Murat Ülker: I sold my 2 private jets to save money

Yıldız Holding Board Member and Ülker boss Murat Ülker attended the symposium titled 'Turkish working life in the 100th year of our Republic' organized by the Hak-İş Confederation. Speaking to journalists at the event, the businessman drew attention to the issue of austerity.

Speaking to journalists there, Ülker highlighted the importance of saving.

Sözcü columnist Saygı Öztürk conveyed the information provided by Ülker to his readers as follows:

"Murat Ülker had two planes. Mr. Murat is in one country one day, and another country the next. Why? Because he has over 100 factories in exactly 26 countries. 4 billion people live in the countries where his factories are located. Ülker is the world's second-largest biscuit producer. The goal is to take the top spot from the US. In chocolate production, Ülker ranks 6th in the world.

HE SOLD BOTH OF HIS PLANES

After his speech, we chatted with Murat Ülker. He says, 'The era is the era of austerity.' For example, even though Murat Ülker had two planes, he sold both of them for the sake of saving. He explained that the savings in this area alone were very high. Mr. Murat says, 'Now, I look at how much net profit I am making in my companies.' He bought world-renowned factories. He is paying off their debts. While he had a plane, Mr. Murat came to Ankara on a scheduled flight. He returned from Ankara to Istanbul with his communications consultant Mustafa Kaya, again on a scheduled flight.

HE HAS FULLY ACCUSTOMED HIMSELF TO A FRUGAL LIFE

Murat Ülker is a die-hard Fenerbahçe fan. He never misses Fenerbahçe matches. He will go to Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, to watch the cup match between two Turkish teams. How? By any plane going there. Frankly, Murat Ülker has fully accustomed himself to a frugal life. (...)"

According to Öztürk's note, the famous businessman, who ranks among the wealthiest in Turkey, gave the following example regarding austerity:

"I had a debt of 6.5 billion dollars. I reduced this to 1 billion 300 million dollars through property sales and, for a significant portion, by practicing austerity. Today, the situation of my companies is quite good. However, we will not abandon austerity."

News Source: 12punto