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CONTENTS:feb09 16/02/2009 09:03 Page 13
CONTENTS FEATURES
29 High Partnership 48 Private Islands for Purchase 96 Beverly Both Ways: The New SLS 157 Top 10: Car Racing
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CONTENTS:feb09 13/02/2009 14:09 Page 15
CONTENTS
42 Joy and ParmigianitĂ
PEOPLE
50 Caviar Dreams 61 One Step Beyond 88 Perfect by Design 107 Motive-ated Woman 123 One of a Kind 134 Walking On Air
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CONTENTS:feb09 16/02/2009 09:04 Page 17
CONTENTS FASHION & LUXE
34 Business Essentials 87 Perfection in Motion 113 Business and Pleasure in Miami 142 Checking In with Albert Herrera
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CONTENTS:feb09 16/02/2009 09:04 Page 19
CONTENTS TRAVEL
66 36 Hours 71 What Dreams May Come 83 What’s Hot Now: Miami 148 South of the Border
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ED NOTE 100TCUS8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:17 Page 22
The Editor’s Note
I
wish you a belated welcome to 2009, with a hope
that everyone has a prosperous, healthy, and joyous new year. To say it has been difficult to keep tabs on everything going on across the global landscape would be a tremendous understate-
ment. It has been difficult to keep a straight head with the constant barrage of financial misery that most media outlets have adopted as their de facto faces, and I have found it necessary to not push aside the things that make us smile. If not for family, friends, pleasures and indulgences, what else is there to help us continue as bon vivants in the sea of negativity? And please, do one thing for me. Do not let any newspaper, magazine, television talking head, or agenda-trotting blogger make you feel guilty about spending and enjoying the things that you have become accustomed to. Giving is always good, but within that, even when others may be facing strife, we still need to give to ourselves – and now it’s a national imperative. Now more than ever, it is necessary to praise people, places, and things that embrace the classic spirit of luxury, decadence, and good taste. They exist not to be shown off or put on display, but for the people that enjoy them, and for the places that they make better. With that said, we revisit two of America’s most famous playgrounds, Miami, and Los Angeles. Miami has been a haven for the fun-loving since the days when Jackie Gleason ruled the scene, and it continues to provide those who grace its white sand beaches every Winter season with abundant choices. Most notably, the refurbished Fontainebleau Hotel. This grand classic has under-
We also take a look at one of the most luxurious safari lodges in South
gone a transformation that puts it right back in its rightful place as a focal
Africa, the prince of the first family of caviar, and visit with Mr. Julien
point of fun in the sunny city. We also take a look at some of the newer
Tornare, President of Vacheron Constantin North America. Each of these
properties, such as the New York transplant Gansevoort South, and soon
places and people remind us that it is okay to enjoy and spend in the face
to open W. Each provides its own personality, and distinct flavor, but there
of adversity, as long as it is done with our own better interests in mind, and
is one common thread – guest enjoyment. When it is all said and done,
not to prove a point. But of course, I wouldn’t expect anything less from our
that is all we can ask for.
valuable readers. I hope you enjoy the issue, and look forward to providing
Los Angeles is the second US destination highlighted in this 100Thousand Club edition, and again we are looking through the prism of a new
you enjoyment throughout the rest of the year. Salutations,
hotel, SLS at Beverly Hills, in partnership with Starwood. Sam Nazarian (SBE founder) and Philippe Starck (global designer and trendsetter) have collaborated to create a place that blends the nostalgia of old Hollywood with the current demands and requisites of today’s global traveller. I had the opportunity to view the property with both men before its opening, and you will not be disappointed.
Harlan Davis, Editor-in-Chief
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CONTRIBUTORS:feb09 13/02/2009 14:15 Page 24
CONTR IBU T ORS Kate Winick A lifelong interest in travel, fashion, and luxury goods, combined with a passion for writing and interviewing, brought Kate to the 100 Thousand Club to cover the best of the best for all three editions of the magazine. She has also written for Trump Magazine, Popular Mechanics, and other lifestyle publications.
Natalie Brandweiner Though Natalie began her career as a business writer, interviewing executives from a variety of industries, and still contributes to several business magazines, her understanding of the needs and desires of high-profile people give her unique insight into creating maps, lists, and feature stories that will grab her reader’s attention.
Josh Sailor After working in production for the better part of his professional career, Josh eventually caved into his passion for photography, and hasn’t looked back since. Based in New York, his portfolio is as diverse as his experiences, and he creates fabulous shots of people, installations, and beautiful places around the world.
Ekaterina Petitjean Growing up in Russia, Katya has a worldly perspective that is invaluable to the 100Thousand Club’s global perspective. Her work in a variety of areas keeps the magazine on the cutting edge in terms of fashion, events, people, and places.
Norimichi Inoguchi Norimichi is a skilled photographer who focuses on images using movement and water. He is intrigued by the interaction of water and fashion, and incorporates his eye for movement into unique still-lifes. He holds a BFA in photography and was first in his class at the International Center of Photography.
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CREDITS:feb09 17/02/2009 09:07 Page 26
T H O U S A N D
C L U B
Editorial/Executive Chairman/Publisher SPENCER GREEN CEO JAMES CRAVEN Editorial Director ADAM BURNS Editor-in-Chief HARLAN DAVIS Associate Editor KATE WINICK Assistant Editor CHARLOTTE KEENAN Online Editor JANA GRUNE Assistant to the Editor SVETANA ARAPOVA Creative Director ANDREW HOBSON Design Director JAMES WEST Senior Designers ZOE BRAZIL, SARAH WILMOTT Contributing Writers LESLIE KNUDSON, JULIA PUPPE, HUW THOMAS, BEN THOMPSON Contributing Photographers JP GREENWOOD, NORIMICHI INOGUCHI, JOSH SAILOR Designers ELISÉ GILBERT, MICHAEL HALL, CRYSTAL MATHER, CLIFF NEWMAN
Advertising, Marketing, and Client Services T: 212.920.8181 Executive Director: ELIZABETH STUART Account Executives SOPHIA IOANNIDIS, LYNN O'SHAUGHNESSY, KARILEY MORE, SARA SHAHBAZIAN, JENNA STARK, JESSICA LANZARONE Finance Director: JAMIE CANTILLON Director of HR and Personnel: OWEN WILSON Production Manager: ROBERT SIMMS Production Coordinator: HANNAH DUFFIE Circulation Manager: SEAN RICHARDS Subscription Enquiries T: +1 212.920.8181 www.100thousandclub.com General Enquiries info@100thousandclub.com Letters to the Editor letters@100thousandclub.com
Printer Emirates Printing Press L.L.C. P.O. Box 5106, Dubai, United Arab Emirates T: +9714 3475550. E: eppdubai@emirates.net.ae www.eppdubai.com 100 Thousand Club (Vol. 3, Issue 1, Q1 2009) is published four times a year by GDS Publishing. All rights reserved. GDS Publishing, Inc. 33 Whitehall Street, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10004, USA. Legal Information The advertising and articles appearing within this publication reflect the opinions and attitudes of their respective authors and not necessarily those of the publisher or editors. We are not to be held accountable for unsolicited manuscripts, transparencies or photographs. All material within this magazine is © 2009 100Thousand Club. Head Office GDS International Queen Square House, 18-21 Queen Square, Bristol, BS1 4NH, UK. T: +44 117 921 4000. F: +44 117 926 7444. E: info@gdsinternational.com
T H O U S A N D
C L U B
www.100thousandclub.com
DIAMOND SPONSOR
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FRANK NUOVO:10dec
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Page 29
Frank Nuovo is holding court in Vertu’s bouti! que in New York City’s renowned Plaza Hotel,
F High which after a redesign is now home to a select number of luxury shops. The look of the store is
sleek without being overly futuristic, and show! cases the phones like jewels. The lead designer
of Vertu phones, he has worked for the company since 1998; prior to that he was the lead desig!
ner at Nokia for much of the ‘90s, influencing mobile phone style and functionality forever
more. He is here to introduce the latest from the ultra!high!end company, a hot new collaboration
with Ferrari that puts the power and style of the Italian icon into the palm of your hand.
partnership
FRANK NUOVO:10dec
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How did the idea for the Ferrari collabora! tion come about? At Vertu, the original Ascent line was in! spired by fast European sports cars (there’s a spot for a Ferrari waiting in my garage, next to a beautifully restored ’52 Bentley) and this phone in particular is tied to my roots and dre! ams of Italy, where my family is from. It’s not just sexy and beautiful cars; it’s a legacy of per! formance. What was the design process like? I took time to sit down with Ferrato Coco, lead designer of Ferrari, to get to know the heart and soul of Ferrari. It’s a racecar, it’s a perfor! mance car, it’s not for polishing little bits of chrome. I actually carved the cavalito myself, out
What we did for the stores was left to an
brand like Ferrari would want to work with us,
of one solid piece—it’s actually coming out thro!
agency, which I communicated with at all stages
and this was exactly the kind of project I envi!
ugh the case, it’s not glued on.
of the process. I will be very involved in the re!
sioned. I feel that I brought ease of use and pop
newal of the stores, but the continuity in design
culture to the phone—I brought fashion to tech.
How much of the focus is on design and how much of it is on functionality?
has always been there. The logo was my first project. With the de!
Do you see more partnerships like this in
In general, design is driven by the needs of
sign of the Vertu, the V logo happened first.
the phone. With Vertu, we’ve been very speci!
The look was based on outstretched arms, it
The Boucheron alignment is a very good
fic—this is a phone—but that will evolve over
didn’t stand for anything. Then we found the
one, but its very ‘them’ in the sense that the
time. We want to apply more proven technolo!
name, which we wanted to be something short,
phones are bejeweled in their style and they use
gies that are easy to use. I’ve been in the unique
and easy to remember. When we found out what
the phone as a canvas for their expression.
position of having been able to handhold the
it meant [“vertu” is French for “quality”] it was
We’re very much a part of the watch industry,
evolution of mobile communications throughout
just serendipity.
really—we’re sold in watch and jewelry stores.
How did this project fit into your vision of
to be done carefully so it benefits both of us.
Vertu as a company?
There are some nicer premium fashion phones
Alignments such as Ferrari are rare; it has
the years. How do you see your role as a designer evol!
the future?
ving? Are you involved in designing the re!
Although I came from a mass!market brand,
tail stores or do you focus on other aspects?
I dreamed of a project that was so unique, a
but they’re not really luxury, there is nothing like these. !
Vertu continues as a hallmark of high design and functionality for luxury phones
WolfAppliances.indd 31
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Mamann.indd 32
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A
new
era
in
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Private
Residence
Club
ownership
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…
Welcome
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and
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In this turbulent economy, you need a reliable and experienced partner in México to help guide you through your options. You need
someone
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To seize this opportunity today and to take advantage of this exclusive
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Mamann.indd 33
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PRODUCTS US8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:23 Page 34
Business Essentials
PRODUCTS US8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:24 Page 35
CARRYING ON For a new twist on an old favorite, Samsonite collaborated with designer Alexander McQueen to revamp their perenially popular luggage staples with an edgy twist. While the textures, colors, and shapes are all-new, the indestructible quality that Samsonite owners depend on remains the same, making this a smart bet for stylish luggage for years to come.
PRODUCTS US8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:24 Page 36
Business Essentials
FANCY FEET Founded in 1829 in London, John Lobb has been bootmaker to the rich, famous, royal, and stylish since the Edwardian era. Each handmade shoe is a work of art, requiring several skilled craftsmen to build them from start to finish. Although one pair will last a lifetime, we bet that you won’t wait that long before going back for more.
PRODUCTS US8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:24 Page 37
BULLISH BAUBLES Jac Zagoory’s handcrafted designs make a personal statement like no other desk accessory. We like the Bull stapler and remover, but the range of pen rests, card holders, and other functional items express a wide range of personality.
PRODUCTS US8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:25 Page 38
Business Essentials
PRODUCTS US8:feb09 13/02/2009 14:25 Page 39
SUIT YOURSELF The first weapon in a man’s style arsenal is his shirt—shouldn’t something you wear every day make you look as good as possible? That is the goal of Turnbull and Asser, who for more than 100 years has sworn by personal service and custom tailoring as the hallmarks of every shirt they produce, from readymade to bespoke.
THE LUXURY YOU DESERVE...
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Private Island 100TCUS8:10jan
13/2/09
14:53
Page 48
Private Islands
Pierre Island, Bahamas As offered by Vladi Private Islands USD 8,000,000 Situated near Harbour Island, just north of Eleuthera, the island hosts breathtaking 360-degree views of Three Islands Bay, the Atlantic Ocean and Harbour Island. Pierre Island itself is a mere 15 minutes from Harbour Island, but with 16 acres of rich greenery, exotic wildlife and over 150 coconut trees, there will be little desire to leave this private space. Located on the island is a main house and guesthouse, and with a substantial dock to be found on the south side, it provides you with an exclusive yet accessible retreat.
Coroa dos Ovos Island, Brazil As offered on www.privateislandsonline.com USD 8,000,0000 Teeming with tropical plantation and an exquisite collection of rare and exotic wildlife, this island exemplifies all that is exclusive. Coroa dos Ovos, or otherwise known as the Island of Cambridgeton, is to be found in the Amazonian part of the Maranhao State in Brazil, and hosts an extraordinary 12 miles of luscious, white sand beaches. The island boasts an exquisite selection of views no matter which direction you are facing, be it the continent or the Atlantic Ocean. With such a picturesque setting, the trip connecting the island with the nearest city, Guimaraesis, is a dream.
