Hermes heir Nicholas Puech. ARCHIVE

Hermes heir Nicholas Puech is reportedly planning to adopt his gardener in an extraordinary succession plan that will see him pass on his $11 billion fortune. According to New York Post, the 88-year-old Puech has hired a team of lawyers to help him formally adopt and legally declare his 51-year-old gardener from a “modest Moroccan family” as his rightful heir. The gardener also stands to inherit the Swiss billionaire’s properties in Marrakesh, Morocco, and Montreux, Switzerland worth a total of $5.9 million. One of Switzerland’s richest people, Puech is single and has no children. He is the fifth-generation descendant of Thierry Hermès, the founder of the iconic luxury fashion brand. Puech's gardener is reportedly married to a woman from Spain. They have two children. There was no immediate response from Hermes on Puech’s unconventional choice for his heir. In 2014, he reportedly had a rift with his family after Louis Vuitton acquired a stake in Hermes. He also resigned from the company’s board after feeling “beleaguered by members of his family, who have attacked him on several fronts,” his spokesperson said at the time. ICA/Expat Media
For all the latest news from the UAE and the world, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube page