Sporty, arty and business savvy. A ranking of the world’s top 20 most intriguing billionaire heiresses by Web site Forbes.com shows daughters of the rich aren’t all just socialites and can be hard workers.
Georgina Bloomberg, daughter of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
While hotel heiress Paris Hilton hit the headlines for spending time in jail and making a sex video with a boyfriend, Forbes.com said the women on its list were "proving themselves every bit as tenacious and ambitious as their namesakes."
In top spot on the list is Vanisha Mittal Bhatia of India, who has a masters degree in South Asian studies and sits on the board of Mittal Steel, owned by her father Lakshmi Mittal, estimated by Forbes to be worth $51 billion.
"She’s perhaps best known — dare we say infamous — for the $60 million wedding her father threw her and 1,000 of their closest friends in 2005. A performance by pop star Kylie Minogue capped the week-long Parisian affair," said the Web site (www.forbes.com).
The women on the list are all under 40 and ranked according to their father’s or mother’s most recent net worth on either Forbes’ World’s Billionaires list, the Forbes 400 list of the Richest Americans, or Forbes Asia’s 40 Richest Indians.
Coming in at No. 2 is Delphine Arnault Gancia of France, daughter of Bernard Arnault who runs the Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) luxury goods empire. Gancia is a former McKinsey consultant and the first woman to be named a director on the LVMH board, Forbes.com said.
Third is Marta Ortega Perez, youngest child of Spain’s richest resident Amancio Ortega, worth an estimated $24 billion and chairman of Inditex, owner of the Zara clothing chain.
"Marta is being groomed to succeed her father, and she’s learning the how-to’s of retail by working the floor — stocking shelves, assisting customers — in some of the family’s stores," Forbes.com said.
Georgina Bloomberg, daughter of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg — majority owner of Bloomberg LP financial news and data company and estimated to be worth $11.5 billion — comes in at No. 4. She is vying for a spot on the 2008 U.S. Olympic equestrian team.
Samantha Kluge takes No. 5. She is the "sometimes wild child" of communications mogul John Kluge, estimated to be worth $9.5 billion, and boasts 12 tattoos and two annulled marriages, Forbes.com said.
Number six, is Amanda Hearst, daughter of Anne Hearst, niece of Patty Hearst, great granddaughter of William Randolph Hearst, $8.7 billion (for entire Hearst clan on the Forbes 400)
Great-granddaughter of publishing legend William Randolph Hearst and niece of the famously kidnapped and brainwashed Patty Hearst, Amanda is a well-known New York socialite who was once featured in a Harper’s Bazaar article detailing her annual maintenance cost of $136,360. (She says she was taken out of context.) The former model is now "global ambassador" for Tommy Hilfiger. This winter she graduates with an art history degree from Fordham University.
"The neo-socialite, a former style editor for Glamour magazine, now runs her own jewelry and accessories design firm in Los Angeles," Forbes.com said.
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