Net worth 3.7 billion USD (2017) Parents Sabri Ülker | Nationality Turkish Spouse Betül Ataseven Siblings Ahsen Ozokur, Ali Ülker | |
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Born March 21, 1959 (age 58) ( 1959-03-21 ) Occupation Businessman , Industrialist Children Fatih Ülker, Yahya Ülker, Mustafa Ülker Similar Sabri Ülker, Ferit Şahenk, Hüsnü Özyeğin, Rahmi Koç, Şarık Tara Profiles | ||
Y ld z holding murat lker
Murat Ülker was born in Istanbul, Turkey, in 1959. He is a Turkish industrialist and businessman, and is chairman of Yıldız Holding, the largest food company in Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Turkey's leading food group. Ülker is a second generation executive of the Ülker family business, which was established by his father, Sabri Ülker, and uncle, Asım Ülker, in 1944.
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Ülker is an accomplished baker and chocolatier; he began his professional career in 1982 and received further training at the American Institute of Baking (AIB) and Zentralfachschule der Deutschen Süßwarenwirtschaft (ZDS). He also worked as an intern at the Continental Baking Company in the US.
Ülker joined Yıldız Holding as a control coordinator in 1984. Over the following years, he served as assistant general manager for enterprises, and later, as general manager.
In 2000, Ülker became the CEO of Yıldız Holding, and he has served as chairman since 2008.
Under Ülker’s chairmanship, Yıldız Holding made several acquisitions and in 2016 it brought together United Biscuits, Ulker, Godiva Chocolatier and DeMet’s Candy Company to form a new global business, pladis.
According to Euromonitor International, pladis is currently number 3 in biscuits and number 7 in chocolate globally. Ülker is the company’s chairman.
Family and Private Life
Murat Ülker's family roots go back to Alushta, Crimea. There, his family was known as the "Devletler" family. His grandfather, Hacı İslam Efendi, was a teacher who graduated from the Fatih Madrasa. Hacı İslam Efendi married a fellow immigrant from Crimea in Thrace. During his service in Saray, Tekirdağ, he moved to Istanbul because of the Balkan War and then returned to their homeland in Crimea. His father, Sabri Ülker, was born in Korbekul a village in Alushta, in 1920. The family migrated to Istanbul as a result of the oppression of Muslims following the Bolshevik Revolution The entrepreneurial spirit of his father, Sabri, and his uncle, Asım, created the confectionery business in the 1940s. Later on, in 1944, they named the biscuit they produced Ülker, a name that later became part of Yıldız Holding. Meanwhile, the previous family name Berksan was changed in 1954 in order to prevent ambiguity since they had made a reputation in business circles with the Ülker brand name.
Murat Ülker is the youngest of Sabri Ülker's three children. He is married to Betül Ataseven, daughter of Professor Asaf Ataseven, M.D. His three children, Yahya and twins, Mustafa and Fatih, were born in 1993 and 2000, respectively. Yahya studied economics and business administration at Koç University and Mustafa and Fatih are studying at the Private Bilfen Üsküdar Science High School
His sister, Ahsen, was born in 1950. She is married to Ülker executive Orhan Özokur and has three children named Ali, Ömer, and Ahmet.
His brother Ali was born in 1954, but he died in a home accident when he was only nine years old. Murat Ülker thus succeeded his father as the family's sole male heir.
Personal Interests
Murat Ülker's hobbies include travelling with his family and sailing. He is an avid user of social media. He boasts an extensive art collection that includes calligraphy as well as contemporary and classical paintings.
Ülker is known for his support of sport, especially basketball. He played an active role in the establishment of the Ülkerspor Basketball Club in 1993. Before uniting with Fenerbahçe in 2006, Ülkerspor fostered numerous young talented players. The club took home the league championship title four times, the Presidential Cup six times, the Turkish Cup three times, and played in the quarter finals of the FIBA European Champions Cup and the FIBA Koraç Cup
Ülker purchased the royalty rights of the Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium for ten years, providing support for the Fenerbahçe soccer team as well as the basketball team.
In addition to his native Turkish, Ülker speaks English and German.
Philanthropy
In 2009 Ülker established the Sabri Ulker Foundation with the goal of making a lasting contribution to public health around the areas of food and nutrition.
In 2014 Ülker contributed $24 million on behalf of the Ülker family to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (HSPH) to establish the Sabri Ülker Center for Nutrient, Genetic, and Metabolic Research.