Private Island 100TCUS8:10jan
13/2/09
14:54
Page 49
Muandhhuvaa Island, Maldives
Narara Island, Fiji
As offered by Vladi Private Islands
As offered by Vladi Private Islands
USD 8,500,000
Price upon request
If privacy is your top priority for island buying, Muandhhuvaa Island is the
One of the many private islands located within Fiji’s premier
perfect match. Located amidst a group of uninhabited islands, it provides
island resort localities, Narara Island is situated off the south-
11.36 acres of peace and tranquillity from all civilisations. Muandhhuvaa it-
ern coast of Naviti, a larger island within the same group. In-
self is a roundish island in a square-shaped lagoon, accessible via a natural
corporated within the 112.69 acres of land are three very
entrance. However, with the nearest airport only 58km away, there is al-
private and tranquil beaches, giving you the perfect setting in
ways the option to retreat to the Maldives to appease any desire of return-
which to soak in the modest average island temperature of
ing to a faster pace of living.
25-27 °C. The island is accessible via helicopter, seaplane or boat and Nadi International Airport is just a scenic 15-20 minute flight to the island. The magnificence of the island is to be found in its expanses of space, making even the claustrophobic spoilt for choice.
St Thomas Island, Greece As offered on www.privateislandsonline.com EUR €15,000,000 St Thomas Island is a recent addition to the island market and is not predicted to stay so for long. Part of the Diapori chain in the Saronicas Gulf, Greece, an area synonymous with mythological beauty and natural serenity, the 300-acre island proves to be one of the most attractive islands in the world. It is accessible from Corinth by water taxi and is just 40 minutes from busy Athens, prefect for an exclusive retreat. If a slice of tradition is what you’re looking for, the near town of Korfos, a quiet resort village, provides a taste of Greece from the glistening coast.
PETROSSIAN US:feb09 13/02/2009 14:21 Page 50
W Caviar: Taste Luxury everywhere
derstand why you have to work your way up— ‘My dad owns the company, why do I have to do this? Blah blah blah’—but now I do. When I see someone not doing the stickers just right, or when they say we can’t get something in that we need, I say, I know we can, because I have done it a million times. It gives me a big advantage.” His other advantage is the lineage of service that he was raised in, and when he talks about his work, he has a presence and a command far beyond his years. “The history is very heavy, the background is very heavy. My
When your name is synonymous with a brand
grandfather started the company in 1920 and
that embodies class, decadence, and luxury,
my father still runs it. My father is very strict,
and you’ve been perfecting your palate and
and my mother is very beautiful, but she
your ability to detect the nuances of caviar
trained me for years too, how to work in the
since you were old enough to walk, is there any
boutique and talk to people. She taught me
chance you would become an accountant?
that you can talk to everyone—everyone is just
“No, not really,” laughs Alexandre Petrossian,
a person, two legs, two arms, two eyes, a nose,
whose degree may be in numbers but whose
whether they are a businessman or a famous
heart has always been in the family business,
actor, everyone is a person. When you feel
Petrossian caviar. “I was always in love with
comfortable around them, they will feel com-
the company. I started working when I was
fortable around you. And in this case, you have
about ten or twelve, doing everything from putting stickers on the tins to taking deliveries— we’ve all sliced salmon, packed cans, everything—and put so many stickers on, the skin on your fingers comes off!” The handsome young scion of this legendary family, just 26 years old, sits comfortably in his pinstriped suit in a quiet corner table of the Art Deco palace that is Petrossian in New York, but he takes seriously the responsibility of maintaining and growing the business. “When you’re a kid, you don’t un-
50
100 Thousand Club
Interview by Kate Winick
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PETROSSIAN US:feb09 13/02/2009 14:21 Page 54
the knowledge, you can teach—usually they
where!’” says Alexandre. They carefully posi-
The wholesale operation began in the
are the ones who everyone wants to learn from,
tioned their product, attending gourmet food
basement of the retail store, then grew into a
so now they start watching and learn.”
shows, introducing their caviar, which was met
small factory, and finally moved into a large,
The story of how Melkoum and Mouchegh
with an initially cold reception, until Cesár
new factory outside of Paris. “We didn’t want to
Petrossian brought caviar to Western Europe
Ritz, the proprietor of the Ritz in Paris, was
lose our old ways, though. So many companies,
is a tale of perseverance, hard work, and very
convinced to offer caviar at his hotel. It caught
they get a shiny new factory, they want to be in
savvy marketing. When the Armenian broth-
on quickly after that, and they carefully main-
the new place to make things more efficient,
ers arrived in Paris in 1920 as a part of a larger
tained control of their product to insure its suc-
do things differently—we do what we do with
exodus after the Bolshvik Revolution, they dis-
cess. “They had to introduce it as a luxury
love, because each time we sell something, it
covered that caviar, long a part of the Russian
product, and then a very exclusive luxury
has our name on it. It’s not about making it
diet, had no presence in France. “They used
product, until finally they created it as the ul-
more efficient. It’s wonderful to see someone
to serve sturgeon, but throw the caviar into an-
timate luxury product,” says Alexandre, ex-
throw a piece of wood in the smoker, a little
imal feed. One fisherman they spoke to, he
plaining the dramatic evolution of their
metal thing, you know, an actual smoker? So
said, ‘I hate caviar! Always caviar, every-
success in just a few generations.
many places use these big things, with pipes
PETROSSIAN US:feb09 13/02/2009 14:21 Page 55
full of smoke to flavor the fish—that is not how
ican caviar, for instance, it comes in from
avoid pushing any cosmetic standards for their
we do it, and yet we produce a very consistent
Sacramento. From some, we know it has to be
product, because they know, after years in the
product.”
sold faster, they are all kept between three and
business, that things change. They retain their
Consistency in quality is the trick in
six months, but maybe this one, we taste and
role as authorities; they know when caviar is
caviar, and the Petrossians have perfected
we know it has to be just three. After that, we
good and when it is not, and to promote an ar-
their methods, though like all good tradesmen,
can do a really nice selection, not just based on
tificial standard of judging quality disregards
Alexandre is careful to keep his secrets. “With
‘Oh, this one has big, beautiful eggs,’ because
the connoisseurship of their house. This is the
caviar, it’s like taking care of a little, little
who knows, maybe in five years, all the eggs
only moment when Alexandre’s insistence that
baby. It arrives in a big tin, a 1.8 kilo tin. We
will be small but they will still be delicious.”
they are “just fishermen” seems remotely pos-
have to open it, try it, because we want to sell
This is a point he returns to several times,
sible—that at the heart of this gilded temple
it at its peak, to make sure there will be no bit-
and it is an almost unconscious recognition of
to luxury is the fisherman’s intuitive under-
terness, just a clean seafood taste. We turn the
the power their brand has to significantly
standing of the flux of nature—that the sea
tin to cycle the oil, to mix it and keep the taste
change the caviar market. The influence of the
provides its bounty as it chooses, not as we
consistent throughout the tin. With our Amer-
Petrossian family in caviar is such that they
would have it.
PETROSSIAN US:feb09 13/02/2009 14:21 Page 56
Alexandre’s title is Vice President, “but I
don’t just have one person say ‘hey, this is my
up, he’ll call and tell me ‘it’s fine, we can fix it
don’t like saying that, because everyone thinks
idea,’ and then that’s what we do. We like to
this way, don’t worry.’”
they know what that means. I like ‘caviar spe-
suck out the creativity and share it with every-
His father’s presence in the company is
cialist.’ Half the day I am downtown at our fa-
one.” The collaborative process is not just pro-
still the dominant one, and while he has ceded
cility there, trying caviar—it’s a good job! I try
fessional, which would be a nearly impossible
his son to New York, Armen Petrossian is
to be at the restaurant for at least lunch or din-
feat in such a tight-knit group. “I’m on the
working hard to ensure his company’s future.
ner, so people can see its not just a name, and
phone with my dad every day just to check in,
There are strong feelings surrounding the over-
I try to be here at least a couple of nights a
even if it’s nothing in particular going on. It’s
fishing of beluga and other sturgeon to supply
week as well. The really good thing about
very open, I know his cell is always on and I
the world’s caviar, and the elder Mr. Petrossian
working here is that we work as a team. We
can call him at any time, even if I wake him
has spent a great deal of time in Russia work-
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ing for his cause. “I have not personally been to Russia,” says Alexandre, “but my father goes often. There is no Russian caviar legally in the United States right now, and it is a big issue for us. Each time you buy a tin of caviar a percentage goes back to the hatchery—so by banning the sale of it, you’re not saving the fish, you’re killing it. And you’ll never control the black market,” where tins of caviar, while not cheap, can go for significantly less than their legitimate counterparts. “My father advocates control and regulation of sturgeon fishing in all the Caspian Sea countries—he advocates for responsibility. He is fighting to have baby sturgeons put back in the sea and protected so they can grow. Our goal is not to take all the fish; it’s to grow the stock so that we can sell it for a long time without affecting the population. He’s founded so many groups to overlap and protect each other, to form a little bubble around the fish. He was just given an award, the Legion d’Honneur, for his work. We consider ourselves fisherman—we sell fish, after all.”
O
ne of the other priorities in re-
cent years, since the ban on beluga, has been cultivating other sources of caviar. Petrossian has
been promoting its excellent Iranian caviar, as
“I was always in love with the company. I started working when I was about ten or twelve, doing everything from putting stickers on the tins to taking deliveries” Alexandre Petrossian
well as building the market for farmed caviar, beginning with a partnership with Sterling Farms in California about ten years ago. “We really began the trend of farm-raised; before that no one would touch it. The people there are very good at raising the fish and taking care of them, and taking the caviar out is our game. We share our knowledge, and since it began, we’ve really created a great thing.” Alexandre’s focus is always on building and maintaining their customer base as well as their product, and he is constantly aware of who is coming and going. The clientele is as upscale as ever (as we sat, the manager recounted an afternoon earlier in the week when two ladies
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in their 80s made a lunch out of two tins and a
trict? Since arriving in New York in 2004,
everyone oohs and aahs and you are the best
bottle of vodka, for an $8,000 check) and
speaking no English, he’s developed a network
host in the world. It’s funny to see how people
Alexandre remarked that the customer is ac-
of friends through work and play that keep him
react to a tin of caviar than how they react to
tually getting younger. “We’ll never say no to
in New York nearly full-time, with short trips to
something you spent half a day cooking, which
someone who wants to try it; if you are buying
Paris to indulge his passions for custom shoes
is gone in a second.” He’s committed more
caviar, you are always welcome to sample from
and watches. As he watches his cooks work
than ever to the quality of his caviar, and feels
your tin. There are those who grew up with our
right next to his office all day, he’s developed
that it has primed him to experience all sorts of
caviar, who had it every Christmas or New Years—it’s a tradition, and they usually buy the same kind their parents bought. Then there are the 30 and 40 year olds who have good jobs, and if you really want to buy something expensive, you will buy caviar. For newer customers, farm-raised is easier to enjoy, it’s not as robust—a more accessible taste. It’s also
“It took me at least 15 years, in a private course with my dad to learn everything. He taught me the secrets, the temperatures—I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you”
new things. “It took me at least 15 years, in a private course with my dad to learn everything,” he says, laughing. “He taught me the secrets, the temperatures—I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you. It was a gift he gave me, a gift before he sent me to the United States. But it’s also in the blood, I think; I have a good palate. I had parents who forced us to
less expensive, and allows you to develop an
an interest in developing his knowledge of the
try things, they didn’t let us be picky. ‘Don’t
appreciation. The more you eat it, the more
restaurant beyond the front of the house, and
die without knowing what it tastes like,’ they
you’ll like it.”
plans to take classes at the French Culinary
would say.” And with the love and attention
So what is next for this young man, who di-
Institute as well as in his own kitchen. But he
Alexandre puts into creating his caviar, he en-
vides his time between his restaurant, his Soho
knows better than anyone that he’s already got
sures that many parents will be passing his
apartment, and his friends downtown in Man-
the greatest culinary trick of all up his sleeve,
legacy onto their children with that same in-
hattan’s chic, international Meatpacking Dis-
half-joking that, “if you put out a tin of caviar,
sistence for years to come. n
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One Step Beyond “Welcome to a parallel universe.”
T
hose words appeared at the end of Leonardo DiCaprio’s glam-action movie “The Beach,” and they inspired Emmanuel Burgio to invoke the theme of the film in the name of
his company, Blue Parallel: a travel concierge service that takes you beyond the realm of the familiar into a new world. But this isn’t a Hollywood movie; this is the dream come to life. Born in Holland to an Austrian mother and an Ital-
there to see the sights, in the style to which they were accustomed, and which he knew how to provide.
ian and French father who had been raised in Tunisia,
The company began in 2002 based out of the United States, arranging weekend
Emmanuel was born with an international perspective.
escapes to Machu Picchu, and is now a full-service bespoke travel company, arranging
His family moved to Cannes when he was 10 where
trips throughout Latin America that are tailored to the taste of each individual guest.
he grew up in the whirl of southern France, and then
From eco-tourism to world heritage sites to extreme adventure trips, his service lets
to Washington D.C. when he was studying in London.
busy people see the world their way, balancing their interests with his local knowledge
Seeking the next step, he ended up working in the in-
to show his clients the hidden gems of the world, opening doors that are closed to
vestment banking division at Credit Suisse, where his
others. After starting the company, he returned to Peru, building relationships with
facility with languages and head for business made him
locals and expanding the company, which is currently based in Buenos Aires, Ar-
successful, but failed to stimulate his true interests. “I
gentina. The groundwork that he laid then still underlies the unique ability of Blue
felt that it was a time of my life to expand my mind…I
Parallel to combines adventure, exploration, and discovery with true luxury. As time
had an urge to take a year off, buy a backpack and just
went on, Emmanuel has been able to develop even more relationships, with local art-
travel and go with the flow. The idea was to go back.
ists, athletes and other figures that add a personal element to his tours. For example,
Banking was educating me, but not in the direction I
visitors who wish to take in a Brazilian soccer game, an exciting prospect in and of
wanted to go.” He left New York City for the world
itself, can watch the game and afterwards tour the Maracanã Stadium and meet the
beyond, and as he traveled, he experienced the wonders
team in the company of Marcelo Gonçalves Costa Lopes, a member of Brazil’s 1998
of the world. “There were places that really inspired
World Cup team.
me—the mountains of Patagonia, Mogadishu, Fraser
Blue Parallel’s resources extend far beyond sports, of course, to arts, entertain-
Island in Australia. I thought, people ought to see these
ment, shopping, and even politics. Emmanuel recalled a group of six couples that
things.” He found his time in South America particu-
decided to forego traditional vacations and do something different. Every year they
larly exciting, and decided to devote his time to bringing
go on an investment mission-cum-vacation, visiting somewhere new to learn about the
his former colleagues and other luxury travel customers
local economy and culture and seek out new business opportunities. On the trip Em-
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manuel arranged, the group visited Brazil, Argentina,
in the international press to a Travel Channel special on the “trip of a lifetime,” orga-
Uruguay, Chile, Peru, and Panama, meeting politicians,
nized for the network to show them what Blue Parallel could do. But perhaps the big-
business owners, and industry leaders and gaining a
gest testament to the ever-growing resources of the company is their collaboration with
greater understanding of business processes in the
businessman and photographer Robert Haas on his book, “Through the Eyes of the
region. They left with a much deeper perspective on the
Condor.” Done in collaboration with National Geographic, the book is a series of aerial
emerging markets and many contacts with which they
portraits of Latin America, the first of its kind to capture so much of the continent and
looked forward to doing business.
so many sights unique to the region.
