Forrest Mars Net Worth

What is Forrest Mars Sr.'s Net Worth?

Forrest Mars Sr. was an American billionaire businessman who had a net worth of $25 billion at the time of his death. Forrest Mars Sr. was the director of his family's confectionery company, Mars, Incorporated, where he was responsible for introducing M&M's in 1941. He later founded the Mars subsidiary Pedigree Petfoods and the chocolate company Ethel M Chocolates.

Early Life and Education

Forrest Mars was born on March 21, 1904, in Wadena, Minnesota as the only child of Ethel and Franklin. His father would go on to found the confectionery manufacturer, the Mars Candy Factory in Tacoma, Washington in 1911. After his parents divorced when he was still young, Mars was raised by his maternal grandparents in Saskatchewan, Canada. He later gained a half-sister from his father's remarriage. For his higher education, Mars went to the University of California, Berkeley before transferring to Yale University. He graduated from the latter in 1928 with a degree in industrial engineering.

Mars, Incorporated

Mars began his career at his family's company by working at its new plant in Chicago. In the early 1930s, he helped supervise the development of the Snickers and 3 Musketeers candy bars. To expand the company overseas, Mars went to England, where he created the Mars bar and Maltesers. After returning to the United States, he created the color-varied sugar-coated chocolate pellets called M&M's, which he had allegedly based on the British-made Smarties he witnessed soldiers eating during the Spanish Civil War. M&M's made their debut in 1941.

Beyond candy, Mars helped diversify his company to include other food products. Through his partnership with chemist Erich Huzenlaub, he helped introduce Uncle Ben's rice via the company Converted Rice. In 1959, Mars purchased Huzenlaub's interest in the company and merged it with the business Food Products Manufacturers, which eventually became a part of Mars, Incorporated. Meanwhile, Mars began making dog food under the brand Chappie. Later, it introduced the dog food brand Pedigree and the cat food brand Whiskas.

Forrest Mars attends Kennedy Center Honors Gala in 1983 (Photo by Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)

Retirement and Later Career

Mars retired from Mars, Incorporated in 1973 and turned the company over to his children Forrest Jr., John, and Jacqueline. Finding himself bored in his retirement, he founded the chocolate company Ethel M Chocolates in 1981. Named after Mars's mother and using her recipes, the company began its manufacturing and retail business in Henderson, Nevada. Over the ensuing years, it expanded to other parts of Nevada as well as to Arizona and California. Ethel M was purchased by Mars, Incorporated in 1988.

Personal Life and Death

Mars married Audrey Ruth Meyer in 1910. They had three children together: Forrest Jr., John, and Jacqueline. Meyer passed away in 1989.

On July 1, 1999, Mars passed away in Miami, Florida at the age of 95. Today, the extended Mars family is worth a combined $100 billion.

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