User:FitzArnold/sandbox/thomasflohr

Thomas Flohr
Thomas Flohr is a Swiss entrepreneur and billionaire who founded business aviation company VistaJet in 2004.

Early Life and Career
Flohr was born in Erlenbach, Switzerland. His father was a teacher and his mother a housewife. He studied business and political science at Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich. Flohr spent 14 years working at Chicago-based technology leasing firm Comdisco, later leading the business expansion into Europe. When he resigned in 2000, he sold his 1.5% stake in the business for an estimated market value of $2bn.

When Comdisco filed for bankruptcy in 2001, Flohr would purchase its Swiss and Austrian operations to establish Comprendium Finance SA, leasing technology products to German-speaking countries. He remains President of the Swiss-based company.

VistaJet
At Comdisco, Flohr regularly travelled by private jet charter for business purposes. He expressed dissatisfaction with the onboard service and overall experience in line with the high cost per flight. In 2003, Flohr bought and refurbished a second hand Learjet for his own use, and chartered it to others through an operator. He noted that the aircraft was often unavailable due to charter demand, and bought another aircraft within 6 months, designed to the same specifications.

Flohr commissioned a financial analysis of the business aviation industry. He then purchased three more planes in 2005 to create a branded 'plane-for-rent' business model that would become VistaJet's market differentiator. He also acquired the charter operator to exclusively manage his own fleet. Flohr considered the ultra-wealthy private jet customer base to be "brand-affiliated". He ordered the exteriors of each plane to be painted metallic silver with a horizontal red stripe either side, and recruited his daughter, Nina Flohr, to redesign the cabins. He acquired charter broker SkyJet International in 2008, giving him offices in the UK, Middle East and Asia.

Three days following the Lehman Brothers collapse in 2008, Flohr received three jets. During the economic downturn he was to reduce hourly aircraft rental rates by 20%.

Between 2004 and 2017, the fleet grew from 5 to 70 jets, with Flohr electing to bulk buy all VistaJet's planes from Canadian manufacturer Bombardier. His largest order was for 56 jets worth $7.8bn in November 2012. He personally retains orders on the Bombardier Global 7000 aircraft.

In his early venture, Flohr focused primarily on emerging market s in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. He repeatedly denied his intention to move VistaJet into the US business aviation market to become a direct competitor to fractional firm NetJets. In 2013, VistaJet announced partnerships with Wheels Up and Jet Aviation, and opened its US headquarters in New York City in 2015.

Flohr was 100% shareholder of VistaJet until 2015, when JP Morgan and Jefferies Group issued a $300m bond to finance additional aircraft. In 2017, he received an additional $200m in investment from private equity firm Rhône Capital.

Personal Life
Flohr was to married Katharina Flohr (née Konecny), who founded Greek and Russian Vogue, and was formerly managing and creative director of Fabergé. They have a daughter, Nina, who is a former Creative Director of VistaJet. He has one brother who is a doctor.

Flohr owns a vintage car collection including a 1965 Aston Martin DB5, a 1967 Austin-Healey Mark 3, and a 1975 Porsche 911 which he raced in the East African Safari Classic Rally in 2011. In 2013, Flohr started racing internationally, founding his own team with two professional drivers in GT3 Le Mans Cup. In 2017 he completed a full season in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

He lives in St Moritz, Switzerland. After building the property in the mid-2000s, he commissioned Ivana Porfiri to complete the interior design, a project which lasted 4 years. He owns a 42m Baglietta yacht called the Nina J.

Flohr flies between 700-800 hours, or 250 days, per year. He has a net worth of approximately $2.3bn.