JAL

Why the iPad is for Cows

jal — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 16:03:43 +0000

You can’t judge a book by its cover, or a device by its shiny aluminum casing – the iPad, it is why I decided to go on an adventure to my local Best Buy and Apple Store in order to rack up some personal face time with the Jesus Pad.

When the official list of specifications and features was announced I dismissed it outright. No camera? No multitasking? No USB ports? AT&T 3G? It was way too simplified that it was actually dumbed down, diluting any positive creativity it had going for it. That’s before I met the device.

The first time I saw it close up was at a Best Buy. It was there in all its glory, a 16GB Wifi model nestled among two other iPads. There was one woman with her 3-year old son molesting an iPad. The kid quickly asked his mom to put on a game. He began moving and shaking the tablet around and the screen on the device loyally rotated along with his tantrum.

When I first picked up the iPad I was surprised at the weight of it - isn’t it supposed to be one pound? It felt hefty, cold and glassy. I sat down at one of the seats and placed it awkwardly in my lap. I held it up to my face and that got tiring after a while. I placed my finger on the home button and I was greeted with a barren screen and some apps. I quickly opened and closed several of them and it was very responsive. They say it is a web surfing and email device and not a laptop replacement, but the typing I had to do in either situation was very uncomfortable and I wouldn’t want to get used to it, even for inputting URL’s.

Most of the apps were not iPad-ready and when you clicked the ‘2x’ button to blow it up it revealed the ugliness of what will be a fragmented market place. No longer do you start off with 100’s of thousands of apps, but back again to 1 with iPad-optimized apps. Optimized apps of which in most cases you’ll have to pay for AGAIN for the privilege of owning an iPad. The wifi sucked at the Best Buy (or was it?) which helped me realize how boring the device is without an internet connection. I just found myself swiping back and forth between app screens. The only thing going for the iPad is the upcoming flood of iPad-optimized apps, but, without multitasking, this device is not ready for the limelight. Recently, however, Apple announced “multitasking” with its OS 4 upgrade. In any case, people should wait for the 2^nd generation device or wait for the first Android tablet to make an appearance before this year is up. For $500 you’re able to experience the app store in bigger resolution. That is it.

As I stood there, with the iPad in my hands looking at the price tag, I thought about if it was really worth it – did it fill that void Apple was telling us there was between the phone and the laptop? The answer is, no. My laptop does internet, does high definition movies, email, music, high quality games, and it supports flash – which allows me to mindlessly lose hours of my life playing the millions of FREE games out there on the interwebs. Keep in mind that the $500 or $700 price tag isn’t the end of it; you have to pay for the good apps that will ultimately fill up the emptiness of your home screen.

I can see the difficulty and predicament of an Apple owner; they have made a considerable investment in their purchase, paying about 10-30% over a comparably-featured laptop because it looks better and it “doesn’t crash”. Apple owners have a reason to feel confrontational when you point out the absurdness of such an expense – nobody wants to be made the fool when you are getting suckered into paying so much more and so they try justifying their purchase with logical fallacies. They ARE well made and you ARE paying for quality assurance, but the fact that they don’t crash is false. Just do a simple Google search for “mac crashed” and you get a nice long list of dummies, same as those PC owners, who find one way or another to inevitably crash their computer. I haven’t had a computer spontaneously crash on me since Windows XP and, from my experience, it is the owner’s fault and not the computer. Another reason that Mac’s statistically crash less than PC’s is because the majority of software, and viruses, out there are not compatible with them. The temptation to download every Instant Messaging or Facebook desktop application is nullified by a big, fat incompatibility error. The trade off is less software available to you, but also a learned inclination to detract from clicking SAVE

A short-term positive of having an Apple product, though, is that because Apple currently has such a small market share, hackers are not yet fully concentrating on attacking them, BUT contrary to popular belief it doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Considering the type of people who are being lured into buying Mac’s, those seeking “simplicity” and “it just works” and “it doesn’t need virus protection”, are being set up for a major ass rapeage. A hacker is thinking, “look at all of those unsuspecting cows.” It is Apple’s fault for oversimplifying things and making people not care about how their computers operate, they don’t even trust you enough to change YOUR own battery! Apple thinks you’re a dumb, drooling soccer mom. Computers are increasingly infiltrating people’s lives and we need to stay educated about them. Do you access your bank information or email online? Then you need to learn that clicking on a pop-up that says “YOUR COMPUTER HAS BEEN INFECTED! CLICK HERE TO CLEAN!” will do the exact opposite of what it says. Sorry, but “it just works” does not fix stupid.