S
Haas first encountered Blue Parallel in a magazine article. “He went to the den-
ome trips, of course, don’t go quite as smooth-
tist’s office, was sitting in the waiting room flipping through something, and then out of
ly—but the planning is always beneficial for
the blue called me as soon as he walked out.” Haas and National Geographic hired the
Blue Parallel as a young, growing business. “Say you wanted to go shopping,” posits Em-
manuel, “Blue Parallel can arrange for shops to stay open, antiques dealers to guide you, and recommend new places if you don’t find what you want. It’s a small world in Latin America,” he says, and his contacts have
I felt that it was a time of my life to expand my mind…I had an urge to take a year off, buy a backpack and just travel and go with the flow. The idea was to go back. Banking was educating me, but not in the direction I wanted to go.
company to manage all the logistical details involved in putting together the book, from booking hotels and meals in isolated locations, to researching restrictions for taking the windows and doors off the helicopter
only expanded since his very first assignment in the retail sector. “They came from Connecticut and gave us a list of the furnishings they were looking for, and we arranged a personal shopper to take them from store to store to meet with dealers and shopkeepers and make sure they got the best possible products.” The couple ended up furnishing nearly their entire house with antiques from their trip, proving the effectiveness of this approach. Sometimes, the process backfires, but Emmanuel takes this as further evidence that the help they provide is necessary for a certain kind of consumer. “I remember we had one guest, this tourist type, you know? Big Hawaiian shirt, silly sandals and shorts, and he said he wanted to buy some antiques,” he says, easily recalling the details. “He arrived on a Sunday, and nothing in Latin America is open on a Sunday, but we arranged for one of the best shops in Buenos Aires to be open, run by this older, conservative gentleman, who came in very early, wearing his lovely pressed suit. The guest showed up and was trying to bargain with him by telling him his products were of low quality, called them fakes, and this man was getting angrier and angrier, so insulted by his behavior, and finally threw him out of the store!” he says, laughing a little breathlessly. “The guest went on to have a nice trip, but some people just can’t arrange that kind of thing for themselves,” which is where Blue Parallel comes in. This personal attention has drawn attention to the company from all over the world, from numerous articles
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(“It’s different everywhere!” says Emmanuel) and the
to the Galapagos, but now people are seeing Quito has a lot to offer on its own. The
collaboration on the project lasted nearly two and a
Andes are beautiful, the horses, the mountains, the condors, they are all very much
half years. Emmanuel says he found the experience
worth seeing,” says Emmanuel, “Another area is the northwest of Argentina. Patagonia
“very intense but very rewarding—the culture of Latin
has great branding, but the northwest part wasn’t really on the map for travelers.”
America can be somewhat impermeable, it’s not easy to
While he says quite cheerfully, “I love Patagonia,” there are other regions Em-
manage on your own. Anticipation of the needs of the
manuel is excited about for various
high-end client is our specialty, and it’s hard to get that
reasons, from beautiful beaches to
quality of experience on your own. It’s our relationships
historical sites. The island of Fernando
and connections that allow us to do such unique things.”
de Naranja, “which I think is the best
The group worked so well together, and the final project
beach ever,” is located off the coast of
came out so spectacularly well, that Blue Parallel has
Brazil is a protected area, hosting only
agreed to bring their planning expertise to the next proj-
a few hundred guests a night to keep the island pristine. “Three of the top beaches in
ect, which is currently being shot in the Arctic Circle.
Brazil are located on that island, and the scuba, snorkeling, surfing, it’s all incredible.
I remember we had one guest, this tourist type, you know? Big Hawaiian shirt, silly sandals and shorts, and he said he wanted to buy some antiques
The main focus of the company is still in the ever-
It specializes in higher-end lodges, and it’s a really private and unique paradise.” He
expanding world of Latin America and South America,
also recently traveled to Guatemala, after getting several requests for more trips there,
even as their interests elsewhere expand. Their niche has
and was extremely excited by what he saw. “There are many native tribes still active
only deepened as more people who have visited the major
there and it lends a cultural depth to the experience; the ruins of Tikal are some of the
attractions start looking for more under the radar destina-
finest Mayan ruins left.”
tions that are just beginning to come into the spotlight. For instance, “people used to stop in Quito on the way
W
hen asked how he responds to requests from guests—he is the expert, after all—he replies simply that there are different types of travelers, all of whom his staff are trained to accommodate. “Some of them know what they want and have a good idea of what they’d
like to see, so we might just make a few suggestions to spice it up. Otherwise, looking at the season and dates of their trip, if they don’t have a good itinerary, we will work with them until they get what they want, even if it isn’t what they think they wanted.” The requests they get are not only in terms of dates and destinations; Emmanuel is positioned to see new trends in the luxury travel industry. One in particular that he’s noticed within his clientele is families traveling together, in multiple generations. “We run simultaneous programs, so the grandparents can go fly-fishing, while the parents go rafting, and the kids go horseback riding in the mountains.” In general, as many other travel experts have noted as well, people are asking to stay in smaller places and higher-end lodges, for more of a private home experience. “Overall, people are looking for their special experience, something different, a memory or a story to bring home,” he says. “We bring scholars into play, arranging dinners with experts, so you won’t just go see a tribal dance, you’ll have dinner with an anthropologist who can explain their culture, and you’ll see the nature all around you and then have a scientist explain the local ecology.” He helps his guests develop a deeper appreciation for what they’re seeing, so they gain not just another photo album, but a new context for their world. As the company looks to the future, he still feels his central mission, which has always been to connect people with places in a way that is really life changing, wherever in the world that may be. “I think my goal has never been to be the biggest, but to be the best at what we do. We develop on a progressive basis. Travelers want to go with us beyond South America, to expand on to different continents, and we do hope to eventually expand into a global presence. The vision for the company hasn’t changed, just the scope.” ■
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36 HOURS:
BERLIN
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Day One: Arrive at the Hotel Palace Berlin, one of the city’s most exceptional places to stay, indulge in a home away from home experience. Whether the reasoning for your stay be business or pleasure, the hotel boasts a vast array of rooms to suit every taste – from modern Deluxe-rooms to Oriental style décor to Laura Ashley style tastes, the expansive choice is certainly a reason to stay at Hotel Palace Berlin. For a heightened sense of luxury, treat yourself to a stay at one of the Hotel’s Senior Suites. With a separate dining area, sitting room and bathroom, the setting provides all you need for entertaining, whilst providing you with the perfect space in which to relax. The Presidential suite is the Hotel Palaces’ most luxurious stay. The 200sq metres of stylish decadence and advanced entertainment technology really give you that home away from home feel Hotel Palace prides itself on. A dining room, two bedrooms, and two bathrooms, hosting a whirlpool bath and marble décor, are inclusive within the suite to ensure the most indulgent of stays. Relax in the spacious living room, exemplary of the standard Hotel Palace believe to be necessary for luxury- a marble fireplace, subdued lighting and regal Old English furniture provide everything needed for the perfect hotel experience.
8pm: After your arrival, indulge in the hotel’s Michelin star rated Hugo Gourmet Restaurant, located within the property. Situated on the 14th floor, the restaurant provides 360 degree paramount views in a breathtaking Mediterranean setting. Haute cuisine is provided by chef Thomas Kammeier and the atmospheric setting of minimalist chic provides an experience just as delectable as the dishes. After dinner, head to the Marlene bar to finish your evening with the delights of a vast array of sumptuous cocktails and pleasant conversation. A popular place for Berlin’s high society and hotel visitors alike, you’ll be sure to find interesting characters with which to pass the night away.
Day Two: After indulging in the hotel’s vast array of delectable breakfast dishes, take a gentle stroll down Numberger Street to begin a day of historical exploration. A city teeming with beautiful monuments and significant landmarks, the city’s attractions prove to be a popular setting for film producers the world over. A brief five-minute walk from Hotel Palace will bring you to the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church- this famous landmark bearing historical bruises and serving as a symbol of the destruction of the war. Although little is now left of the building, the beauty of the crumbled steeple still seeps through the wall’s cracks into metropolitan 21st century Berlin.
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Continue the afternoon’s breathtaking views with a visit to the Perganom museum, located in Mitte Berlin. The museum is part of Museum Island, an island in the Spree river in the centre of the city and is surrounded by several other internationally renowned museums. Opened in 1930, the Perganom museum displays the many beautiful artefacts of Babylon, Uruk, Priene and Egypt- archaeological treasures excavated under German supervision. It is here you can taste the beauty of BC historicism, and really see the richness of German history prior to its significant world wars.
12pm: Head to Sasaya, Berlin’s notoriously appetizing sushi restaurant for some much needed lunch following the morning’s activities. Popular with both Berliners and Japanese, the setting provides a truly authentic experience- along with bench seats and a sushi bar there’s an area for floor sitting for those really wanting a Japanese cultural experience. Prepare to book an advanced table, as tales of the delectable Kaiten sushi leave crowds of hungry diners spilling onto the street outside.
3pm: Return to Hotel Palace Berlin for an afternoon of relaxation and rejuvenation in the luxurious Palace-SPA. A Mediterranean atmosphere of ambiance provides you with the prefect tranquillity to digest the mornings’ explorations and relax away from the business of Berlin’s metropolis. There are a wide range of treatments available
and with a choice of saunas, relaxation rooms, whirlpool and solarium, be prepared for absolute indulgence of well-being. For those with a desire of rejuvenation, the fitness area is fully equipped to meet such needs with the newest and most advanced technology in the field.
8pm: For a taste of authentic German cuisine, head to the long running establishment Florian for dinner. Situated in
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Charlottenburg,the menu is inspired by the German regions of Swabia and Bavaria and hosts a menu subject to change daily. After 11pm there is always a constant promise of marjoram and pork Nuremberg sausages on a bed of sauerkraut with a side of mustard and horseradish available. Florian really is the place to eat to ensure a truly German experience.
11pm: Renowned for its night life, Berlin is the epicentre for those night owls with a desire to ooze the last moments of the night away with delectable cocktails and trendy music. Recently developed into a trendy yet unique mix of nightclub and seventies style restaurant, Kurvenstar offers its customers a choice of international cuisine combined with a true Berlin party atmosphere with its choice of entertainment – from the latest hip hop vibes to funky house tunes by exclusive German DJ’s, its clientèle boasts to be a kaleidoscope of people, spanning a colourful spectrum of both young and old.
Depart 8am: Enjoy a final buffet breakfast at Hotel Palace Berlin before checking out. Berlin’s two international airports, Tegel and Schönefeld, provide flights to destinations the world over. So relax and soak up your last views of Berlin’s metropolitan skyline as you depart from this historical city.
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Working in perfect synergy, a pride of lions
human life interrupting the landscape is the
with fresh juice and hot towels who reinforce the
slowly meanders across the dirt road. Glowing
open-sided Range Rover waiting to take you to
feeling of care and attention. While the meal
gold and red in the late afternoon sun, the leader
the property. The leaders of this pride, Greg and
service is impeccable, the room maintenance is
of the pack surveys his family and begins his
Rianna Lederle, who supervise a staff whose
truly uncanny. It was almost comical to leave the
slow amble into the bush. He casually observes
presence manages to be warm and friendly while
villa for the main pool at the central lodge, turn
the group of females and cubs who travel in his
their work remains invisible – and pride is an
back for more sunscreen five minutes later, and
wake, and yawns as he surveys the bush. The
apt word in more ways than one. Several staff
find your discarded clothes folded on an arm-
kings of the jungle are thrillingly present here,
members tell the story of accompanying Kirk to
chair and the neatly rolled towel you had
almost too perfect in their grace and power to be
meet with the village chief to get his recommen-
plucked off a fluffy stack replaced, and no staff
real, and yet there they are, napping in the
dations as to whom he should hire for his staff.
member in sight.
shade, pouncing on their elders, coolly surveying
The stack of resumes produced by the chief
You hear him before you see him. A rustle in
their surroundings. And then, at the approach of
yielded a group of hospitality novices that were
the grass, the tips wave softly and suddenly the
a jeep, the lion roars. It echoes, reverberating on
trained impeccably, with deference to their
large, dark shape is visible. The sun is setting,
a deep, primal frequency that triggers something
needs and that of their community. Since the
glasses are clinking, but all conversation falls
ancient in everyone who hears it – that abiding
property first broke ground 2 and a half years
silent, studying the spaces in between the trees.
awe of nature.
ago, not a single staff member has left, and their
Too small for an elephant, too far from water for
Working in perfect synergy the staff at
devotion to the place shows in every imaginable
a hippo – could it be? Your guide waits for a lit-
Molori, one of the most luxurious resorts in South
dimension. The entire staff greets you upon your
tle more of the animal to emerge, and once the
Africa’s Madikwe Game Reserve, create a world
arrival with a welcome song and a round of cold
face is clearly visible, with two horns, a square
for their guests that is truly magical. As your
drinks, but it is the pair who rises every morning
lip, he points – there it is! The most rare of all
plane lands on the runway, the only sign of
to greet your return from a predawn game drive
wonderful things in South Africa: the black rhino.
