This Norwegian Billionaire Salmon Heir Won the Met Gala

With all the audacious outfits on display at the Met Gala, it can be difficult to catch the eye. But one man leapt out from the crowd in a salmon-colored bodysuit with a huge flowing train: Meet Gustav Magnar Witzøe, the Norwegian billionaire heir to a salmon fishing empire.

The 31-year-old model, who commands an estimated $3.9 billion fortune, made quite a splash among fashionistas with his debut at the event in 2023 and is once again making best-dressed lists with his dramatic look this year. “You don’t say no when you’re invited by the Met Gala,” he said in a statement before the glamorous get-together in New York on Monday. “I’m a bit more interested in fashion than average and when Versace says they want to dress me up, I think it’s fun.”

He wasn’t the only person who thought his appearance at the event was fun. “Idk who this man is, all I know is he is now the standard for all men, if you’re not dressed like this don’t even approach me #MetGala,” one X user captioned a picture of Witzøe. Another said he resembled the mythical warrior Achilles, while a third wrote simply: “His bejeweled abs are killing me though.”

Witzøe became one of the youngest billionaires in the world when, at the age of 18, his father made him the main shareholder in SalMar—the company Gustav Sr. founded in 1991—which is now the world’s second-largest salmon farming business.

Despite being a billionaire investor, philanthropist, and model, Witzøe makes the outrageous claim that he is, in fact, a regular dude. “I’m a normal guy, who likes football, likes working out, who parties every now and again, likes hanging out with friends,” he previously told The Telegraph (which noted that he is of course not even “remotely a normal guy.”

He attributed his average-joe personality to having grown up in Frøya, a small island off the coast of Norway, without the fabulous riches which have made him famous in his homeland. “I’m grateful I grew up in the way I did,” Witzøe said. “Maybe it would have been different if I’d grown up with money, but since we didn’t when I was a kid, I’m very happy about that. It was just a normal, down-to-earth family, and I think those are values I’ll take with me.”

Gilbert Flores/Getty Images

After working on salmon farms for two years after school, Witzøe more recently started investment fund Wiski Capital and has signed with modeling agencies including Idol Looks and Next Models Worldwide. His Instagram account is now a cavalcade of elegant fashion shots and scenes from a luxurious life of travel and expensive cars.

That said, driving has previously gotten him into trouble. At 19, Witzøe spent two weeks in jail for driving at around 180 kilometers per hour in a 60 kph zone. He told the Telegraph he doesn’t try and hide from what he did, saying “the law is the same for everyone, you have to take the punishment.”