How Rafaela Aponte built a logistics empire with her husband
In 2023, Rafaela Aponte topped the Forbes list as the richest woman in the self-made category. The businesswoman and her husband own the MSC shipping company. Rafaela’s fortune is worth more than USD 31 billion. The same capital belongs to her husband. The Aponte family does not disclose their true income.
The beginnings of the family business
Rafaela Aponte was born in Haifa, Israel, in 1945. As a child, she emigrated to Switzerland with her parents. She met her husband, Gianluigi, on a cruise in the 1960s. The young man was the captain of the ship that took the young Swiss tourist to see the beauty of the island of Capri. When their romance began, Gianluigi gave up shipping and took a job in a bank. But the thought of ships never left him. After some time, he and Rafaela decided to turn this passion into a financially profitable direction.
In 1970, Aponte took out a loan of 200,000 dollars and bought a cargo ship. Nine years later, their fleet numbered 17 vessels. A policy of frugality was the basis of the company’s success. Until 1996, the couple’s only purchases were old ships. Aponte’s tactics worked, and MSC grew rapidly:
– 1988 saw Medlog Logistics emerge;
– in the 1980s, the cruise business entered the company’s structure;
– the container terminal services division started operations in 2000;
– in the 2010s, the company began operating ferry services in the Mediterranean.
MSC’s cruise fleet is one of the largest in the industry. It includes luxury mega-ships with various itineraries. Rafaela is responsible for the interior design of the ships.
Rafaela’s role in the company
Although Rafaela has no official position in the company, she plays an essential role in its operations. The woman participates in key business decisions and her opinion is authoritative for the top management, which consists of Rafaela’s husband, their son, the company’s president, and daughter, the CFO. In addition, the spouses of Aponte’s children also run MSC’s divisions.
Demand for the company’s services skyrocketed during the pandemic. As a result, MSC’s revenues increased several times over, and so did the founders’ fortunes. According to Le Matin Dimanche, the company earned more in 2020-2021 than in the previous 10 years. Aponte seized the opportunity to expand her business, buying back shares in several logistics companies and strengthening her position in the market.