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You hear him before you see him. It starts
looking the landscape, casually understating his
ily rather than a resort. “I want people to walk
as a whisper, then a whir, and then suddenly the
dogged perseverance and high standards that
into this place as if they were walking into their
helicopter appears overhead, headed for the
make the property everything it is.
own home. There’s nothing they can’t touch,
landing pad just inside the gate. The black four-
“Molori means ‘my dream’ because when I
everything makes sense, and everything they
seater is just one of a fleet of aircraft that owner
was a little boy, my teachers always used to write
could ever think to want, we’ve already thought
Kirk Lazarus uses to travel between his homes
on my report card that I was a dreamer. I’m
of it for them.” From the signature Molori hang-
and properties in Russia, South Africa, and Aus-
thinking of buying a yacht called ‘I Told You
over cure in the bathroom drawer (which actually
tralia, making sure that everything is on track for
So’,” says the native South African, half-joking.
works – we tested it on several occasions) and
all of his friends, employees, and visitors. Kirk’s
His roots in the country gave him an innate un-
the preprogrammed iPods waiting in Bose sound
property portfolio did not stem from a desire to
derstanding of how to do business in the bush.
systems to spill sound all the way out to your pri-
be in the hospitality industry. Rather, his prop-
From the very first stage, when he bought the
vate pool, to the fully stocked wine cellar and
erties are a collection of private homes: specifi-
land from a local chief and worked with local
humidor, his plan has succeeded on a grand
cally, his homes. His attention to detail is
builders and artisans to create the look of Molori,
scale; your every need and want is given equal
superb, honed over years of appreciating natural
he demonstrated that his property would be of
care and attention.
and man-made beauty all over the world, and of
the community, not apart from him, and he has
Kirk’s business interests are deep and broad
experiencing the best and worst of high-end re-
naturally developed a new community within the
around the world, but include many investments
sorts from the other side. “Some properties out
staff village that is just over the hill from Molori.
in the Russian oil industry. He is a fluent Russ-
here will have black water coming out of the taps
He talks excitedly of plans to build a school
ian speaker and has done business there for
or things like that, and their excuse is well, it’s
within the village, as more of his staff get married
many years, also putting down roots in his com-
the bush. I don’t think that’s any excuse,” he
and have children, and of staff days and pranks
munity in St. Petersburg, where he is currently
says over a cigar on the hardwood deck over-
that makes Molori feel like a home with a fam-
building a synagogue and a kindergarten in his
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neighborhood. Having lived among Russians and traveled with them for many years, it is no surprise that word of Molori has traveled fast through his social circle, and many of his gusts since opening have been Russian. “Russians like the resort because I really understand what they want in terms of service,” he says, explaining that discerning and wealthy consumers the world over have been impressed with Molori, but that Russians tend to be particularly discerning about their treatment and are great communicators of their experiences – if their standards slacken, their core of Russian customers won’t be shy about letting him know, he says. He is currently developing a property on the beach in Capetown, the first of its kind in scale, as well as properties in Port Douglas, Australia, and New Zealand. To keep his edge sharp, he often visits and stays at other resorts in the area, and has taken the best idea from all of them, as well as applying his own intuition, for his property. These are all his houses, and they are full of the objects, furniture, and décor that he has picked up in his travels, contributing to the feel that you are merely in a friend’s incredibly chic home, instead of a hotel. Many guests prefer to rent the entire property at a time, allowing them total privacy to enjoy the comforts of their adopted residence. The vivid, graphic stripes and rounded shape of the zebra, rolling in herds down the hill towards the watering hole, is as whimsical and comical a sight as exists in the harsh landscape of the bush. Unexpectedly stocky and sturdy close up, they move silently through trees and brush, until they are close enough that you can see the brown shadow that traces their black stripes down over their rounded bellies. Their big dark eyes and open faces study you quietly, ears flicking, until the scent of water becomes too much to resist, and their little hooves stir up a cloud of dust as they canter towards refreshment. Huddled together, their stripes blend into a single mass of stripes and curves, running into each other in their collective reflection.
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The vivid, graphic stripes and rounded
Caribbean resort style: walls and French doors
genuinely impressive, bringing a level of taste
shape of the zebra-hide desk chair is the perfect
that open out onto the view, spacious bathrooms
and sophistication rarely seen outside of design
example of the perfection of Molori’s décor. A
unique to every suite, outdoor showers and
magazines to every corner of the space, from a
simple, classic shape is transformed by the con-
white-upholstered daybeds turning the hard-
formal living and dining room to the bathroom to
trasting stripes and the unexpected, humorous
wood decks into outdoors rooms. Every surface,
the office, sleek Mac laptop already included.
inclusion of the zebra’s own mane, projecting
every piece, is finished, but not necessarily
More cutting edge in its décor, crystal chande-
perkily from the seat back. Innovative without
smooth and sterilized: rather than going to full-
liers and velvet-upholstered armchairs sit com-
being precious, the design scheme is the bass
on modern, the walls are roughly textured and
fortably side-by-side with a metal-framed
line to the visual symphony of Molori, always re-
the concrete floor is inlaid with patterned rocks,
outdoors bed and a bright red airy circular chair
inforcing the harmony of the larger idea. There
in a light neutral palette that mixes easily with a
made of knotted high-tension elastics.
is not a corner of any room that has not been
white leather Fendi lounge and clear Lucite
Aside from the suites themselves, there are
touched, decorated, and designed to please the
lamps from Kartell. Their aesthetic has proved
numerous common areas that are secluded yet
eye, and yet there is never a feeling that any old
so popular with guests that it is now possible to
functional. While many guests choose to rent the
thing had been brought in just to fill up a corner.
order, through the property, any of the pieces
entire property for the duration of their stay, as
The design is deliberate, and effective.
seen in the rooms or common spaces.
Molori will only accommodate up to 10 guests at
When the interiors were first being de-
There are two presidential suites, Metsi and
a time, those who find themselves sharing the
signed, Kirk expressed a desire for a new kind of
Molelo, two superior suites, Ngwedi and Lesedi,
property have ample opportunities to enjoy care-
hunting lodge. The traditional image conjured
and one superior family suite, Sephiri, all in sep-
fully engineered solitude, something the staff
by those words is one of dark wood and leather
arate villas ranged side by side that share a
easily facilitates. The main lodge is, of course,
and mounted heads, a masculine but not neces-
panoramic view of the game reserve, and exterior
accessible to all, and the spacious facility en-
sarily inviting space. Molori takes the best as-
colors and hand-thatched roofs to blend them
compasses an open living room and bar, two for-
pects of this look and combines them with a
seamlessly into the hills beyond. The presiden-
mal dining rooms, an elevated covered deck just
lighter touch, mixing in elements of the classic
tial suites, both around 600 square meters, are
a short flight up, on a level with the main office
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and the library, housing the property’s only tele-
bush are, the fact is inescapable: nothing is too
flavors, including the best renditions of colonial-
vision, an expansive collection of National Geo-
beautiful to eat. The little springboks stand
era dishes (often unpalatable to foreigners who
graphic back issues, and a well stocked humidor.
poised, nibbling on small shoots of grass, travel-
lack the seasoning of nostalgia) that one could
The airy white daybeds that appear in each suite
ing in a vigilant pair up to an invisible territorial
ever hope for. In the early days of the resort,
also make many appearances elsewhere around
line, where an identical pair eyes them carefully.
when it became apparent that fresh produce
the property, including next to the main lodge’s
They traverse the boundary, marking as they go,
would be hard to come by without involving mul-
two pools and a hot tub, and on several secluded
until they catch on the wind the scent of some-
tiple airplanes and vehicles, Molori’s dedicated
sky decks farther up the hill above the villas.
thing dangerous. Off they go, in leaps and
management set out and discovered an elderly
Speaking of the sky—one of the gems of the
bounds, muscles bunching and nostrils flared,
couple in the area who had turned their slice of
property is the planetarium, a stone outbuilding
the natural state for South Africa’s national ani-
desert into an Edenic paradise—and after the
with a retractable roof, housing four of the largest
mal – who can still be, at the end of the day, just
application of a small amount of charm, the cou-
beanbag chairs imaginable and one of the largest
someone’s dinner.
ple agreed to show them how it was done. Now
privately owned telescopes in the country. Greg
No matter how lovely, how charming, how
fruits and vegetables are a central part of the
is as familiar with the stars as he is with the land,
perfectly formed the presentation on your plate,
healthy yet luxurious cuisine here, creating five-
and on a clear night before dinner, it is a pleas-
the fact is inescapable: when it tastes this good,
star fare that is resort-worthy without being crip-
ure to get up close and personal with a glass of
nothing is too beautiful to eat. Chef Willie Mal-
plingly rich.
wine and Mars, Venus and the man in the moon.
herbe is one of the many hidden treasures at
The freshness of all the ingredients is a tes-
No matter how lovely, how charming, how
Molori. His versatile, French-trained style
tament to the chef’s stringent standards—prawn
perfectly formed the smaller creatures of the
makes incredible use of local ingredients and
curries and spiced grilled squid are as delicious
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here as they are on the coast, and a talented use of light sauces and seasonings keep the dishes from being overwhelming. Selection is key—a filet of organic Chalmar beef is a superlative piece of meat, as were the salmon and tuna steaks. As ever, at Molori, ambiance and customization is key in creating a memorable experience; the resort often engineers it so guests never dine in the same space twice, and Willie checks in with his guests at breakfast to see what they might be in the mood for at dinner. Make sure to go beyond the formal sit-down meals – the staff barbecue meal became such an underground hit with guests that they now offer their taste of springbok loin and slowroasted chicken on an elegant, white-cloth setting in the barbecue pit, and the feast of barbecue served in the boma, a traditional gathering space, is a triumph of local ingredients and cuisine, including more and better sausage than is necessary or healthy, and an oxtail stew that will make you wonder why you ever bothered with oxtail before this one. The food is of course complemented by beverage, provided with a smile and an infectious laugh by Isaac, the bartender who had never tasted a beer before assuming his position at Molori, but is now a talented and original mixologist, creating his own cocktails as well as all the old standards. Chef Willie is also experienced with selecting wine pairings, and the cellar from which he draws is both deep and broad, representing the absolute best of South African wines as well as some of the finest vintages from around the world – we enjoyed a particularly wonderful 2002 Chateau d’Yquem Sauternes with his homemade orange and Campari berry sorbet. What a baby elephant lacks in size, it makes up for in charm and serious personality. These ghosts of the bush appear suddenly, silently, and then surround you, stripping bushes from the ground, nonchalantly chewing a tree branch, and trumpeting and blowing at each other in a casual whirl of activity, until the reason for all the noise
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peeks his soft trunk out from behind his mother’s
Russians, rest assured that you will receive the
To experience Molori in the Madikwe Game
leg. Still the size of a St. Bernard, still ears the
effect you are looking for. Treatments are avail-
Reserve is to immerse yourself in a culture that
size of dinner plates, but still a baby, to be pam-
able in one of two treatment rooms, your room or
still values many of the things modern civiliza-
pered. Long trunks shoo him out of the road,
on your private deck, but we suggest the outdoor
tion has chosen to disregard: patience, quiet ob-
under a shady tree and then finally, under his
massage table, draped in flowers and mosquito
servation, and the meditative stillness of simply
mother’s belly, where he relaxes, leaning against
netting and surrounded by miles of grassland
existing in the morning sun. The game drives are
her leg, at perfect ease.
and birdsong for a truly absorbing experience.
an exercise in appreciation – visitors may expect
What the spa at Molori lacks in size, it
All products are Dermalogica, and the name of
to be disappointed if they don’t spot their Big
makes up for in charm and serious expertise.
the game here is service – personalized treat-
Five, but in the bush, there is no such thing as
The small but fantastic facility is a full-scale rep-
ments, performed with dedication and great en-
nothing. The small birds, the trees, the soil, the
resentation of Molori’s focus on customization,
ergy. While you can book one of the specific
mountains, are all there waiting to be explored
privacy, and luxury. A workout area, filled with
treatments on the menu, a better bet is to simply
and appreciated. The wise traveler will simply
all the necessary equipment, adjoins the hard-
show up and let the technician guide you, as they
let the experience wash over him, appreciating
wood deck that hosts an outdoor area for private
specialize in blending products and tailoring
the talent of the trackers and guides leading the
yoga and pilates sessions and a white-cotton-
treatments to suit each individual. The land-
way and the sheer thrilling amount of life every-
swathed daybed. Before or after your scheduled
scape suffuses the entire spa with a sense of
where. Visiting the bush is the experience of
treatments, or anytime during your stay, the
peace and timelessness – so much so that you
feeling totally vulnerable and yet completely safe
steam room and plunge pool are available, cali-
shouldn’t be surprised if your masseuse adds an
– as visiting Molori allows you to experience the
brated to the owner’s specifications – and as this
extra half-hour just to make she she’s worked out
world at its most natural without sacrificing any
is a man who does much of his business with
every last knot.
creature comforts. !
“Visiting Molori allows you to experience the world at its most natural without sacrificing any creature comforts”
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MIAMI:feb09 13/02/2009 14:18 Page 83
Miami: What’s hot now Top, 1Bleu, Below, Executive Chef Mark Militello
T
o step off a plane in Miami
new playgrounds of today’s high living nota-
feels irresistibly good. There’s
bles like you.
something about the balmy air
For starters, the historic Fountainebleau on
combined with a timeless his-
Collins Avenue is newly renovated and re-
tory of beachside elegance that
opened in mid-2008 boasting over 1500 rooms
satisfies leisure and business travelers alike
each with a 20-inch iMac, nightclubs, restau-
when they make their way to this far-south
rants, and a spa. Poolside loungers are going to
American hot spot. Miami is a place that has
want a private cabana so that you can have your
been a hallmark of good living for decades –
own piece of shady seclusion. You could spend
from young 20-something celebrities shacking
months at the new Fountainebleau and never
up on South Beach to the sophisticated aristo-
run out of things to do, but with its central loca-
crats settled in the penthouses on Fisher Is-
tion, the Fountainebleau is a good focal point
land, Miami is the place for everyone.
for a Miami trip if you want to explore the city.