Featured Content Gallery | WordPress Plugin | by iePlexus

jal — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 01:56:51 +0000

Featured Content Gallery is a WordPress plugin by iePlexus that creates an automated rotating image gallery of your posts or pages for use anywhere within your theme.

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Francis Lam – Salon.com

jal — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 16:07:40 +0000

ity the poor restaurant critic. Sure, they dine every night at the finest tables, someone else picks up the tab, and they call it work. But imagine being in their shoes, working in the age of yelp.com and where everyone and their sister has a food blog telling you about where they had dinner last night. Wouldn't you feel a little bit like your profession is just staring into the abyss, waiting for someone to give you a push? (I was a writer for a magazine printed on dead trees. I know that feeling well.) A panel at New York University last week discussed the viability and purpose of professional restaurant critics, and the differences of views were stark.

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Mexican Lobby Card Fiesta! Boing Boing

jal — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 01:36:57 +0000

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Datsusara MMA BP1

jal — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 00:18:38 +0000

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Biophysical | Biophysical250 | BiophysicalYou | Dr. Oz | Mehmet C. Oz, M.D | YOU: Staying Young

jal — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 00:01:28 +0000

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The Largest Foreign Family Companies

jal — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 06:17:10 +0000

The World's Largest Family Businesses

Spotlighting 116 billion-dollar family firms around the globe.

When Family Business first sought to identify the largest family firms outside the U.S. last year, we came up with no fewer than 95 companies generating annual business of more than $1 billion (Winter 2001). “They may well represent just the tip of the iceberg,” we added. We were right. Even after eliminating several firms whose family credentials have been re-evaluated, this year we find at least 116 family firms at or above the $1 billion threshold.

These 116 firms are spread over 24 countries and a broad range of products and company types: public, private, group, holding company—and once again, we’ve probably missed a great many. Between shifting disclosure regulations and shifting currency exchange rates, pinning down precise numbers and owners is far more challenging for foreign companies than for those in the U.S., where we most recently found 138 billion-dollar firms (Autumn 2001).

Many foreign companies operate behind intricate holding-company structures that make ownership and even management difficult to define. For purposes of this global list, any company in which a family seems to exercise a significant presence—whether through ownership or management, but not necessarily both—has been included.

As we’ve done with our lists in the past, we invite readers to advise us of companies we’ve missed. In the meantime, the listed companies and their websites may provide you with useful insights, and perhaps even possible contacts as you ponder globalizing your own operation.

Two lessons spring to mind right off the bat:

First, outside the U.S., family companies are often the most potent institutions in society—more effective even than their national governments.

Second, in family business as in everything else, great size isn’t necessarily synonymous with success. The No. 1 firm on our list is the Koo Cha-kyung family’s LG Group (formerly Lucky Goldstar). With South Korea’s largest chemical company as well as subsidiaries in telecommunications, consumer electronics and financial services, LG is one of South Korea’s five mammoth chaebols—that is, family-run industrial groups. But the chaebols are in trouble these days, and most of them, including LG, are being reorganized.

The apparent motto: Size, like everything else, can be a blessing or a curse, depending on what you do with it.

Number in parentheses is last year’s ranking. NR = Not ranked last year.

