Born: July 11, 1962 in Kielce, Poland
Early days. Father- Andrzej Solowow. Solowow finished the Hanka Sawicka high school in Kielce (IV Liceum Ogolnoksztalcace) and then grduated from the the Swietokrzyska Polytechnic.
Career. Michał Sołowow bought shares in chemical company Dwory and funded its expansion with debt, taking advantage of low interest rates at the time. He then diversified into ceramic tiles, wood floors and real estate. He gave up any management roles but is still an active investor on Warsaw Stock Exchange and he remains one of the biggest Polish stock exchange investors. In 2007, Forbes estimated his net worth at 2.3 billion US dollars. In 2010 he was 973 on the list of World’s Billionaires (fourth Pole after Jan Kulczyk, Zygmunt Solorz-Zak and Leszek Czarnecki.
He is an important shareholder of the following companies: Synthos S.A. (chemical industry). One of the largest Polish chemical company. It manufactures synthetic rubber and latex, styrene materials and vinyl dispersions.
Cersanit S.A. - (sanitary ceramics and tiles). One of the largest and most dynamically growing companies in Poland and a nationwide leader in complex bathroom equipment, intensely expanding its range of export operations (the share of export in total revenues from sales earned by the company exceeds 40%).
Echo Investment (property development activity). The company conducts building projects for flats, offices, shopping centers, hotels, entertainment and also property management.
Barlinek S.A. (producer of floorboards). One of the largest manufacturer of natural wooden flooring systems in the world, and the most recognizable brand of natural floors in Poland. The Barlinek floorboard is exported to more than 30 countries on 3 continents. The company holds about a 65% share of the market in Polish flooring.
Ultra Pack S.A. – Polish leader in production of corrugated board packagings.
North Fish Polska Sp. z o.o. – a chain of restaurants offering fish and seafood.
He pulled out of launching a newspaper because of intense competition. He also merged Cersanit with Opoczno, the second-largest company in the ceramics sector. His companies invest in and acquire companies in several countries of the CEE region, including Russia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Ukraine and Romania.
Michał Sołowow’s funds, which invest in the futures market, currency market, and materials markets, manage the capital from stock exchange transactions. The funds are:
Magellan Pro-Equity Fund I S.A.;
Columbus Pro-Equity Fund II Sp. z o.o.; Amundsen Pro-Equity Fund III Sp. z o.o.;
Barco Pro-Equity Fund Sp. z o.o.
Sport successes. Twice the European vice-champion (2008,2009 on Peugeot 207 S2000), twice vice-champion of Poland (2006,2010 on Ford Fiestą S2000 ), the European vice-champion (2006), twice vice-champion of Poland (2004, 2005).
Personal. He is married and lives in Maslow, a village on the borders of Kielce, Swietokrzyskie voivodship.
Based (with modifications)on articles that appear in Wikipedia :
Wikipedia
Wikipedia (in Polish)
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Other sources:
FIA European Rally
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