Switzerland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bechtolsheimer-Kipp, Ursula 1951 births Living people 20th-century German businesswomen 20th-century German businesspeople German billionaires Female billionaires 21st-century German businesswomen 21st-century German businesspeople