Most private planes to Miami actually land
If you like the idea of old Miami glamour
in Boca Raton, Palm Beach, or Fort Laud-
turned new again, The Raleigh Hotel, also sit-
erdale so as to avoid Miami International. But
uated on Collins Avenue, is a second newly
less access and Kiehl’s amenities. Pick up a
once your car service brings you into the heart
updated piece of Miami history. Hotelier
cold scented towel and hit the pool, where you
of this sun-drenched cosmopolitan city, expect
André Balazs decided to re-vision this classic
can see and be seen, or book a shuttle service
to see some old-turned-new treasures. Many of
and its penthouse, with almost 2,000 square
so that you can experience a private indul-
the hotels and restaurants of today’s Miami are
feet of oceanfront terrace, is to die for. The
gence at The Standard Spa, the Raleigh
being redone and revived, so that the haunts
Raleigh’s rooms offer all the enjoyment of the
Hotel’s spa located at another one of Balazs’
of yesterday’s Miami elite are becoming the
hotel’s 1940’s art deco style, but expect wire-
hotels, The Standard on Belle Isle.
100 Thousand Club
83
MIAMI:feb09 13/02/2009 14:19 Page 84
Rubbing elbows with history is the hallmark of many timeless Miami accommodations, but there are a few new hotels that are helping create this year’s fresh definition of Miami style as well. Gansevoort South, a new luxury hotel with spa and residences, has been continuing the tradition of Miami chic since March of 2008 and is a strong addition to the South Beach scene. We love the rooftop pool and the Gandia Blasco furnishings in the terrace areas. At night, head back up to the rooftop to socialize and have cocktails. The Mandarin Oriental
For the newest of the new, we’re excited about the W South Beach Hotel that is going to open its doors this May. In the tradition of W excellence, the W South Beach boasts an interior designed by power duo Yabu Pushelberg and completes the experience with gardens, scenic views, and a “Whatever/Whenever® ” service that promises to make your every wish come true no matter how outrageous (The website suggests flying in your favorite bagels from New York or filling your bathtub with hot chocolate). While you’re in Miami, don’t miss the abundant shopping the city affords to its most high-end visitors. If you want a little bit of everything, we like Aventura Mall, which is now renovated and has been receiving buzz recently for its upscale offerings, including a fully stocked Henri Bendel. Pick up your new beach bag at Kate Spade, or get a new pair of True Religion Jeans for your night out in Miami. Aventura also hosts several restaurants, and for a lunchtime shopping break be sure to look at Ocean Prime or The Grill on the Alley, two recent dining additions to the Miami staple that is Aventura. If you want to enjoy the Miami weather while you shop, the outdoor Bal Harbour is where you will still find all your favorites in a Florida Keys setting. Bal Harbour has added some new choices to its laundry list of upscale labels including Dian von Furstenberg, Fendi, and Giorgio Armani. This coming spring, head
MIAMI:feb09 13/02/2009 14:19 Page 85
This image & insert, Gansevoort South
to Bal Harbour for their biggest event of the season – the March 7th Destination Fashion 2009 show that will benefit the Buoniconti Fund. Michael Kors will be showcasing his exclusive Fall 2009 collection, so the event in itself is definitely a worth a little trip to this iconic Miami shopping destination. For dining in Miami, if you appreciate fine wine then we suggest Azul, the restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental hotel. It’s a Mediterranean-Asian mix, so for appetizers you will choose from options like an octopus salad with roasted garlic hummus and Kalamata olives or fresh Japanese Hamachi, but the wine offerings are really what sets Azul apart. The wine menu is always changing, but right now Azul Wine Director Cynthia Betancourt suggests trying the Hansel Pinot Nior from Sonoma. Two blue restaurants must mean culinary perfection in Miami, because the next winner on our list is 1Bleu, the signature dining experience in The Regent Bal Harbour hotel. 1Bleu is under the culinary direction of Chef Mark Militello, heralded as an innovator in South Florida cuisine and named as one of the top ten chefs in America in 1990 by Food and Wine magazine. Chef Militello is known for focusing on local cuisine, so expect an expansive fresh seafood raw bar and offerings like stone crab claws and lobster. To take a break from seafood, we love Philippe in Miami Beach. This upscale Chinese restaurant is hallmarked by its red and black modern décor, and its first branch is already an established presence in New York City. Chef Philippe Chow has now brought his work to Miami and plans to soon expand to Las Vegas. At Philippe, try shark fin soup and then pick out a few entrees for the table. Or, call ahead and try the Peking Duck, acclaimed by New York Magazine and Zagat. Of course, an evening in Miami only starts with dinner. Plan on sampling the rich nightlife while you’re in town, especially in
This image & insert, Azul, Chef Clay Conley
MIAMI:feb09 13/02/2009 14:19 Page 86
stiletto-wearing, bronzed South Beach. To start
ity to have a fulfilled day and night without
The four different areas at Skybar all have a
out, grab drinks at Cozy, a piano bar in the
ever leaving hotel property. Once you’ve had
distinct feel, but try the Redroom Garden,
South of Fifth district. On weekends at Cozy,
drinks upstairs by the rooftop pool, head down-
where you’ll be able to sip your cocktail out-
enjoy live music and sample a signature desert
stairs to Louis Bar-Lounge, noted Miami
doors in the warm Miami air but feel like
before you head to South Beach. Cozy is
nightlife group Opium’s newest hit on the
you’re somewhere in the Orient. If you love
marked by a comfortable atmosphere and has
Miami Beach. Louis is one of South Beach’s
rum, you have to try Skybar’s Rumbar, with 75
a jazz feel that might just end up keeping you
newest spots, and it’s notoriously sexy and
different rums on hand so you sample every va-
at this casually trendy spot until its 4 a.m. clos-
hard to get in to. We know you won’t have a
riety of your favorite liquor. For a real Miami-
ing time.
problem.
feeling nightlife experience, Skybar is the
If you’re staying at the Gansevoort South,
Another favorite in Miami is the Skybar, a
one of the ultimate joys of the hotel is the abil-
hot spot set in South Beach’s Shore Club hotel.
place to go. And if you’re a Miami regular, you’ve already been coming here for years. n
All images, The Raleigh Hotel
86
100 Thousand Club
ASTON MARTIN:feb09 13/02/2009 14:07 Page 87
Perfection in Motion With recent enhancements such as a Bang & Olufsen BeoSound DBS audio system, the Aston Martin DBS holds its reputation as the definitive luxury sports car.
T
here are sports cars, and then
master Bang & Olufsen. In a world where au-
part of the car, creating an ambience which
there’s the Aston Martin DBS.
tomobile partnerships are more often than not
embraces both design and performance. The
Perhaps best known in North
inconsequential or uninspired, this particular
sound is crisp and clear at all volumes, mak-
America as the iconic Bond
pairing seemed destined to make beautiful
ing the audio system the perfect match for the
car (seen in the Daniel Craig
music together. After all, the two companies
Aston Martin.
007 thrillers Casino Royal and Quantum of
possess a similar pioneering gene, renown for
When the system is turned on, two small
Solace), the DBS is a stunning synthesis of de-
their innovation, design & technology. And
twin acoustic lens speakers emerge silently
sign and engineering artistry. In fact, this
then there’s their shared craftsman-driven,
and swiftly, adding a touch of theatre and tech-
British thoroughbred is incapable of escaping
perfectionist culture – hard to find in today’s
nological panache. While the design may be
unnoticed, that is if you’re lucky enough to
age of mass production.
minimalist, the emotional appeal of experi-
have one pass you on the road – a true meas-
The new BeoSound system, designed
encing the 510-horsepower DBS with its new
specifically for the DBS, is being touted as one
BeoSound audio system is larger than words.
With its hand-built 6.0-litre V12 engine,
of the finest in-car audio systems on the mar-
And for those who wish there be no distraction
custom crafted interior and unrivalled han-
ket. Aston Martin engineers and Bang &
from their symphonic driving pleasure, Aston
dling, many DBS enthusiasts would argue that
Olufsen ‘acoustineers’ worked in close har-
Martin has also recently added a new
there’s little room for improvement. Then
mony to design the custom audio system. Thir-
‘Touchtronic 2’ six-speed automatic transmis-
again, Aston Martin is not exactly a company
teen speakers – each with its own dedicated
sion option.
known for resting on its laurels. When looking
amplifier channel – in ten locations are seam-
to perfect the DBS audio system, the British
lessly integrated into the DBS’ sleek cabin in-
might say. n
automaker joined forces with Danish sound
terior. The result is a system that is an integral
www.astonmartin.com
ure of its limited-production exclusivity.
High performance meets high fidelity, you
100 Thousand Club
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TIA CIBANI:feb09 16/02/2009 08:38 Page 88
Perfect by Design
TIA CIBANI:feb09 16/02/2009 08:38 Page 89
H
How do you go from being a Canadian fashion label known for its sportswear to an international darling of the fashion world, worn by celebrities, socialites, and fashionistas in the know? You hire the very chic Tia Cibani to bring her smart, artsy aesthetic to your line and let her creativity take wing. Cibani is herself a Canadian, from Vancouver. She says very naturally, “I was always drawn to clothes and art and design. My mother was a serious fashion plate and I was always playing in her closet. I feel like I stumbled on it, in a way, but my father was in children’s wear so it felt very natural to me to work in a fashion oriented environment.” She was educated for some time at Parsons School of Design in New York, but the company then known as Ports International came calling, and it changed the course of her career forever. “Before I had even finished school, an opportunity to go work in China came up, which I thought would be a cool for six months or so, and I ended up staying 10 years.” The current collection that she works on, Ports 1961, is an offshoot of the original company that the owner founded to incorporate a more diverse perspective that would appeal to a luxury customer. And who is that customer? Says Cibani, “She’s not an age, she’s a state of mind, shed global, urban, loves it all, embraces it, but doesn’t want to let go of romance and luxury just because of a fast-paced urban lifestyle. She wants special daywear—that’s what I create. It’s not precious, it’s about enjoying the everyday. The pieces have little touches that make them personal and refined, little couture touches, yet made of durable fabric. Its meant to function.” Cibani is of course, to a certain degree, that very woman. When we pointed out the obvious similarities between herself and her customer, she admits, laughing, “Ports is the global village—mixing and matching and combining everything—that’s who I am, right down to my toes.” The length of her experience living in different places is a constant inspiration, and an asset in a variety of unanticipated ways, including the simplest things like the quality of fabric and production. “My resources that I’ve built in China in 10 years is what has helped me to make a different statement that sets me apart from other designers. Your Rolodex is built over time and energy and relationships, and my time has definitely helped. China, though, can be very frustrating because of their closed
economy and culture.” She recognizes that her base in Asia is different from most of the fashion crowd, but doesn’t see it as a disadvantage. “Going there from the creative culture of Paris and London is hard, but there’s an efficiency and a turnaround time in creating things that is so great. You will see results quickly, and I would always spend my time in China when I was creating, so I could see changes right away, instead of waiting for weeks to see samples if I were in New York.” Her creative process requires
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so much travel and so many variables that to be able to simplify the nuts and bolts of creating the collection is a much-needed simplification. As to her inspiration, she says, “I usually start with a place, and then of course the people, which is what makes the place. I zero in on a specific person or kind of person, or sometimes a time period. From that is born a color palette, and then textures that would make sense within that palette, and from there its just about silhouette. It’s very easy for me, like one-two-three. I work with my team to research art and customs and fashions and it really falls into place. We sketch, research trimmings, and apply them with the theme in mind.” This year, however, she traveled in time as well as in space, and in memory and nostalgia as well, as her current Spring 2009 collection came back home to Canada. “In spite of all the big grand journeying, this season I felt like coming to where my heart feels is home. It focuses on the Pacific Northwest through the art of Emily Karr, and on the shape of the totem pole; it’s very long and lean with horizontal interest. For me this particular collection felt more natural than any other I’ve done; it was so familiar to me.” Her other familiar home now is New York City, where her fashion world and her personal interests can collide. “I try to stay in New York as much as I can, but I’m between New York and China. I still have a studio and a design team there, and I bring them here, I go there, etc. I also go to Paris for the fabric shows, Milan for other sourcing,” she explains, but all this travel means that when Tia Cibani is home, she really tries to stay home. “When I’m here, I stay in Chelsea. This is my hood. My home is here, my office is here, my store is opening in the meatpacking district—I’m very local, but then I’m very global. I love the vibe here, the eclectic nature, the art, the gay community, and the families. I think the High Line project is quite special, it’s evolving so quickly
100 Thousand Club
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TIA CIBANI:feb09 16/02/2009 08:39 Page 92
Tia and Fiona Cibani in the Ports 1961 Design Room
92
and I really see the improvements; it’s draw-
inspiring she finds her current environment,
him.” Her concept is less a design conceit
ing so much attention here. Its nice to see in
however, there is always that itch: “I used to
than a mood and a feeling imbued by the ar-
the last five years how much has changed. I
travel for fun more, before I started this proj-
chitecture. “I wanted it to be cozy and wel-
love the Chelsea market, the Red Cat, the
ect that is themed on travel. I love Asia, Viet-
coming, like a big closet, the ultimate closet,
Meatpacking district in general. It’s got a
nam—I would take the Ha-long Ginger junk
and any girl could walk in and feel comfy.”
wonderful sort of European flavor.” Cibani
trip if I could take a vacation right now.”
