One of Hermes’ heirs to adopt his Moroccan gardener for inheritance of wealth

Nicolas Puech, one of the heirs of French luxury design house Hermes, plans to adopt his former Moroccan gardener, to be able to leave him with a portion of his fortune, worth several billion Swiss francs.

According to Swiss daily La Tribune de Genève, the heir is «the largest individual shareholder of Hermes,» holding a stake between 5% and 6%. Single and childless, Puech plans to pass on part of his fortune to his former gardener, 51-year-old man from a modest background.

In a letter dated October 2022, Nicolas Puech called on a lawyer to «arrange his succession situation» and start the adoption process, that is «still underway». In 2011, Nicolas Puech, however, signed an inheritance pact, for the benefit of the Isocrates foundation which fights against fake news.

But in February 2023, according to La Tribune de Genève, the heir seemed to reverse this decision and «make other arrangements».