Michał Sołowow

Michał Sołowow (born July 11, 1962 in Kielce) is a Polish businessman and rally driver.[1] He was the European vice-champion (2008, 2009, 2012), the vice-champion of Poland (2006, 2010), the European second vice-champion (2006, 2010), and second vice-champion of Poland (2004, 2005).

Sołowow driving a Peugeot 207 S2000

His wealth is estimated at the over 6 bn złoty (in 2006 – 3.6 bn); he is one of the biggest Polish stock exchange investors. He is an important shareholder of the following companies: Synthos (chemical industry), Cersanit (sanitary ceramics and tiles), Echo Investment (development activity), and Barlinek (producer of floorboards).

In 2007, Forbes estimated his net worth at 2.3 billion US dollars.[1]

Business empire

Sołowow studied at Kielce University of Technology.[2] In 1980s he earned money working in the West, so he was able to create Mitex construction enterprise in late 1980s in Kielce, when freedom of business was announced in still communist Polish People's Republic.[2] After political and economical transformation in early 1990s, Mitex became one of bigger companies on regional construction market. Sołowow then became an active Warsaw Stock Exchange investor.[2]

Sołowow bought shares in the chemical company Dwory (now Synthos) and funded its expansion with debt, taking advantage of low interest rates at the time. He then diversified into ceramic tiles, wood floors and real estate. He gave up any management roles but is still an active investor on Warsaw Stock Exchange and lives in Masłów, a village on the borders of Kielce, Swietokrzyskie voivodship.

He is an important shareholder of the following companies:

• Synthos S.A. (chemical industry). One of the largest Polish chemical companies. It manufactures synthetic rubber and latex, styrene materials and vinyl dispersions.
• Cersanit S.A. – (sanitary ceramics and tiles). One of the largest and most dynamically growing companies in Poland and a nationwide leader in complex bathroom equipment, intensely expanding its range of export operations (the share of exports in total revenues from sales earned by the company exceeds 40%).
• Echo Investment (property development activity). The company conducts building projects for flats, offices, shopping centres, hotels, entertainment and also property management. Sołowow sold his shares in 2015.[2]
• Barlinek S.A. (producer of floorboards). One of the largest manufacturers of natural wooden flooring systems in the world, and the most recognizable brand of natural floors in Poland. Barlinek floorboards are exported to more than 30 countries on 3 continents. The company holds about a 65% share of the market in Polish flooring.
• Ultra Pack S.A. – Polish leader in production of corrugated board packagings.
• North Fish Polska Sp. z o.o. – a chain of restaurants offering fish and seafood.

He pulled out of launching a newspaper because of intense competition. He also merged Cersanit with Opoczno, the second-largest company in the ceramics sector. His companies invest in and acquire companies in several countries of the CEE region, including Russia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Ukraine and Romania.

Sołowow's funds, which invest in the futures market, currency market, and materials markets, manage the capital from stock exchange transactions. The funds are:

• Magellan Pro-Equity Fund I S.A.
• Columbus Pro-Equity Fund II Sp. z o.o.
• Amundsen Pro-Equity Fund III Sp. z o.o.
• Barco Pro-Equity Fund Sp. z o.o.

Rally career

Sołowow was interested in amateur rally driving as a teenager. In 2001, thanks to sponsorship of his companies Synthos and Cersanit, he started professional rally career, aside from his business activities.[2] After several years of training and starts, he began to obtain good results. He was the European vice-champion (2008, 2009, 2012), the vice-champion of Poland (2006, 2010), the European second vice-champion (2006, 2010), and second vice-champion of Poland (2004, 2005). He finished his career in 2015.[2]

WRC results

Year	Entrant	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	WDC	Points
2003	Cersanit Rally Team	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII	MON	SWE 43	TUR	NZL	ARG	GRE	CYP	GER 33	FIN	AUS	ITA	FRA	ESP	GBR			NC	0
2004	Cersanit Rally Team	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII	MON	SWE 30	MEX	NZL	CYP	GRE	TUR	ARG	FIN	GER	JPN	GBR	ITA	FRA	ESP	AUS	NC	0
2005	Cersanit Rally Team	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII	MON	SWE Ret	MEX	NZL	ITA	CYP	TUR	GRE	ARG	FIN	GER	GBR	JPN	FRA	ESP	AUS	NC	0
2006	Cersanit Rally Team	Subaru Impreza WRC 05	MON	SWE 33	MEX	ESP	FRA	ARG	ITA	GRE	GER	FIN	JPN	CYP	TUR	AUS	NZL		NC	0
		Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX																GBR 40
2007	Cersanit Rally Team	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX	MON	SWE 21	NOR	MEX	POR	ARG	ITA	GRE	FIN	GER	NZL	ESP	FRA	JPN	IRE		NC	0
	Errani Team Group	Fiat Abarth Grande Punto S2000																GBR Ret
2010	Michał Sołowow	Peugeot 207 S2000	SWE 22	MEX	JOR	TUR	NZL	POR	BUL	FIN	GER	JPN	FRA	ESP	GBR				NC	0
2012	M-Sport Ford World Rally Team	Ford Fiesta RS WRC	MON	SWE 20	MEX	POR	ARG	GRE	NZL	FIN	GER	GBR	FRA	ITA	ESP				NC	0
2013	Michał Sołowow	Peugeot 207 S2000	MON	SWE 12	MEX	POR	ARG	GRE	ITA	FIN	GER	AUS	FRA	ESP					NC	0
	Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team	Ford Fiesta RS WRC													GBR 14
2014	M-Sport World Rally Team	Ford Fiesta RS WRC	MON	SWE 17	MEX	POR	ARG	ITA		FIN Ret	GER	AUS	FRA	ESP	GBR				NC	0
	Michał Sołowow								POL Ret
2015	Synthos Cersanit Rally Team	Ford Fiesta RS WRC	MON	SWE Ret	MEX	POR	ARG	ITA	POL	FIN	GER	AUS	FRA	ESP	GBR				NC	0
2020	Barlinek Synthos RT	Škoda Fabia R5	MON	SWE 24	MEX	EST	TUR	GER	ITA	JPN									NC*	0*

PWRC results

Year	Entrant	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	PWRC	Points
2007	Errani Team Group	Fiat Abarth Grande Punto S2000	SWE	MEX	ARG	GRE	NZL	JPN	IRE	GBR Ret	NC	0

References

1. "The World's Billionaires: #407 Michal Solowow", Forbes, March 8, 2007. Retrieved 31 July 2011
2. Grzeszak, Adam (2016). "Mistrz cichej jazdy" [Quiet ride champion]. Polityka (in Polish). No. 12/2019 (3203) (published March 19, 2019). p. 36.

External links

• Results at ewrc-results.com

Media related to Michał Sołowow at Wikimedia Commons