Revenue figures are most recent available. * = Public company

1. LG Group (51)
Koo family
Conglomerate/Seoul, South Korea
Revenues: $81 billion
Employees: 130,000
www.lg.co.kr

2. Ifi Istituto Finanziario Industriale S.p.A.* (NR)
Agnelli family
Diversified holdings/Turin, Italy
Revenues: $63 billion
Employees: 244,385
www.gruppoifi.com

3. Carrefour Group* (3)
Defforey family
Retailing/Paris, France
Revenues: $61 billion
Employees: 330,247
www.carrefour.com

4. Fiat Group* (1)
Agnelli family
Automobiles/Turin, Italy
Revenues: $57.7 billion
Employees: 224,000
www.fiat.com/eng

5. PSA Peugeot\Citroën S.A.* (2)
Peugeot family
Automobiles/Paris, France
Revenues: $41.6 billion
Employees: 172,400
www.psa-peugeot-citroen.com

6. Novartis Group* (12)
Landolt family
Health & personal care/Basel, Switzerland
Revenues: $40.8 billion
Employees: 68,000
www.novartis.com

7. Santander Central Hispano S.A. (NR)
Botin family
Banking/Madrid, Spain
Revenues: $34.3 billion
Employees: 126,757
www.bsch.es

8. BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke AG)* (4)
Quandt family
Automobiles/Munich, Germany
Revenues: $33.3 billion
Employees: 93,624
www.bmw.com

9. Tengelmann Group (6)
Haub family
Retailing/Mulheim an der Ruhr, Germany
Revenues: $30.8 billion
Employees: 200,000
www.tengelmann.de

10. Robert Bosch GmbH (7)
Bosch family
Auto parts/Gerlingen-Schillerhöhe, Germany
Revenues: $30 billion
Employees: 196,880
www.bosch.com

11. ALDI Group (9)
Albrecht family
Food retailing/Essen, Germany
Revenues: $27.5 billion
www.aldi.com

12. Samsung Electronics* (11)
Lee family
Electronics/Seoul, South Korea
Revenues: $27.1 billion
Employees: 55,000
www.samsungelectronics.com

13. Ito-Yokado* (5)
Ito family
Convenience stores/Tokyo, Japan
Revenues: $26.4 billion
Employees: 116,636
www.itoyokado.iyg.co.jp

14. J Sainsbury* (8)
Sainsbury family
Retail groceries/London, United Kingdom
Revenues: $24.9 billion
Employees: 185,200
www.j-sainsbury.co.uk

15. Pinault-Printemps Redoute* (13)
Pinault family
Retailing, etc./Paris, France
Revenues: $23.3 billion
Employees: 110,000
www.pprgroup.com

16. Auchan (10)
Mulliez family
Retailing/Villeneuve d’Ascq, France
Revenues: $22.1 billion
Employees: 135,000
www.auchan.com

17. Bouygues* (15)
Bouygues family
Construction/St. Quentin-en-Yvelines, France
Revenues: $17.9 billion
Employees: 118,645
www.bouygues.fr

18. Bertelsmann (19)
Mohn family
Publishing, media/Gütersloh, Germany
Revenues: $15.8 billion
Employees: 76,257
www.bertelsmann.de

19. Otto Group (14)
Otto family
Catalogs, retailing/Hamburg, Germany
Revenues: $15.6 billion
Employees: 75,962
www.otto.de

20. Michelin* (18)
Michelin family
Tires, travel
Clermont-Ferrand, France
Revenues: $14.9 billion
Employees: 128,122
www.michelin.com

21. Anglo-American* (24)
Oppenheimer family
Gold, diamonds/London, United Kingdom
Revenues: $14.8 billion
Employees: 249,000
www.angloamerican.co.uk

22. Hyundai Motor* (22)
Chung family
Automobiles/Seoul, South Korea
Revenues: $14.4 billion
Employees: 52,000
www.hyundai.net

23. Karstadt Quelle* (16)
Schickedanz, Riedel, Herl families
Retailing/Essen, Germany
Revenues: $14.3 billion
Employees: 88,163
www.karstadtquelle.com

24. Groupe Danone* (20)
Riboud family
Food products/Paris, France
Revenues: $13.4 billion
Employees: 86,657
www.danonegroup.com

25. Suntory Ltd. (23)
Saji/Torii family
Liquor/Osaka, Japan
Revenues: $12.23 billion
Employees: 4,873
www.suntory.co.jp/index.html

