Sulaiman S. Olayan

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Sulaiman Saleh Olayan or Sheikh Sulaiman saleh Olayan (Arabic: سليمان العليان ) (November 5, 1918 - July 4, 2002) was among Saudi Arabia's wealthiest businessmen. Orphaned at age six, Olayan had more humble beginnings than most of his business counterparts from the Kingdom. Olayan's rise to great wealth reflected his acumen, an ability to cross cultural barriers, as well as extraordinary timing.

In 1947, Olayan founded the Olayan Group as a trucking services company working with some of Saudi Aramco's subcontractors. The venture would swell to include construction, trading, energy, insurance components, and become the representative, operator and distributor of many International brands in the Kingdom including Bechtel, Xerox, Kimberly-Clark, Nabisco, Colgate-Palmolive, Polaroid, Nestle, Scania, Toshiba, Burger King and Coca Cola. Olayan was also active in the financial markets, where he held notable portions of many blue chips. In 2001, the annual Forbes magazine "World's Richest People" list ranked him 38 in the world with a worth of $8 billion.

He is survived by his son Khaled, his three daughters, Hayat, Hutham and Lubna Olayan, and his wife Mary.

[edit] Reference

Goldman, Ari L. (July 6, 2002). "Suliman S. Olayan, 83, Dies; One of the World's Wealthiest". New York Times, Section A; Column 1; Business/Financial Desk; Pg. 14.