The Aldi Story—Karl and Theo Albrecht Theo and Karl Albrecht are the most mysterious figures in the Federal Republic of Germany. They built a global business empire, amassed a fortune worth billions, and became the richest Germans. When Theo Albrecht died in 2010 and his brother Karl in 2014, they had turned a small corner store—which they took over from their mother in 1946—into a chain with 4,300 stores in Germany. The company sets the prices for our staple foods; moreover, the brothers have influenced our food culture and shaped our mindset.