26. Lagardère* (21)
Lagardère family
Defense systems, magazines/Paris, France
Revenues: $12,17 billion
Employees: 43,902
www.lagardere.fr

27. Henkel Group* (25)
Henkel family
Chemicals/Düsseldorf, Germany
Revenues: $12.0 billion
Employees: 60,475
www.henkel.com

28. L'Oréal* (26)
Bettencourt family
Cosmetics/Clichy, France
Revenues: $11.9 billion
Employees: 48,222
www.loreal.com

29. Power Corporation of Canada (NR)
Desmarais family
Mutual funds, utilities/Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Revenues: $11.3 billion
Employees: 28,000
www.powercorp.ca

30. Cathay Life Insurance* (27)
Tsai family
Insurance/Taipei, Taiwan
Revenues: $11 billion
Employees: 31,000
www.cathlife.com.tw/index-en.htm

31. LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton* (33)
Arnault family
Luxury goods/Paris, France
Revenues: $10.9 billion
Employees: 47,420
www.lvmh.com

32. Bombardier* (30)
Bombardier family
Aerospace, defense/Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Revenues: $10.7 billion
Employees: 58,000
www.bombardier.com

33. SHV Holdings N.V. (NR)
Fentener van Vlissingen family
Energy holdings/Utrecht, Netherlands
Revenues: $10.3 billion
Employees: 32,400
www.shv.nl

34. Gerling-Konzern Versicherungs-Beteiligungs AG (NR)
Gerling family
Insurance/Cologne, Germany
Revenues: $9.9 billion
Employees: 12,643
www.gerling.com

35. Grupo Carso* (52)
Slim family
Conglomerate/Mexico City, Mexico
Revenues: $9.68 billion
www.gcarso.com.mx

36. El Corte Inglés (35)
Alvarez family
Retailing/Madrid, Spain
Revenues: $9.66 billion
www.elcorteingles.es

37. Sodexho Alliance* (NR)
Bellon family
Food services/Montigny-le-Bretonneux, France
Revenues: $9.49 billion
Employees: 286,000
www.sodexho.com

38. Tchibo Holding (29)
Herz family
Coffee, tobacco/Hamburg, Germany
Revenues: $9.48 billion
Employees: 20,874
www.tchibo.de

39. Tetra Laval (32)
Rausing family
Packaging/Pully, Switzerland
Revenues: $8.9 billion
Employees: 37,000
www.tetrapak.com

40. Investor AB* (53)
Wallenberg family
Industrial holdings/Stockholm, Sweden
Revenues: $8.86 billion
Employees: 663
www.investorab.com

41. Holcim Ltd.* (NR)
Schmidheiny family
Cement/Glaris, Switzerland
Revenues: $8.7 billion
Employees: 44,316
www.holcim.com

42. Ikea (28)
Kamprad family
Furniture/Humlebaek, Denmark
Revenues: $8.5 billion
Employees: 58,000
www.ikea.com

43. Tata Enterprises (36)
Tata family
Textile, steel, autos/Mumbai, India
Revenues: $7.9 billion
Employees: 250,000
www.tata.com

44. Grupo Financiero BBVA-Bancomer* (39)
Garza family
Banking/Mexico City, Mexico
Revenues: $7.58 billion
Employees: 36,349
www.bancomer.com.mx

45. Kumagai Gumi Co. Ltd.* (NR)
Kumagai family
Contractor/Tokyo, Japan
Revenues: $7.57 billion
Employees: 6,573
www.kumagaigumi.co.jp

46. Empire Company Limited* (NR)
Sobey family
Supermarkets, real estate/Stellarton, Nova Scotia, Canada
Revenues: $7.48 billion
Employees: 34,500
www.empireco.ca

47. Hutchison Whampoa* (37)
Li family
Telecom, retail, energy/Hong Kong, China
Revenues: $7.3 billion
Employees: 50,000
www.hutchison-whampoa.com

48. Parmalat Finanziaria S.p.A.* (NR)
Tanzi family
Dairy products/Milan, Italy
Revenues: $6.9 billion
Employees: 38,303
www.parmalat.net

