French heiress Françoise Bettencourt Meyers officially became the world's wealthiest woman in 2017. In December last year, she achieved another remarkable feat in becoming the first female in history to amass a fortune of $100 billion (£79bn), largely thanks to her substantial stake in global beauty corporation L'Oréal.

Despite briefly losing her super-rich crown to Walmart scion Alice Walton in September, Meyers is now back on top with a staggering net worth of $92.6 billion (£69.1bn), according to Forbes.

However, the rise of the world's leading cosmetics company – and the family behind it – has been far from smooth sailing. The juicy saga bears all the hallmarks of a Hollywood movie, with the dynasty beset by inheritance battles and family feuds.

Read on to discover the secrets of Françoise and her family and her path to becoming the world's richest woman. 

All dollar amounts in US dollars.