Lars Windhorst Biography
Lars Windhorst is a German entrepreneur and Sapinda Group co-founder. He is best known as the owner of La Perla (clothing). He famously started businesses in his teens before declaring bankruptcy in 2003 as a result of the Dot-com bubble.
How old is Lars Windhorst? – Age
He is 46 years old as of 22 November 2022. He was born in 1976 in Rahden, Germany.
Lars Windhorst Family – Education
He is the son of Wilhelm Windhorst, and Ursula Windhorst. Windhorst, the son of a local stationery store owner, converted the family garage in his hometown of Rahden into a makeshift computer lab when he was 14 years old. He recruited his classmates to assist him in building PCs, which he later sold in his father’s shop while looking for individual component suppliers in China. He founded his first company in 1993, while still in high school.
Given that he was underage, his parents assisted him in administering its operations, such as signing contracts on his behalf and driving him to work. Windhorst rose to prominence as one of Germany’s most successful young entrepreneurs.
Lars Windhorst Wife
She is married to Christin Bahla. The couple married in 2019.
Lars Windhorst Net Worth
He has an estimated net worth of $500 million.
Lars Windhorst La Perla
He owns La Perla, an Italian lifestyle and fashion company. Ada Masotti, a couturière, founded the brand in Bologna in 1954. Masotti received corset-making training. Nicole Rendone, an Italian-American designer, is La Perla’s current creative director and Chief Design Officer. In 2021, she will join La Perla. Silk and textile manufacturing dates back to the 17th century in Bologna, Italy. She was given the nickname “golden scissors” while working at a local atelier for her precise cutting and tailoring abilities. Masotti’s corset expertise grew over time to include other types of lingerie.
Lars Windhorst Tennor
In 2004, Windhorst co-founded the Sapinda investment group, which collaborated with Anoa Capital to provide funding to public, private, and start-up companies. During the 2008 global financial crisis, the Group, and particularly its German subsidiary Vatas Holding GmbH, suffered significant losses. All business activities were restructured in April 2009, and the new parent company, Sapinda Holding BV, was founded in Amsterdam that same year.
The Group now has offices in several countries and a global workforce of 80 people. It invests in agriculture and food processing, as well as mining/raw materials, oil and gas extraction and production, as well as media, technology, and real estate. Sapinda acquired the luxury brand La Perla in February 2018. Sapinda was renamed Tennor in May 2019. (Tennor Holding B.V.). Sapinda Holding BV was renamed Tennor in May 2019. (Tennor Holding B.V.).
Lars Windhorst Yacht
Nobiskrug is well-known for his work on Sailing Yacht A and Tatoosh. It declared bankruptcy in April 2021, citing “critical developments” in yacht construction that had a negative impact on investment and potential profitability. Windhorst is the owner of the Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft (FSG).
Lars Windhorst Bankruptcy
Windhorst declared bankruptcy in the summer of 2007. According to a 3 September 2007 article in the German news magazine Focus, the lawsuit filed against him by his joint creditor, Ulrich Marseille, was rejected by the German Federal Court of Justice in August, indicating that Windhorst’s debts were cleared.
In 2009, the Berlin Public Prosecutor filed charges against Windhorst for fraud, breach of trust, embezzlement, and several counts of insolvency. Windhorst’s breach of trust involved the deposit of €800,000 in one of his alternative accounts. Prosecutors agreed to drop the fraud charges if he paid a €1 million fine, repaid €2.5 million to his alleged victim, and admitted to a breach of trust offense, for which he was sentenced to one year probation. These charges were dropped during proceedings that began on December 18, 2009, and the money was returned.
In 2010, Windhorst was also the target of a civil suit filed in Manhattan by Alki Partners, an American hedge fund, alleging that he and others participated in a “fraudulent scheme” to “manipulate” the share price of Remote DX, a US company. Later that year, the complaint was dismissed.
Lars Windhorst Career
Windhorst founded his first company, Windhorst Electronics GmbH, with Chinese businessman Ming Rong Zhang in October 1993. Windhorst Electronics GmbH began by importing and trading electronic components and computer parts from Asia, as well as selling IT products throughout Germany and Europe. Windhorst Electronics, with a total of 80 employees, reported a turnover of £80 million just one year after its founding.
Windhorst relocated to Hong Kong in 1995 and established Windhorst Asia Pacific Holding Limited, a holding company for the group’s Asian operations. The Windhorst Group expanded its operations as a trading and investment firm in the electronics, industry, trade, real estate, and finance sectors until 1996. The company had offices and branches throughout Europe and Asia, including the Chinese mainland and Vietnam.
Windhorst established Windhorst New Technologies AG in 2000, with a focus on investments in the internet and new technologies sectors. Windhorst New Technologies AG was scheduled to be listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in 2002. However, with the onset of the economic crisis, the group ran into problems and was forced to declare bankruptcy in 2003.