The construction itself had been a bit of an
does downplay somewhat her place in the
Unfortunately, a vacation doesn’t look
ordeal, she says. “We decided to challenge
New York and LA social whirl. She maintains
likely anytime in the near future—not with so
ourselves and take a big old 150 year old
a presence all over New York, meeting and
many exciting changes coming for the young
building--it was really falling apart, you don’t
greeting the celebrities and socialites who
designer and her brand. The Ports 1961 New
see that from the outside--but once we started
wear her clothes, as well as spending time
York flagship store is slated to open in Janu-
digging we saw the construction needed was
with many well-photographed friends (who of
ary, and Tia has been very involved with ar-
more than we expected, but we went forward.
course are often clients) all over town. This
chitect Michael Gabellini in every aspect of
We were excited by the idea of being in a his-
cosmopolitan gloss only adds to the cachet of
the design. “I feel like I’ve given birth to it.
toric old townhouse and maintaining the his-
her collection, and her understated, inspired
We’ve already opened an LA store around the
tory of it.”
designs are a party-girl staple. No matter how
concept and it has been great working with
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Even as New York City and the rest of the
TIA CIBANI:feb09 16/02/2009 08:39 Page 93
world continues to reel and recover from the
would like to focus on the US right now and
good for the brand to build an image with a
dip in the economy that has affected so many
really make this our home, we really
ready-to-wear collection but you can really
aspects of everyday life, further plans for the
launched out of New York. I think it’s impor-
make money in the accessories. With the
brand are germinating, but slowly. “This eco-
tant to win over the tastemakers of New York
spirit we’ve built, I think we can create an ex-
nomic climate is hard, it’s hard to envision a
and Los Angeles.”
citing collection.” Her personal and profes-
future, but at the same time I did have an in-
As for her more personal goals, her prior-
sional development has been directed and
tention to open two stores and then work to-
ities are that of the consummate professional.
fostered by a number of people, but she says
wards the middle. I’d like to grow our retail
“I would like to have my design team here
that her greatest mentor has been the CEO of
side as much as our wholesale business, I
with me. I’d like to develop more into acces-
her company. “He’s been my business pro-
think it’s important to make our statement
sories. We started as ready-to-wear and that’s
fessor,” she jokes. “Seeing my father in his
and our concept in our own space.” On the
been our strength, but I’d like to grow into re-
own retail stores and working there, I under-
international front, always an important con-
ally reliable accessories, good bags we can
stand what it is to wait for customers, to cre-
sideration for such an international brand,
deliver season after season,” she says. “Per-
ate events, to get customers in the door. A lot
she says “I think Japan and India are impor-
sonally, I’d like a little more quiet time, not to
of designers need help with that, but I’ve also
tant markets to consider. We do have stores
eat-sleep-drink my work quite as much, but I
had a great mentor in Alfred Chan; he’s
in Asia, in Hong Kong and China, but I
think we can definitely improve. I think it’s
taught me everything I know in terms of busi-
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TIA CIBANI:feb09 16/02/2009 08:39 Page 95
ness. He says, ‘Listen to me and you will be a very well-rounded designer.’” Her understanding of the business side has fundamentally affected her understanding of the creation of a fashion line, from her direct involvement with selecting her textile mills and factories, to her hands-on role in creating the stores that will help brand the company and ensure its future in the retail world. Her talent as a designer is undeniable, and she says it is enhanced, not tempered, by her understanding of the practical considerations of creation. The other half of her process, of course, is that which she discusses at length—inspirations and collaborations. No one exists in a vacuum, and since her days at Parsons, Cibani has benefitted from seeing the work of other fashion greats. Currently, she names the YSL line as one of her favorites, due to the talent of lead designer Stefano Pilati. Alber Elbaz, of the house of Lanvin is, “sent from heaven. He’s a beautiful soul with so much creativity.” The fashion milieu in general is hugely influential to those who are a part of it, as well as those who observe it, and the insider view of the industry is quite stimulating. “When I run into my other peers, like at the fabric shows, it’s so exciting see that we’re all here. We walk through the same halls, the same mills, and its wonderful to see how we all interpret it.” From those fabled halls of couture in Milan and Paris, to the garment district in New York, to the factories of Hong Kong, this is the world that Tia Cibania was born into, and one that she is transcending, to bring her own vision to the world, a goal that is as much intellectual as it is business. Like those for whom she designs, she takes her wardrobe and her personality around the world, sharing her passion with those around her even as they enrich her life, a job that is not, at its core, a job. “That’s what it’s all about in the end,” she says “living the life that you enjoy.” n
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L
os Angeles is a place where exists an ongoing compromise. There are two distinct worlds inhabited by the people who power the engine
that make the city – and inherently the culture – the consistently exciting, ego-driven, flavour of the week, and sometimes frustrating bastion of activity that it is. On one evening, it is quite possible to slink into a wave of slinky dresses, Christian Louboutins, and grapefruit, cherry, and watermelon infusions at Skybar, sitting atop West Hollywood’s Mondrian Hotel. It is also possible an hour later to grab your car from the valet and head down Sunset to the famed and storied Hotel Bel-Air, whose star sightings lean more towards the understated, privacy hungry glitterati of yesteryear. Both have magnificent charms and please the senses, yet one could not even fathom being mistaken for the other. Today’s Hollywood is one that screams paparazzi, velvet ropes, and Page Six sightings. Sleek lines, refurbished warehouse clubs, and cocktails with colors that span the rainbow. Old Hollywood reeks of discretion. Speakeasy lounges, soft lighting, gourmet staples, and bespoke suits. Among the myriad of hotels in the City of Angels, there are some that speak to the old, some that speak to the new. Some that speak to the young, some that speak to the old – although the old seem to be looking younger and younger,
SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills, a new Star-
and it’s definitely not the water. But where
wood Hotels & Resorts Wordlwide, Inc. ven-
to go if there is a yearning to drink in a bit of
ture with SBE, opened at the end of 2008
the elegance and timelessness of the aura
with expectations that spanned from coast to
that is the Hotel Bel-Air, but with a bit of the
coast. And rightly so. If there were ever an
cache, excitement, and see and be seen that
all-star lineup of collaborators, SLS is the
is something like the Mondrian. Until re-
pinnacle for which all others will be meas-
cently, there was no such option. Fortunately
ured. Philippe Starck is a name that any de-
now, there is.
sign conscious observer, or worldly traveller
SBE founder Sam Nazarian and the infamous Philippe Starck
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Some samplings from the kitchens of this new Beverly Hills hotspot
immediately recognizes. And not only rec-
old-world Sahara in Las Vegas, with plans of
ognizes, but also looks forward to revelling
a transformation.
in whatever building or venture has been
These two gentlemen, for all intensive pur-
blessed most recently with his magical and
poses, are the facilitators behind SLS, and
whimsical touch. He has ventured into a
on my visit just a few weeks before its official
contract with SBE CEO Sam Nazarian –
opening, I had the opportunity to take a look
owner of Hyde, S Bar, and Foxtail among
at the property with both of them. As striking
many other Los Angeles hot spots – that
and intriguing as both Sam and Philippe are,
keeps him designing only SBE North Amer-
the first impression of the property is equally
ican properties for the next fifteen years.
as attention grabbing, and perhaps even
SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills is the first lucky
more so. The lobby of the property that
child to receive his gift. Sam Nazarian is a
Philippe has put together seamlessly com-
worthy addition to the all-star lineup in his
bines the aforementioned old with the new.
own right, as he has taken SBE to an incred-
An eclectic mix of furniture, books, and dec-
ible level in just a short period of time. Be-
orative pieces forms a series of open inter-
yond the LA hotspots and production wing
connected rooms that could be the setting for
of the company, he recently purchased the
either Sinatra or Jay-Z. With Philippe, there
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Phillipe’s style are both traditional and eclectic, elegant and warm
is never a stone unturned, and while one could take a look at the furnishings, woods, textures, and lighting and feel a bit overwhelmed initially, there is quite simply a brilliance to the madness of the man. Boutique hotels have been the trend for such an extended period of time that they can no longer be considered a trend, but the reasoning behind this is quite simple. They are cozy, they are comfortable, and they are intimate. Large properties located in sprawling cities such as LA tend to feel a bit sterile. It is more difficult to create a sense of purpose, place, and culture when dealing with hundreds of thousands of square feet. Make no mistake – from the outside, SLS is not much too look at. The old Parker Meridian building, constructed in 1991, is located on a busy intersection of La Cienega, and its current incarnation contains 297 rooms – hardly a boutique property. But the feel inside of SLS is one that reeks of intimacy, privacy, and sophistication. At the same time, it manages to remain elegantly grand while simultaneously giving off an impression of style and modern chic. One would feel just as comfortable over a business lunch in one of the subdued library-esque nooks, as they would sipping martinis in stilettos. In many ways, this is not only attributed to Starck’s eye, but Sam’s influence. The contrast between the two men is one that is obviously apparent. Sam – a towering figure well over six feet – is adorned in a dark suit, speaks in soft tones, and walks that charming line between puppyishly shy, and quietly confident and observant.
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Philippe on the other hand, well… Philippe
cheap. His pedigree with SBE has been well
is overwhelming – in a good way. The colors
documented. His venues and ventures go on
he wears, the pace at which he speaks, the
to great success (his Foxtail in West Holly-
alertness with which his eyes dart around a
wood was the setting for our cover shoot for
room. They dart around so quickly that you
the Q4 2008 100Thousand Club). Sam is one
might actually think he is aloof. Please, do
of those individuals who has the inherent
not make this assumption. One with the de-
ability to work with people of all back-
sign prowess of Mr. Starck notices every de-
grounds, talents, and ideals. Even just
tail, and invents some along the way.
through a first impression, it is quite clear
“Look here,” “I do not like that,” “This is not an area I’d like to shoot.” These are
holds a project together.
the types of quick comments that you start
With a project as immense and yet as
to receive from Philippe only moments after
detailed as SLS, it takes a combination of
meeting him. The interesting part is, you
the two types of personalities and skill sets
know exactly what he is talking about. It is
to let the project reach its full potential.
said that great artists are never truly satis-
Alas, that is what Sam and Philippe have
fied with their work. This is true of musi-
done with SLS. From the beautiful pool
cians, painters, writers, and the like.
deck that rivals any I have seen across the
Designers may be the most discerning of the
United States, to the elegant yet modern
bunch. Watching Philippe walk through the
rooms, to José Andrés’s The Bazaar – the
lobby of the property – which he had proba-
hotel’s eating mecca – it is quite clear that
bly done hundreds of times before – you
one of these men could not have completed
could still see him making mental notes and
the project without the other. Luckily for us,
carefully adjusting things in his mind.
we’ll reap the benefits. That drive down
Sam could easily be pegged as a gentle giant, however that moniker is too trite and
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that in most situations he is the glue that
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Sunset from the Mondrian to Bel-Air is no longer necessary. !
Chef José Andrés slices into a feast above, while the service and decor of SLS will leave little to be desired (below, left and right)
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Motive-ated
Woman On a warm fall afternoon aboard the yacht Utopia III the whisper of bare feet on burnished teak decks and the quiet music of clinking champagne glasses is broken suddenly by a warm, welcoming laugh and a million dollar smile, as Loren Ridinger bounds out of the central salon of her floating oasis to greet her arriving guests. “Welcome aboard!” she laughs, “have you SEEN what we’re doing in here!?” The plush interior of the yacht is decorated with makeup, models, and more makeup – the full line of Motive Cosmetics, the latest venture from
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Loren’s direct-sales company, Market America.
magic touch with a crowd is both delightfully gen-
chise model, which allows individuals to build
As Loren ushers her guests from model to model,
uine and finely tuned – Loren Ridinger is no so-
their business at a pace that works for them. From
each wearing different day and night looks, her
cialite dabbling in the makeup business, but
a family affair in a Greensboro basement (Loren
enthusiasm and energy outsparkle the diamond
rather a high-powered businesswoman heading
and J.R.’s daughter Amber was born the same
hoops in her ears.
up a multi-million dollar company, supporting
year as their start-up) this year’s Market America
The ultimate girl’s girl, Loren presents the
charitable causes, raising a family and serving as
conference will have Loren addressing a crowd of
“Rock Star,” the “Starlet,” and the “Ethereal
a role model for millions of women all over the
25,000 about the opportunities that their rapidly
Girl” with equal aplomb, unhesitatingly recom-
United States. The end of summer in New York
growing company has to offer.
mending powders and glosses to achieve the looks
means a return back down to their home base in
We caught up with Loren at her home in
displayed on the black-clad models decked out
Florida, to prepare for a new year of product
Miami Beach, the legendary Casa de Sueno,
in Motives t-shirts, reflecting the different looks
launches, business expansion, and rallying the
where the Bentley, Rolls-Royce, and Mercedes
and lifestyle of their stylish creative director and
troops at Market America’s annual conference in
Mclaren SLR in the driveway were dwarfed only
her friends. Colleagues and models mix and min-
Miami. Market America, which Loren and her
by Utopia III relaxing at her dock in the backyard,
gle as a psychic performs readings (based on lip-
husband, J. R. Ridinger, founded in their twen-
already lit and set for dinner on the bay. The or-
stick prints ¬– a charming personalized touch)
ties out of their home in North Carolina, has ex-
nate interior of the house is a decorator’s dream,
and makeup flies, transforming a boatload of over-
panded to become one of the largest direct sales
a heavily layered mix of antiques, photographs,
tired journalists into beaming beauty queens. Her
companies in the world, based on their Unfran-
smooth colored marble and rich upholstered fab-
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Loren Rindiner with Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria
rics designed to impress, but the mood in the
years of experience in the sales and beauty busi-
kitchen is jovial as Loren emerges from a crew of
ness as Loren, whose early career experience man-
friends and colleagues to sink into the plush
aging a cosmetics company stayed with her, driving
couches in her library for a chat. The Motives line
her to develop a comprehensive understanding of
is experiencing a huge shift as well as an expan-
her line from packaging to sales pitches. “The
sion, as new packaging, colors, products and min-
touch of a product is so important – I never thought
eral formulas all make their debut in February of
about it all that much before. I’m good at the
2009 – and the new developments have got every-
process, but also at color, at making sure people
one talking.
can use it. It needs to be easy. Most people can’t
“I was my own guinea pig for 6 straight days,”
replicate looks by professionals, so every color is
she says, recalling the development of the new
handpicked, you make sure everything goes to-
line. “I brought in 12 of my girlfriends every day
gether.” Making the collection accessible is a key
and tried on everything, and picked out what was
word that she returns to several times, and it en-
the best. It was fun but it’s a lot of work, and all
sures that her market can keep growing beyond its
those girls together everyday? It’s worse than a
current success. “Even people who don’t buy
baby shower!” The process was not only fun, it was
makeup have a little. It makes people comfortable.
highly educational, even for someone with as many
I really believe we’ll double it by next year.”