49. Koç Group* (44)
Koç family
Conglomerate/Istanbul, Turkey
Revenues: $6.58 billion
Employees: 45,626
www.koc.com.tr

50. Thomson Corp.* (41)
Thomson family
Media/Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Revenues: $6.51 billion
Employees: 39,330
www.thomcorp.com

51. Associated British Foods* (38)
Weston family
Food, household products/London, United Kingdom
Revenues: $6.4 billion
Employees: 34,372
www.abf.co.uk

52. SAP* (47)
Hopp family
Software/Walldorf, Germany
Revenues: $5.88 billion
Employees: 24,480
www.sap.com

53. Boehringer Ingelheim (45)
Boehringer family
Pharmaceuticals/Ingelheim Germany
Revenues: $5.83 billion
Employees: 27,325
www.boehringer-ingelheim.com

54. ERG S.p.A.* (NR)
Garrone family
Oil, energy/Genoa, Italy
Revenues: $5.722 billion
Employees: 1,395
www.erg.it

55. C&A (43)
Brenninkmeyer family
Retailing/Amsterdam, Netherlands
Revenues: $5.7 billion
Employees: 30,000
www.c-and-a.com

56. Haci Ömer Sabanci Holding* (46)
Sabanci family
Conglomerate/Istanbul, Turkey
Revenues: $5.626 billion
Employees: 30,150
www.sabanci.com.tr

57. Cemex* (49)
Zambrano family
Building, materials/Nuevo Leon, Mexico
Revenues: $5.624 billion
Employees: 20,000
www.cemex.com

58. McCain Foods Limited (NR)
McCain family
Food processing/Florenceville, New Brunswick, Canada
Revenues: $5.6 billion
Employees: 16,000
www.mccain.com

59. Sonepar (NR)
Mulliez family
Electrical equipment
Paris, France
Revenues: $5.3 billion
Employees: 18,230
www.sonepar.com

60. Dogus Group (42)
Sahenk family
Banking, construction/Istanbul, Turkey
Revenues: $5.1 billion
Employees: 20,000
www.gbm.ru/garanti/holding.htm

61. Lazard LLC (48)
David-Weill family
Investment banking/Paris, France
Revenues: $5 billion
Employees: 2,750
www.lazard.com

62. Saudi Binladin Group (NR)
Bin Laden family
Conglomerate/Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Revenues: $5 billion
www.saudi-binladin-group.com

63. Fomento Económico Mexicano (FEMSA)* (55)
Garza family
Brewing/Monterrey, Mexico
Revenues: $4.7 billion
Employees: 41,367
www.femsa.com

64. Reliance Industries* (50)
Ambani family
Chemicals/Mumbai, India
Revenues: $4.5 billion
Employees: 15,912
www.ril.com

65. Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas* (56)
Koplowitz family
Construction/Barcelona, Spain
Revenues: $4.3 billion
Employees: 50,042
www.fcc.es

66. André & Cie S.A. (NR)
André family
Grain trading/Lausanne, Switzerland
Revenues: $4.2 billion
Employees: 1,430

67. Comp. Brasileira de Distribuic* (63)
Diniz family
Retailing/São Paulo, Brazil
Revenues: $4.19 billion
Employees: 50,106
www.grupopaodeacucar.com

68. Oetker Group (62)
Oetker family
Conglomerate/Hamburg, Germany
Revenues: $4.054 billion
Employees: 12,000

69. Bolloré* (59)
Bolloré family
Oil, transport/Puteaux, France
Revenues: $4.01 billion
Employees: 20,739
www.bollore.com

70. Espírito Santo Financial Group S.A.* (NR)
Espírito family
Insurance, banking/Luxembourg-Kirchberg, Luxembourg
Revenues: $3.803 billion
www.esfg.com

71. BCD Holdings (57)
van Vlissingen family
Travel, financial services/Netherlands
Revenues: $3.8 billion
Employees: 5,800
www.worldtravel.com

72. Otsuka Pharmaceutical (31)
Otsuka family
Pharmaceuticals, drinks/Tokyo, Japan
Revenues: $3.75 billion
www.otsuka.co.jp/menu-e.htm

