Three children of retail billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen were killed in the attacks in Sri Lanka on Sunday, according to a spokesperson for his company.
The Danish entrepreneur owns clothing company Bestseller, which is the biggest shareholder in British fashion retailer Asos (ASOMY) with a stake of over 26%. He also owns a 10% stake in German online retailer Zalando.
“We can confirm that Anders lost three children in the attack,” Jesper Stubkier, Bestseller’s communication manager, told CNN.
Stubkier declined to comment further, citing the need “to respect the privacy of the family.” Holch Povlsen and his wife, Anne, have four children, according to Danish media.
At least 290 people died in the wave of bombings across Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday. At least 39 of those killed were visitors from countries including Turkey, India, the United Kingdom and Australia.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks. A government minister described the coordinated bombings as a “brand new type of terrorism,” after a decade of relative calm in Sri Lanka.
READ ALSO: Sri Lanka Attacks: Death Toll Rises to 290
Danish media reported that Holch Povlsen was in Sri Lanka with his family on vacation.
Holch Povlsen has been a member of Zalando’s (ZLNDY) supervisory board since 2013, but his interests go beyond fashion and retail. He and Anne are among the biggest private landowners in Scotland.
In 2007, the couple founded Wildland, a conservation and sustainable development company through which they’ve invested in a number of properties.
The couple say on their website that they want to restore the Scottish Highlands “to their former magnificent natural state and repair the harm that man has inflicted on them.”
CNN