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they just play [with the makeup] and get used to it. We have 1800 trainees right now who are training others in the US and Canada, and there’s also an international presence.” To get a sense of how large that presence is, Motives did about $12 million in business last year, compared to $600 million from Market America overall, numbers that have encouraged her in the expansion process. “We launched Taiwan 9 months ago, and we’re doing 200 trainings a quarter. We hired a new head trainer and launched in Hong Kong in last month.” Additionally, she confides, “we had our biggest week ever last week. Cosmetics are safe in a recession generally, so we’re in a good place. Women are going to need that Plan B. What better way to empower them than to make women look beautiful and make some money?” This theme of encouraging her fellow women is something she comes back to time and time again; “empowering women by making other women look beautiful.” Motives is truly a project motivated not just by profits, but by passion. “It’s my baby. I’m so fortunate to have a lot of women involved who appreciate helping others. We’re super-successful, I know that, but I also know it’s hard out there. Woman can have a business at home this way, they can take care of their kids and make some extra money at the same time.” Loren herself is the mother of fifteen-year-old Amber, whose calls and texts during our conversation attest to both the demands and rewards of motherhood she knows her representatives feel as well – the two are extremely close, even since Amber’s move to New York City, and her daughter is kept apprised of all the latest developments on the makeup front in her home. Though the products aren’t age-sensitive, they’ve been skewCosmetics are safe in a recession generally, so we’re in a good place. Women are going to need that Plan B. What better way to empower them than to make women look beautiful and make some money?
110
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The line has been in existence long enough
ing towards a younger audience, attracting cus-
for Loren to see results from her approach, as her
tomers away from department store lines. “We’re
30,000 reps currently selling Motives have been
comparable to Prescriptives, through the custom
reporting back to her as she redevelops the line –
blend and color matching program,” she says, re-
and of course, she expects that number of sales-
ferring to the ability of Motives representatives to
people to increase after her speech prior to the
custom-blend foundations, bronzers, and blushes
new products launch at Market America’s annual
for their individual clients, “but it’s also like
conference here in Miami. “For these women,
Smashbox; we have REALLY great colors, but
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sophisticated, beautiful colors.” She’s proved the
pect much from it, but it’s been really fun. Peo-
tion is honoring Amber for the work she has done
worth of her products to stand up to bigger names
ple started asking me for advice and I started
for their charity as a youth representative, and
through her own broad social network of
thinking I really needed to get hands on. They
many of her own charity events benefit Ms.
tastemakers, many of whom were involved in the
want to hear what’s going on with me. I share that
Lopez’s foundation, including a recent launch of
initial testing and have become converts to the
with them and other things develop from it.”
the new Henri Bendel at the Aventura Mall, “It’s
line. “I picked the best colors of all the major
Her desire to make an impact goes beyond
crazy that my name gets people excited, but it
just helping those within the scope of her busi-
works for me if it gives back. Bendels is charity
It’s this combination of pure business savvy
ness opportunities – she is active in a variety of
that works. I would be selfish if I didn’t do that.”
and women’s intuition that has made Motives so
charitable endeavors, in a variety of capacities. “I
While her name also excites some more
popular with both its consumers and its salespeo-
get the most amazing letters that are so inspiring.
social and fashionable groups (Loren has been
uct.” Television isn’t the sales format she’s in-
I want to change people – it ties me in to the foun-
a Vogue ambassador for the past five years, as
terested in, though; Loren is harnessing the
dation. I want to give people an opportunity. No
well as hosting events for designers like Chloe
power of the internet on behalf of her business.
one gives that to most people.” What with the time
and Louis Vuitton, who wrapped her house in
“We’ve had our techs control carefully the ad-
developing her own opportunities requires, one
their signature logo print) she takes her posi-
justment on screen to true the colors, and we
might reasonably ask how she finds the time to do
tion as a role model very seriously. Market
have a great website, very accessible. I do every-
so much outside work, and her answer is simply
America as a company is largely built on
thing online, I think it’s a cool way to do it. The
that when work is what you’re passionate about,
Loren and J.R.’s incredible personal story,
reps buy it wholesale, there’s no packaging to
you want to do it all the time. “I put my heart and
which continues to attract people from around
keep the costs low, and they price it for their cus-
soul into it, it’s everything I do. Me and Jennifer
the world. She draws strength from spiritual
tomers.” She’s also maintaining her online pres-
have the same thing –we sit on the floor with sto-
sources like Kabbalah, as well as her family
ence
blog,
ryboards and work.” Jennifer, of course, is her
and friends, but the speed and energy with
MyFashionCents.com, is growing quickly, and
best friend Jennifer Lopez, a similarly huge fig-
which she tackles life is all her own. “My life
her fans love it for the inside look it gives them
ure on the Miami scene and part of a close-knit
has always been about a great family, but I was
at Loren’s life, and the fashion and beauty tips
group of celebrity pals that support each other
always driven. I met this great guy, but he was
and deals she offers them. “I write every night
personally as well as professionally. Loren men-
even poorer than I was. People don’t have faith
at like, 2am!” she laughs, saying, “I didn’t ex-
tions with pride that the Jennifer Lopez Founda-
in us for nothing.” !
brands and then some,” she jokes.
ple – Loren knows better than anyone how her product will sell. “For me, I always say, you go to a new restaurant or you see a movie or something, and the best part is telling 10 friends about it. Women love to talk and share our experiences. It’s a way to capture that. We keep track of that and we pay them.” It provides a simple transition for women into the workforce, especially for those who want part-time work – including Loren’s friends. “There’s the wife of a big club owner here in Miami, her husband is a well-known, successful guy, and she’s started selling Motives. She told me, ‘I’m making my own money¬ – $300 to $600 a week!’ and she’s really excited about it.” The Motives sales model is designed to empower the women who sell it with knowledge and the freedom to build their own clientele. “We’re more of a QVC or Amazon than a Mary Kay or Avon, because we educate you about the prod-
in
other
ways
–
her
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Business and Pleasure in Miami
T
he buzz in the Miami Beach
This was the scene at the main convention
Convention Center is rising as
center space, which housed several themed
the clock ticks ever closer to
subgroups, although all are united in their mis-
noon on December 3rd. Journal-
sion to display the best of contemporary art.
ists, VIPs, art-world weirdos,
The central show comprised more than 250
and celebrities mix and mingle through the cor-
galleries from around the world, selling works
porate-sponsored champagne lounges, chatter-
both old and new. Indeed, this year’s uncertain
ing eagerly about the week to come and catching
economic climate seemed to be the reason that
up with old friends, as well as some early buzz
works from many tried-and-true names, includ-
from the night before. Early highlights include
ing icons like Keith Haring and Andy Warhol,
Takashi Murakami appearing at the Raleigh
and present-day powerhouses Damien Hirst,
penthouse in a plush costume of his own design,
Cindy Sherman and Matthew Prince, were resur-
as well as Naomi Campbell’s dramatically late
facing, as some collectors shed lesser works and
entrance to a retrospective of her best photos. Fi-
buyers sought the most value for their dollars
nally, the doors open, and a riot of silk scarves,
and euros. There were also themes within
cashmere sport coats and sky-high Louboutins
themes – Barack Obama-inspired portraits were
spill into what is, for the moment, the heart of
noticeably plentiful, as were financial crisis-
the art world – Art Basel Miami Beach.
themed pieces and installations.
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Art Supernova was more of the same, with 20 galleries from around the world joining in collaborative exhibitions of new and emerging artists
There was plenty of new blood in the Art
Soto), as well as a few thematic group exhibi-
Nova section of the exhibition, though, with 58
tions. This year’s Vernissage was arguably the
galleries presenting work from some of the
quietest in recent memory – collectors had time
most exciting young artists today, including
to browse, discuss, and even bargain, while
Dash Snow’s infamous newsprint collages, and
spectators were able to spend time with gallerists
a stunning, ceiling-height square chandelier
who in past years might have shooed them away
work called “Cube Light” by Ai Weiwei, who
in favor of paying customers.
was already drawing buzz at the festival for her
But, there was still plenty of action around
ceramic bubbles public art installation on Wat-
Miami. As the event has grown bigger over the
son Island. Art Supernova was more of the
years, the satellite festivals and parallel pro-
same, with 20 galleries from around the world
gramming have also increased in both number
joining in collaborative exhibitions of new and
and size. The central festival sponsors several
emerging artists, the interconnected gallery
other locations around town, including some
spaces presenting a mélange of paper, video,
breathtaking public projects. Highlights this
books, and performance art. Finally, the heavy-
year included Olaf Breuning’s gigantic reclin-
weights came out to play at Art Kabinett,
ing woman on the beach behind the Sagamore
where 17 galleries showed off their curatorial
hotel and Miami native COOPER’s “Dark
chops presenting exhibitions themed around a
Fountain,” a darkly glittering flow of water that
single artist (including historic figures like Meret
stands in stark contrast to the bright Miami
Oppenheim, Marcel Duchamp, and Jesus Rafael
sunshine. Many of the other projects were site-
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specific in some way: Tadashi Kamawata and
pong tables welcoming in the crowd. The Sta-
Ana Linnemann installed huts in palm trees
tion was a three-storey exhibition housed in a
and set another seemingly normal palm tree
Midtown Miami building. It flowed from a re-
spinning at two-minute intervals, playing with
tail concept to an office space to a duplex
our perception of our surroundings. The Art
apartment and boasted a significant roster of
Positions exhibition is a perennial favorite,
artists in their nonprofit exhibition, co-curated
bringing 20 young galleries to converted ship-
by Nate Lowman and Shamim M. Momim, he of
ping containers on the beach at Collins Park
the most recent few Whitney Biennials in New
and allowing them to transform the interior.
York. This is the show the Biennial has always
The crowd favorite by far was Raul de Nieves
wanted to be – edgy, urban, thematic through-
“I Scream You Scream We All Scream For Ice
out, and open to the public day and night to
Cream,” an ice cream party taking place in-
allow viewers to experience the show in all its
side a giant fiberglass banana split sundae.
possibilities. The O.H.W.O.W. “creative com-
The independent satellite fairs drew at-
pound” can’t rightly be called an art festival, nor
tention from critics and scenesters alike,
is it specific to Art Basel, but its ongoing goal, to
spreading the Art Basel excitement far beyond
synthesize the establishment art world of New
South Beach. The NADA Art Fair, run by the
York with the youth and energy of Miami for the
New Art Dealers Alliance, delivered on its
benefit of all experimental art, is commendable.
promise to showcase the best new work from
Aaron Bondaroff and Al Moran, whose collabo-
88 emerging galleries from all over the world.
rations with the international art world are a con-
The young, frequently performance-oriented
stantly stimulating presence in Miami, head this
works inside were complemented by the re-
creative community, and led the Art Basel exhi-
laxed mood outside, with hammocks and ping-
bition It Ain’t Fair, which included over 30
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artists in a film series, a curated exhibition, and a nightclub hosting indie acts like The Gossip and Spank Rock. Of all these, Design Miami is by far the largest and most established. It has become as significant an event in the world of design as ABMB has become in the art world, spawning other mini-festivals in the commercial space it commandeers across the bridge
“The O.H.W.O.W. “creative compound” can’t rightly be called an art festival, nor is it specific to Art Basel, but its ongoing goal, to synthesize the establishment art world of New York with the youth and energy of Miami”
from South Beach. Bridge, Green, Art Miami, Photo Miami, Scope, and Red Dot have all joined in here. Some, like Pulse, even play host
trailer sponsored by Sara Meltzer Gallery. When
her new book at his Raleigh Hotel. As usual this
to other art fairs themselves, such as the Japan-
she wasn’t outside her home base at the Sag-
was the center for Art Basel activities, including
ese art fair GEISAI! The reduced number of
amore she drove from event to event, selling
the annual Moet & Chandon-sponsored paint-
buyers meant an up-close-and-personal experi-
miniaturized bracelet charms of her back cata-
ball fight Art War, and an opening-night concert
ence at these venues in the early days of the fes-
log. Elsewhere, pop-up shops and store open-
by The Gossip, hosted by Jeffrey Deitch.
tival, but as the crowds poured in and the parties
ings, including art-world favorite Marni,
Even as the world’s culturati searched for
heated up, the mood turned jovial once again.
abounded even now. The new Mondrian hotel
hope in Washington and change on Wall Street
As always, there was a full complement of
drew Jeff Koons, Russell Simmons, and Marcel
(and in their pockets – Silvia Fendi’s new fur-
new hotels, shops, and parties centered as usual
Wanders, and the Gansevoort South and the
niture was just too good to resist) they were
on the Collins Avenue strip, even if budget cuts
Fontainebleau welcomed in an excited new
able to focus on the brighter, more beautiful
dictated more shrimp and less sushi than years
crowd. Andre Balazs invited Marc Newsom to
side of life. After all, that is what Miami and
past. Jude Tallichet set up shop in an Airstream
premiere a new watch and Kelly Klein to launch
Art Basel is all about. !
