Michele Ferrero, the patriarch of the eponymous Italian candy maker known for its Nutella hazelnut spread and toy-filled Kinder eggs, died on Saturday in Monte Carlo, Monaco, The Associated Press reported. He was 89.

Ferrero turned the Piemonte chocolate factory founded by his father, Pietro, into a dominant business in the global candy market. He took over the company's reins in 1949 and was instrumental in the development of some of its most famous products.

He developed Kinder chocolates in 1968, Tic Tacs a year later and Ferrero Rocher in 1982. Ferrero Rocher chocolates were soon sold all across in Europe and in 1985 expanded their success to the United States, according to the company.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella said Ferrero was a leader of Italian industry and "always ahead of his time." In 1971, Ferrero had been knighted Cavaliere del Lavoro, the company noted in a statement, and in 2005 Italy bestowed on him its highest recognition.

"Ferrero was for many years a champion of Italian business, always succeeding in keeping up with the times thanks to innovative products and his hard work and reserved (nature)," the president wrote. "Italians remember him with gratitude, also for his work supporting and promoting culture."

Ferrero's net worth was estimated as $23.4 billion, making him the richest man in Italy and "the richest candyman on the planet," the Guardian reported. Many Italians saw him as a hardworking businessman who shunned the limelight and commanded great respect at home and abroad.

While Nutella, the Ferrero factory's most successful -- and arguably most famous -- product, was invented by his father, Michele Ferrero is credited with adding vegetable oil to his Pietro's recipe, making the hazelnut chocolate spreadable, the Telegraph reported.

He also put the product into the now-iconic glass jars and invented the name "Nutella" when he began selling the item in the United Kingdom in 1964.

By 1997, Ferrero handed over the company leadership to his two sons, Pietro and Giovanni. Pietro died in 2011 of a cardiac arrest, leaving Giovanni the sole chief executive. Michele Ferrero is survived by his wife, Maria Franca, and Giovanni.