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The billionaire founder of Ikea flies economy and buys all his clothing at flea markets

Mallory Schlossberg   

The billionaire founder of Ikea flies economy and buys all his clothing at flea markets
Retail2 min read

ingvar kamprad ikea

AP

Ikea's founder, Ingvar Kamprad, is a billionaire.

In fact, he's the second-richest man in Europe, with a reported net worth of $39.3 billion.

But he doesn't spend all of his money on Louis Vuitton luggage and Cartier cuff links.

Rather, he shops at flea markets, The Local Se reports. Kamprad reportedly revealed this information in a Swedish documentary.

"I don't think I'm wearing anything that wasn't bought at a flea market. It means that I want to set a good example," he said in the television special on TV74, according to The Guardian, adding that "It's in the nature of Smaland to be thrifty."

(For what it's worth, Smaland is the children's mini-playground in Ikea stores.)

ikea swedish meatballs

By gavinr on Flickr

Kamprad reportedly dines on Ikea's Swedish meatballs.

It pays to be smart with your money, but Kamprad is famously frugal; he flies economy class and eats the famous Swedish meatballs at Ikea, Express has noted. Express claims that he even takes the salt and pepper packets from Ikea's cafeteria.

But extreme thriftiness isn't limited to the Swedes.

In fact, many other billionaires are notoriously frugal, including Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, Inditex founder Amancio Ortega, and billionaire investor Warren Buffet.

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