Julia Koch & family

Early Life

Julia Margaret Flesher Koch was born on April 12, 1962, in Des Moines, Iowa. Her parents owned a furniture store and later a clothing store in Conway, Arkansas, where she spent her childhood. She graduated from the University of Central Arkansas.

Rise to Success

In 1984, Julia moved to New York City and pursued a career in the fashion industry, working as an assistant to designer Adolfo, styling high-profile clients including Nancy Reagan. In 1996, she married David Koch. She made her New York society debut at the Met Gala in December 1997. Upon David Koch's death in 2019, she inherited a 42% stake in Koch Industries.

Key Business Strategies

Julia is a board member of Koch Industries. After inheriting her stake in Koch Industries, she has focused on preserving the family's legacy and wealth while maintaining a relatively private lifestyle. In June 2024, Koch and her children paid nearly $700 million for 15% of BSE Global, which owns the NBA's Brooklyn Nets and WNBA's New York Liberty.

Philanthropy

Julia Koch is the president of the David H. Koch Foundation. She supports various causes, including education, medical research, and cultural institutions. She has made significant donations to the Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, NYU Langone, and the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford University. In February 2024, she gifted $75 million to NYU Langone for the Julia Koch Family Ambulatory Care Center.