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He's a member of the richest family in America.
By Alison Cerri — Written on Apr 22, 2020
Rumors of Kelly Rohrbach’s relationship status came out of unusual circumstances when an author’s 2019 series of tweets were sent out to the internet while on a train in Switzerland last March.
Cat Marnell, an author and producer, happened to be on a train from Chur to Zermatt. A few seats away was none other than Steuart Walton, 39, the then-boyfriend of Baywatch star Kelly Rohrbach.
The Twitter thread has since been deleted, but Marnell was not shy about sharing the details of the conversations she overheard. She was “listening to him call fiancé Kelly Rohrbach” and talk wedding details with her, their wedding planner, and his lawyer.
After he called her, Marnell listened to Walton “b***h out... their wedding planner. Actual quote: ‘A $20K sandcastle is not required to have a good time.’” More wedding details Marnell overheard included the location — the Bahamas — and budget of the wedding, along with legal matters.
“They’re getting married on Harbor [sic] Island and the budget for the wedding is $1 to $1.5 million,” Marnell wrote in a tweet. “He also called his lawyer … and worked on his prenup or life insurance policy. ‘I don’t want to incentivize my death.’”
Rohrbach, 30, and Walton began dating early in 2017. They were first photographed together in November 2016, smiling and holding hands during a hike in Los Angeles. Rohrbach had been tied to Leonardo DiCaprio in 2015. They dated for seven months, from June 2015 to January 2016.
Just a few months after Marnell's tweets, the couple officially tied the knot! And now, Walton can also add a new job to his resume. He has recently been named the chair of the Arkansas Economic Recovery Task Force.
Who is Steuart Walton, Kelly Rohrbach’s husband?
Given Walton’s background, the wedding’s reported budget is not so far-fetched.
Walton is heir to the Walmart throne.
Cash is not a problem for Walton. He is the grandson of Walmart founder, Sam Walton. In 2016, Forbes evaluated his net worth at $34.9 million.
When founder Sam Walton passed away from cancer in 1992, he willed more than $100 billion to his heirs. The Walton family is the richest family in America: as of 2019, their estimated combined net worth was $190.5 billion.
Walton previously worked in Walmart’s mergers and acquisitions division. He became a Director of Walmart Inc. on Jun. 3, 2016. While he has been involved with the company for years, he has also had his own career outside of the massive family business.
He has worked in law firms from Europe to South America.
Walton attended the University of Colorado Boulder and graduated with a degree in business administration. Afterward, he moved on to Georgetown University Law Center and earned a law degree.
He started out with experience in politics, working for the office of former US Senator Peter Fitzgerald in 2004, before starting law school. While at Georgetown, he worked on commercial law issues for a law firm in Santiago, Chile.
After he graduated, Walton was an associate at Allen & Overy, LLP in London for three years, from 2007 to 2010.
He has also founded his own companies.
After his time working for law firms, Walton briefly joined up with Walmart again in London at the company’s Carnaby Street office. He left in 2013 to found Game Composites. The company designs and builds small composite aircraft.
This ties in with his love of flying — he’s also a pilot! He served as the company’s CEO from February 2013 to November 2017.
Walton stepped down shortly after founding RZC Investments, a private equity firm along with his brother, Tom Walton. They purchased the British upmarket cycling brand Rapha in 2017 for £200 million, or $225 million.
Steuart said of Rapha, “Rapha represents the very best in the world of cycling. Our investment demonstrates our enthusiasm for its quality products, amazing community of cyclists and customers and its strong future. Rapha’s strategic vision has set the company on a path of tremendous growth and opportunity.”
They also invested in Allied Cycle Works, a small road-bike maker.
He’s a mountain biking enthusiast.
The investment into a cycling company makes sense for Walton and his brother, as they love to mountain bike. The brothers reportedly are "both cycling nuts, and they're trying to do for mountain biking what the family business did for retailing: change everything."
Through the Walton Family Foundation, he and his family gave $15 million to establish the Razorback Regional Greenway in 2015.
Walton has a specific focus on his hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas, and turning it into a biking city. He helped it become the host city for the 2016 International Mountain Bicycling Association World Summit.
His philanthropic efforts also extend into arts, history and culture.
Walton is a member of the boards of directors for the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
He and his brother Tom worked with the Crystal Bridges Museum to renovate and transform a former Kraft cheese plant in Bentonville into exhibit space for contemporary art, music, theater and film called “The Momentary.”
Last year, he purchased a $14 million home in Malibu.
Walton may do a lot of philanthropic work, but still has a taste for the finer things. He purchased a treehouse-like property in Point Dume last year.
The house was previously owned by Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber. Public records show that the house is 3,651 square feet; it was built in 1958 and has three bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms.
Walton and Rohrbach got married sometime last summer.
The couple made things official sometime last summer in possible late May or early June. There aren't a whole lot of details about the private nuptials, but sources claim that the couple's big day happened in Florida. They were also seen out wearing their wedding rings.
Walton has a new title.
The Walmart heir is still doing well in his professional life, too. He was just named the chair of the Arkansas Economic Recovery Task Force. The task force will include representatives from many different industries and will have a total of 27 members.
Governor Asa Hutchinson said that they will be responsible for coming up with ways on how to restore the state's economy and in a way that will bring back confidence to its residents while also adhering to public health requirements.
Hutchinson is targeting May 4 as the date to reopen the state's economy and the task force will be meeting sometime this week.
As to why the governor chose Walton to be the chair, Hutchinson said, “I believe he’s the perfect leader for this task force because he’s engaged in the hospitality industry, his family, of course, is in the retail industry, and he is engaged in philanthropy across the state of Arkansas.”
Alison Cerri is a writer who covers astrology, pop culture and relationship topics.
Editor's Note: This article was originally posted on March 20, 2019 and was updated with the latest information.