What was Richard Lugner's net worth?
Richard Lugner was an Austrian entrepreneur who had a net worth of $200 million at the time of his death. Richard Lugner died on August 12, 2024 at the age of 91. He was known for "dating" several of the world's most famous women. For example, Paris Hilton, Pamela Anderson, Kim Kardashian, Goldie Hawn and Geri Halliwell. However, in reality he was paying the women six figure appearance fees to attend events with him, primarily the Vienna Opera Ball. He reportedly paid them $50 – $150,000. He reportedly paid Kim Kardashian $500,000 and then she refused to dance with him.
Also please note that we do not refer to him as a billionaire. During his lifetime, Richard Lugner was referred to as an "Austrian billionaire" in countless headlines. According to his own financial disclosures, he was never actually a billionaire. In 2014, when attempting to be included in an Austrian magazine's list of the country's richest citizens, Richard's own financial reports showed that he was worth the equivalent of $160 million USD at that time. He also claimed that his net worth increased by roughly $10 million every year. Unfortunately Richard's "billionaire" status was largely the work of a good publicist.
Lugner with Cathy Schmitz (Monika Fellner/Getty Images)
Richard Lugner was born in Vienna, Austria in October 1932. He got his license to work as a building contractor in 1962. Lugner's company renovated old buildings and worked in the erection of filling stations. His company completed the first mosque in Vienna in 1979. He opened the shopping mall Lugner City in 1990.
Lugner became famous for using a clever marketing strategy where he would invite celebrities to come and perform and sign autographs to bring people to the mall. Lugner's guests have included Harry Belafonte, Joan Collins, Ivana Trump, Sophia Loren, Sarah, Duchess of York, Raquel Welch, Jacqueline Bisset, Farrah Fawcett, Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock, Carmen Electrca, Paris Hilton, and Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner.
Lugner handed his business to his sons in the late 1990s and went into politics. He finished fourth in the 1998 presidential elections with 9.91% of the popular vote. A survey of Austrians found that over 90% of them recognized the Lugner name.
Lugner was married six times and had four children. In 2014, Richard married a 24-year-old German Playboy model named Cathy Schmitz. After two years, they divorced.