73. Italmobiliare S.p.A.* (NR)
Pesenti family
Concrete, paper, services/Milan, Italy
Revenues: $3.73 billion
Employees: 20,519
www.italmobiliare.it

74. Porsche* (40)
Porsche-Piëch family
Automobiles/Stuttgart, Germany
Revenues: $3.44 billion
Employees: 9,064
www.porsche.com

75. Grupo Ferrovial* (67)
Del Pino family
Construction/Madrid, Spain
Revenues: $3.39 billion
Employees: 12,488
www.ferrovial.es/ingles/inicio.htm

76. Sun Hung Kai Properties* (64)
Kwok family
Real estate/Hong Kong, China
Revenues: $3.31 billion
Employees: 17,000
www.shkp.com.hk/eindex.html

77. Jerónimo Martins (60)
Soares dos Santos family
Food retailing/Lisbon, Portugal
Revenues: $3.3 billion

78. Dassault Aviation* (66)
Dassault family
Aviation/Paris, France
Revenues: $3.28 billion
Employees: 11,683
www.dassault-aviation.fr

79. Littlewoods Organisation (58)
Moores family
Retailing/Liverpool, United Kingdom
Revenues: $3.27 billion
Employees: 25,000
www.littlewoods.co.uk

80. Grupo Bimbo, S.A.* (NR)
Servitje family
Bread, tortillas/Mexico City, Mexico
Revenues: $3.261 billion
www.gibsa.com.mx

81. Metalúrgica Gerdau S.A.* (NR)
Gerdau family
Steel/Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Revenues: $3,16 billion
Employees: 12,340
www.gerdau.com.br

82. Grupo Modelo* (71)
Diez Fernandez family
Beer/Mexico City, Mexico
Revenues: $3.04 billion
Employees: 46,890
www.gmodelo.com.mx

83. H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB* (NR)
Persson family
Clothing retailer/Stockholm, Sweden
Revenues: $3 billion
Employees: 20,680
www.hm.com

84. Globo Group (68)
Marinho family
Media/São Paulo, Brazil
Revenues: $2.8 billion
Employees: 24,000
www.globocabo.com

85. Daily Mail and General Trust* (69)
Harmsworth family
Media/London, United Kingdom
Revenues: $2.72 billion
Employees: 18,000
www.dmgt.co.uk

86. Acciona* (72)
Entrecanales family
Construction/Madrid, Spain
Revenues: $2.70 billion
Employees: 16,921
www.acciona.es

87. Organización Soriana* (76)
Martin family
Supermarkets/Nuevo León, Mexico
Revenues: $2.63 billion
Employees: 23,730
www.soriana.com.mx

88. Mohammad Abdul-Mohsin Al-Kharafi & Sons (70)
Al-Kharafi family
Trading, contracting/Kuwait City, Kuwait
Revenues: $2.6 billion
www.kharafisteel.com

89. Labinal* (73)
Cler family
Engines/Montigny-le-Bretonneux, France
Revenues: $2.5 billion
Employees: 28,177
www.labinal.fr

90. Cheung Kong* (65)
Li family
Property developer/Hong Kong, China
Revenues: $2.491 billion
Employees: 5,160
www.ckh.com.hk

91. Inditex (74)
Ortega family
Clothing/La Coruna, Spain
Revenues: $2.42 billion
Employees: 24,004
www.inditex.com

92. Mercadona (75)
Roig family
Supermarkets/Valencia, Spain
Revenues: $2.3 billion
Employees: 21,000
www.mercadona.es

93. Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck (78)
Holtzbrinck family
Publishing/Stuttgart, Germany
Revenues: $2.2 billion
Employees: 12,600
www.holtzbrinck.com/eng

94. Grupo Televisa* (81)
Azcarraga family
Media/Mexico City, Mexico
Revenues: $2.16 billion
Employees: 19,900
www.televisa.com

95. Barilla G & R Fratelli S.p.A. (NR)
Barilla family
Pasta/Parma, Italy
Revenues: $2.14 billion
Employees: 8,500
www.barilla.it

