Billionaire’s Family
Vichai’s wife Aimon Srivaddhanaprabha is a King Power vice chairman, according to the firm’s website. Another son, Apichet Srivaddhanaprabha, along with sisters Voramas Srivaddhanaprabha and Aroonroong Srivaddhanaprabha, are also part of the executive team.

Vichai was at the head of a consortium called Asian Football Investments that purchased Leicester City Football Club in 2010. Under his ownership, Leicester won promotion to the English Premier League in 2014. The club was crowned champion against overwhelming odds two years later.

“I came to the football industry with Leicester City because of my love for football and the club and its fans have already repaid me several times over with their passion and loyalty," Vichai said upon receiving the honorary degree in 2016.

Underdog Story
The family built a rapport with fans by offering freebies such as beer and donuts for Vichai’s birthday. His son Aiyawatt, known as “Top,” took to the victory stage in a televised ceremony after the 2016 upset.

“Hello champions,” he said to a cheering crowd. “I think we need a bigger stadium, huh?"

The underdog story started in Thailand, where Vichai founded King Power in 1989 and won a license to set up the country’s first downtown duty-free shop at a mall in Bangkok.

The company’s big break came when it was awarded exclusive rights to run duty-free and tax-free concessions at Thailand’s key airports. The firm also secured the right to manage all other commercial space at Suvarnabhumi airport, which opened in 2006, according to the company website.

Passenger Boom
In the first nine months of 2018, almost 80 million passengers came through Suvarnabhumi and the capital’s second airport, Don Mueang, another King Power concession. While tourism growth has sputtered recently, the sector remains a key engine of Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy.

In April, Vichai and his family acquired assets from the Mahanakhon real-estate project in Bangkok for about $423 million, which includes a skyscraper billed as the city’s tallest.

Vichai navigated Thailand’s complex political environment of elections followed by coups, while defending against challenges as he expanded King Power. Most recently, a Thai court dismissed a case alleging the Thai government hadn’t received all the fees due from the operation of duty-free concessions.