Isn't it something that people who are in the 1% of the richest people in the world still choose to live in Washington state? Washington just has that je ne sais quoi that these 5 big billionaires can't get enough of! We pretty much all know that Jeff Bezos and Bill and Melinda Gates are among the richest, biggest billionaires in Washington state, but do you know any of the others? I can think of at least 5 billionaires you might not even know live here.

Whilst I scramble my mind and come up with a scheme to become one of Washington state's next big billionaire, I ask myself why am I are we so obsessed with rich people? Perhaps it's because I have we have this teeny little hope that someday through the luck of invention, patents, or good fortune, that I that we, too, may someday become a billionaire and own a home in Washington!

Shewt, at this point, I'd even settle for being a hundred-thousand-aire!

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As you may already suspect, most Washington state billionaires developed their wealth through the tech and software industry. A few of the other billionaires inherited family businesses and in turn, inherited gobs of money. Let's take a look at 5 big billionaires that we (probably) did not know still live here in Washington.

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1.

Martin Selig

Martin Selig Real Estate
MartinSelig.com
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WHO IS MARTIN SELIG?

Martin Selig is a real estate magnate. He owns MartinSelig.com and is based in Seattle. He has fourteen (14) public sculptures that are visible around the Seattle area (view the list here.)

HOW DID MARTIN SELIG MAKE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN WASHINGTON STATE?

During Martin's youth in 1958, he decided to take a chance on selling and developing real estate properties.

DAYUUUM! HOW RICH IS MARTIN SELIG?

Martin Selig has an estimated worth of $1.4 billion.

2.

Bruce Nordstrom

Washington state billionaire Bruce Nordstrom
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WHO IS BRUCE NORDSTROM?

Bruce Nordstrom is from the Nordstrom's department store family. He lives in Seattle.

HOW DID BRUCE NORDSTROM MAKE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN WASHINGTON STATE?

Bruce Nordstrom's grandpa, Johan Nordström, emigrated to America with his family when he was 16. Through the course of life after that, he changed his name to John Nordstrom and after many professions started a shoe store in Seattle with a friend, Carl Wallin, in 1901. John's sons and grandsons kept the business going. Bruce got a B.A. in economics at University of Washington and helped his family continue to manage the Nordstrom stores. The store branched out to new locations and even entered the European market. Over time, Nordstrom's became a department store and gave us the beloved Nordstrom Rack! Thank you for coming to Reesha's Cliff's Notes TED Talk version of how Bruce Nordstrom became a billionaire.

DAYUUUM! HOW RICH IS BRUCE NORDSTROM?

Bruce is listed on Forbes Magazine's list of billionaires with an estimated wealth of 1.2 billion dollars.

3.

James Jannard

James Jannard reportedly lives in the San Juan Islands in Washington State
Martin Lang via YouTube
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WHO IS JAMES JANNARD?

James Jannard is the creator of Oakely shades and lives in the San Juan Islands of Washington state.

Oakley was founded by James Jannard who lives in San Juan Islands, Washington state
Oakley via Amazon
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HOW DID JAMES JANNARD MAKE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN WASHINGTON STATE?

James started selling "a motorcycle grip that wicked sweat during long rides" out of his car, according to a story from Forbes.com, where he is listed amongst the billionaires of the world. He eventually sold his company, Oakley for $2.1 billion in cash.

DAYUUUM! HOW RICH IS JAMES JANNARD?

Forbes.com says James Jannard's estimated wealth is $2.7 billion.

4.

MacKenzie Scott (formerly MacKenzie Bezos)

MacKenzie Scott is one of Washington state's richest billionaires
Getty Images, MacKenzie  Scott is shown here in 2003 with her then-husband, Jeff
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WHO IS MACKENZIE SCOTT

MacKenzie Scott is a philanthropist and novelist who still lives in Seattle even though she could live literally anywhere in the entire planet. Wrap your mind around that! She used to be married to Jeff Bezos. With MacKenzie's help, Amazon was the launching pad that made her and Jeff become billionaires. She remains a Seattle resident along with her new husband, Dan, and their blended family of kids.

HOW DID MACKENZIE SCOTT MAKE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN WASHINGTON STATE?

Many moons ago, MacKenzie worked for an investment firm in New York and along the way she got married to a guy who also worked there named Jeffery Bezos. They lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan so that means they had somewhat of a posh lifestyle (I'm sure). Anywhoo, the two lovebirds moved to Seattle in the mid-90s, got a place to live in Bellevue, and made Amazon.com fly to great heights. MacKenzie did a a ton of grunt work to support her hubby's newly created online bookstore. They became billionaires, got divorced, and the rest is history.

DAYUUUM! HOW RICH IS MACKENZIE SCOTT?

Being a co-founder of Amazon and getting awarded a divorce settlement (after 25 years of marriage) to Jeff Bezos, MacKenzie gained about $37 billion dollars added to her bank account. Can you just imagine having that much money. (Yes actually, yes I can. Gimme, gimme!)

via GIPHY

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5.

Gabe Newell

Gabe Newell, Washington state billionaire
Getty Images
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WHO IS GABE NEWELL?

Gabe is the man behind Valve. He and his family have a home in Seattle.

HOW DID GABE NEWELL MAKE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN WASHINGTON STATE?

In '96, Gabe and another Windows/Microsoft buddy, Mike Harrington, decided to flee to create their own video game software company. They named it Valve. Four years later, Mike said, "Peace, I'm outta here!" and then Gabe became the sole owner of Valve. Fast forward to today, where Gabe's company develops stuff for other video game distribution and digital streaming.

DAYUUUM! HOW RICH IS GABE NEWELL?

Sources at Forbes say Gabe is worth $3.7 billion.

RELATED: The Most Glamorous Neighborhood in WA State Might Make You Green with Envy

 

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LOOK: Here is the richest town in each state

Just saying the names of these towns immediately conjures up images of grand mansions, luxury cars, and ritzy restaurants. Read on to see which town in your home state took the title of the richest location and which place had the highest median income in the country. Who knows—your hometown might even be on this list.

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