96. COFIDE* (79)
De Benedetti family
Holding company/Turin, Italy
Revenues: $1.96 billion
Employees: 10,411

97. Swire Pacific Ltd.* (77)
Swire family
Real estate, investments/Hong Kong, China
Revenues: $1.93 billion
Employees: 60,000
www.swirepacific.com

98. Benetton Group* (80)
Benetton family
Fashion/Milan, Italy
Revenues: $1.9 billion
Employees: 6,672
www.benetton.com

99. Schroders* (61)
Schroder family
Money management/London, United Kingdom
Revenues: $1.85 billion
Employees: 4,747
www.schroders.com

100. Saudi Oger (82)
Al-Hariri family
Construction/Beirut, Lebanon
Revenues: $1.8 billion
www.saudioger.com

101. Bonnier AB (NR)
Bonnier family
Publishing/Stockholm, Sweden
Revenues: $1.78 billion
Employees: 10,702
www.bonnier.se

102. Publicis Groupe* (93)
Badinter family
Advertising/Paris, France
Revenues: $1.67 billion
Employees: 16,000
www.publicis.fr

103. Grupo Casa Saba* (87)
Saba family
Textiles, real estate
Mexico City, Mexico
Revenues: $1.62 billion
www.autrey.com

104. Gudang Garam* (85)
Wonowidjojo family
Tobacco/Kediri, Indonesia
Revenues: $1.54 billion
Employees: 40,000

105. Merloni Elettrodomestici* (83)
Merloni family
Appliance, components/Fabriano, Italy
Revenues: $1.51 billion
Employees: 13,672
www.merloni.it

106. Garanti Bank (54)
Sahenk family
Finance/Istanbul, Turkey
Revenues: $1.496 billion
www.garantibank.com

107. JCB (86)
Bamford family
Construction/Cotswold, United Kingdom
Revenues: $1.302 billion
Employees: 3,847
www.jcb.com

108. Visy Industries (84)
Pratt family
Paper/Melbourne, Australia
Revenues: $1.3 billion
www.visy.com.au

109. C&J Clark International Ltd. (NR)
Clark family
Shoe manufacturer/Somerset, United Kingdom
Revenues: $1.28 billion
Employees: 15,114
www.clarks.co.uk

110. Roca Radiadores* (88)
Roca family
Sanitary products/Spain
Revenues: $1.2 billion
www.roca.es

111. Serono Group* (92)
Bertarelli family
Pharmaceuticals/Geneva, Switzerland
Revenues: $1.198 billion
Employees: 3,965
www.serono.com

112. Lego Group (91)
Kristiansen family
Toys/Billund, Denmark
Revenues: $1.193 billion
Employees: 7,669
www.lego.com

113. Hermès International* (NR)
Hermès family
Leather goods, etc./Paris, France
Revenues: $1.09 billion
Employees: 4,642
www.hermes.com

114. Bankinter, S.A.* (NR)
Botin family
Banking/Madrid, Spain
Revenues: $1.05 billion
Employees: 2,919
www.bankinter.es

115. Mabuchi Motor Co.* (89)
Mabuchi family
Motors/Chiba-ken, Japan
Revenues: $1.01 billion
Employees: 60,511
www.mabuchi-motor.co.jp/eng/index.html

116. Chanel (95)
Wertheimer family
Fashion, perfume
Neuilly, France
Revenues: $1 billion
www.chanel.com

Sources and acknowledgments

Forbes list of "The World’s Working Rich"; Forbes International 800; Hoover’s Online Company Directory; Jane’s Major Companies of Europe; Ian Partridge (Loedstar S.A., Geneva, Switzerland); S.J. Taqi (IMC Business Communications, Geneva, Switzerland); William T. O’Hara (Bryant College, R.I.); Fernando Casado and Adriana Schultz (Instituto de la Empresa Familiar, Barcelona, Spain); Ludo Van der Heyden (INSEAD, Fontainebleu, France); François de Visscher (de Visscher & Co., Greenwich, Conn.); Howard Muson.

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