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T
he
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Constantin
growth of Vacheron Constantin here, from his perspective, is limited by
watch company is one of the
Vacheron
only one thing—the extremely limited and quality-controlled process
iconic Swiss watch produc-
of production at their factory.
ers, but one of their native
Their efforts in the last few years have been mainly directed to-
sons has taken on the role of
wards developing direct relationships with their customers. “We will
advocating for the Americans in this close-
do things like host a collector’s dinner to connect with our end custom-
knit world. As the President of Vacheron
ers, where we show them the products and talk about their collections.
Constantin North America, Julien Tornare is
The best advertising for a product like ours is word of mouth. When a
essentially in charge of all of the brand’s ac-
customer is buying one of our watches, he is registered, we send letters
tivities in the western hemisphere out of his
and gifts and really try to keep a good relationship with those people.”
home base in New York City, and his years
This targeted approach has been extremely effective, and they receive
with the company have made him an expert
so many requests for these events from both private customers and
on luxury watches in general and Vacheron
their retail partners who host the events that they have to limit them-
Constantin watches in particular. For the
selves to just a few a year in markets where they are looking to develop.
past four years, he has focused on increas-
In order to keep up with the demand for more information, they have
ing brand awareness, developing customer
created an online lounge (VRlounge.com), a forum of discussion for
relations and liasing with the head office,
the brand. “When you buy an expensive watch you don’t buy it to tell
where he spent the previous five years. The
time, you buy it for the emotional connection. People really buy it for
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the experience. When I talk to our customers, I hear they’ve bought X-
entirely in Geneva, where it has been for well
numbers of certain cars, but they get nothing from that that is personal.
over 200 years, and Julien frequently returns
People who spend this much money, they are even more susceptible to
to his hometown to collaborate with headquar-
small touches.”
ters. “The whole design process takes place
His background in finance and business contributed to his success
in Geneva, but our brand is inviting its big-
in his current position, but the watch industry ended up being his true
gest markets, including Hong Kong, Russia,
calling. “I was born in Geneva, I’m Swiss, and in Switzerland you have
Italy, and of course the US, to contribute to
the banks, the watch companies, and the chocolate companies. It’s
product developments.”
basically through some people I knew I found out more about watches.
The Quai d’Ille (Kay De Lille) is one of
I tried banking and I didn’t enjoy it, I missed the production and the
these major developments—for the first time
beauty of the object you are selling.” The heart of the company is still
you can fully customize your watch. “We went into that not only because it was trendy, but because in the beginning every watch was different. People now want more and different and so we felt we should offer them the ability to customize.” The priority is to stay always on the high end, respecting the history of the brand, but customizing it for the individual’s preferences, using a process that is truly revolutionary. “It took about four years to be able to do it, to make the parts customizable. There is a very limited network of retailers who will be able to sell the watch. They have a laptop in their store, with a touch screen, where you will be able to design your watch. We have trained the retailers to use this and each time we set up the equipment we spend half a day there to show how it works. It’s very user friendly and intuitive and so far we haven’t had any problems. When you select your watch the order goes directly to headquarters in Geneva, and you receive it in 10-12 weeks. You can personalize everything, to create the watch for yourself or someone else.” The staff members in these boutiques are there to reassure those who may be nervous about purchasing a watch costing tens of thousands of dollars over the internet, and customers can of course revise their the product as many times as they like before ordering. “We let them take their time. We want them to be really happy with their watch. The other thing that is amazing, you can see that we don’t have any dial on the
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watch, it’s glass and polymer and we use security printing to make sure the watch cannot be counterfeited. My CEO in Geneva met the worldwide expert in security printing and found out how the banknote printing works and decided to incorporate it.” So in some respects, your personalized watch has gotten even more personal, ensuring that not only is it one-of-a-kind, it will stay that way for the duration. He currently wears one of the test watches, the full titanium day-date, and in a way, it provides him with his own private version of market research among his circle. “It’s interesting to wear it, to see the reactions and comments from friends. I’m amazed by the watch as much as they are. When we introduced it in Geneva in April, we had a full standing ovation. I’ve never seen that before. That was a great feeling for me, having worked for years.” The way a watch can be customized is fairly complex when it is being done as thoroughly as it is here. “Normally, a watch case is a full piece of metal. Ours is seven components, so everything can be customized to different materials, shanks, bezel, etc. Other people offer to change the strap, the face, but never anything like this. We have six basic watches with up to 400 options total. Our movement is a totally inhouse movement, highly technical, and it’s never been done with a watch like this.” “The collectors right now, what they want more and more is something different,” Julien says. Many brands try to cater to this by going the route of the limited edition, which is the first step, but, says Julien, “we wanted to go much further than that. There are so many things in life that people are buying. The collectors have so many beautiful watches, but here they have the feeling they are part of the process, and they love the belonging feeling. He tells of one collector who ordered three pieces up front, one for himself and one for each of his sons, because ‘I want to tell
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them I practically made it myself,’” quoted Julien, laughing warmly.
of invitations and I could be out all the time.
“Our buyers have a lot of money, sure, but a lot of nice things. They’re
I live on the Upper East Side but I am often in
not the showy people; if they are new money they are money with a
the West Village or Meatpacking District to
lot of taste, a lot of culture, they want something they will keep for
meet interesting people, artists, trendsetters,
a long time and preserve. We have a lot of entrepreneurs, lawyers,
on the weekend. There are such great restau-
hopefully still people from finance,” he jokes. “They definitely have
rants all over, but I love Le Berdardin, I love
a cultural background in common. If you don’t know about watches
fish. Eric Ripert is a big fan of our brand. I
you may not notice ours is an expensive watch, but they have passion
try to change neighborhoods to get a different
for handmade products. They know the difference from a machine-
atmosphere. Traveling as much as I do, when
made watch. Often they collect other things, including cars, fine wine,
I can stay in the city I love it. My socializing
and artwork.”
in New York is mostly professional, but you
Worldwide, these special buyers are located mainly in China,
meet so many people with so many different
Russia, and the Middle East, specifically Dubai, as well as in the
backgrounds, I like to save space for my own
United States, and they have had fantastic results, quadrupling their
time.” In addition to watches, he professes
business in the last five years. “Originally the watch culture here
to be a collector of fine wines, although he
was lesser, but the culture is developing quickly, even if there are
left his car collection in Switzerland when
some unstable circumstances right now, our business is growing very
he came to New York. “I’m learning about American wine, I know more about French
“Our buyers have a lot of money, sure, but a lot of nice things. They’re not the showy people; if they are new money they are money with a lot of taste, a lot of culture, they want something they will keep for a long time and preserve.”
and Italian, but every time I’ve been in California I’ve done some tastings.” Julien feels that personally and professionally, there is still a great deal of development to come for him. “I’m very happy with what we’ve accomplished and we’ve done a lot with this team. However, because of the potential there is a big segment we need to reach, so at least for the next four or five years there is a lot for me to do in this position. Something new is happening every day. I’ve seen the products that are coming out over the next 4 years and I’ve given a lot of input
fast…it’s very challenging but it’s all about educating, which is a very
to make sure that the watches are good…
different job than my colleagues in a mature market, where the brand
the retailers have responded to say that that
is already known. We just talk-talk-talk, let them know why it’s ex-
communication has improved the watches. If
pensive. A watch costs as much as a Ferrari because our craftsmen
you don’t have the right products, you don’t
spend 3,000 hours on it.”
do business. It’s not by chance that we’re
While Julien’s job is extremely busy, it is not without its personal
the first to launch this new line that you can
rewards. “I’ve met amazing people in four years, who I never would
customize…I push a lot and fight a lot to get
have met in Europe, and that’s something I enjoy particularly in my
the brand in the right direction,” he says. His
job. Making the presentations, with 253 years of history behind our
pride in his work is palpable, only reinforcing
brand, its an amazing thing, it’s the part I enjoy the most. I spend a
his message of Vacheron Constantin’s com-
lot of time in the field, I’m meeting a lot of people.” His role interact-
mitment to continuing their legacy of luxury
ing with the movers and shakers of the world, who are the clientele
watch making and client satisfaction, any-
for his watches, have made him a figure on the scene in New York.
where in the world with those who appreciate
“When you live in New York you can go out every night; I have a pile
their craft desire. n
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T
he story of Geox’s invention is an entrepreneurial story that is almost too good to be true. In the early 1990s, Mario Moretti Polegato was working in the family business, making wines, when he went to Reno, Ne-
vada for a conference. Between meetings, he went out walking in the desert, in an old pair of sneakers, the brand of which he assiduously declines to name. He felt overheated in the harsh sun, and stopped to use a pocketknife to cut holes in the soles of his shoes. The improvement struck him as so good that he brought the sneakers home and set about developing the membrane that would be the foundation of his company. This is the innovation that sets Geox apart, as envisioned by their founder and perfected by their engineers: “The secret is the membrane insole—many small channels that let vapor out. These channels are 700 times smaller than a drop of water, so moisture can get out but it cannot come back in.” The insole is patented in 100 countries, but the company remains based in Venice, where it started 14 years ago. It’s now the leading shoe company in Italy, and regularly in second-place worldwide, based on their business plan comprising technology, fashion, and price, which is in the high mid-range, making in achievable yet uncompromising luxury. “It was a revolution to have this kind of success. On the one hand, it’s the technology, and on the other, it’s Geox’s style— Italian style. Everyone knows Italian quality and style.”
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A As we sit in Geox’s newest Miami boutique, in
the upscale shopping area on Lincoln Road in South Beach, any questions about whether there is a market for this kind of technology quickly fade. Not only is the humid South Florida weather a good reminder that people need to look stylish in all sorts of conditions, Mario points to Florida as an important mar-
138
ket because “it’s an international center. Most
modern athletic gear is familiar with mois-
section is merely the minimalist adult displays
of the shoppers here already know Geox be-
ture-wicking fabric, which lines the interior
in Technicolor, a convention which has been
cause it’s very popular in Italy, France, all over
of the jacket, and channels vapors to tiny
adopted by so many imitators, it is subtly
Europe.” And while this week may have been
holes in the back of the jacket, but Italian
thrilling to encounter the original.
more diverse than others, with the interna-
style applies here too – it must be beautiful
The company has been extremely suc-
tional art world descending upon Miami for Art
as well as practical, and what is actually a
cessful in positioning their products all over
Basel, looking out the open front doors onto
ventilation point appears to be nothing more
the world – Mr. Polegato estimates that “1 in
Lincoln Road, the jetset is always out in force
than a styling accent.
10 people in Europe own Geox shoes, and we
in Miami, and both the Lincoln Road and
Geox makes that style accessible to all
produced 23 million pairs in the last year
Aventura Mall stores have been very success-
people, for all occasions. More than any other
alone.” The flagship store in the Americas is
ful. Mr. Polegato himself is the best advertise-
single-brand store, Geox carries a truly full
in New York City, a sleek, modern bi-level on
ment for his products, a trim man staying cool
range of shoes – from dress to casual, for men,
Madison Avenue, but Geox maintains a pres-
in the Miami heat, his classic Italian good
women, and children. Geox began its retail life
ence in all major cities in the US – anywhere
looks complemented by a custom-tailored suit
as a source for children’s shoes and clothing, a
business is conducted, anywhere that draws a
incorporating his own technology. Though not
market that had not at that point been touched
sophisticated crowd. “Technology is needed for
in production yet, Mr. Polegato simply smiles
by adult quality designs. The company proved
everyone,” says Mr. Polegato. “Geox has a real
when asked if that is the next step for their
its reliability to parents, providing a built in
message – everybody needs quality leather
newest technological find.
and trusting audience when adult shoes started
and quality style.” Geox’s designers follow in-
The idea of breathable technology has ex-
rolling into the store. The design of the stores
ternational fashion and we make sure that their
tended to apparel, and it appears all over the
are free-flowing, yet clearly sectioned, so a
designs are comparable.
store – a subtle, stylized swoop of tone-on-tone
man browsing for dress shoes is partitioned off
In these troubling economic times, Geox is
fabric around the neck and shoulders that
from noisier young shoppers without ever hav-
thinking strategically about maintaining and
hides a system as ingenious as the one in the
ing to walk past something that is unappeal-
growing their business. “The economic situation
soles of their shoes. Anyone familiar with
ingly childlike. If anything, the children’s
is bad for retail, but particularly fashion, how-
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Geox’s designers follow international fashion and we make sure that their designs are comparable
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ever, our price can be maintained.” His business
city, every few days for much of the year. “In
special projects managers are devoted to visit-
sense is certainly something to be admired, and
Italy, I receive guests of the company, I’m ded-
ing countries all over the world to understand
he has always shown a keen instinct for innova-
icated 100% to my business. In the beginning,
local fashion.” They are currently in 68 coun-
tion, grounded in an unshakable faith in his prod-
I was the inventor – I started it all. Now it’s dif-
tries, and the goal is to be in the leading posi-
uct. “When I first got the patent, I searched for a
ferent. We’re very efficient in research. There
tion country by country before further
partner to make the shoes, but no one wanted me.
are 15 engineers specializing in human heat
expansion. For instance, Geox has 65 stores in
I started it myself in Italy with five young people
movement working in research and develop-
Russia, and are all over the UAE/Middle East,
from my village. We now have 30,000 employ-
ment, and we have many new patents to protect
with multiple stores in every major city. “There
ees.” He tells this story with a practiced but
our position.” In addition to developing new
we sell mostly sandals. They like to breathe.
proud demeanor, and indeed several business
technology, they’re also conscious to make sure
We have 10 stores in Dubai alone, including
schools and universities have hosted him as a
that their signature style is appropriate for all
one in the mall with the ski slope, which I like
lecturer to present his case history.
of their very diverse audiences. “There are dif-
very much.”
Lecturing is just one of the things that
ferent tastes country by country in terms of
The expansion has been continually trend-
takes up his time these days. “Every day I
style—we have different lasts, and there are
ing upwards since the company was founded,
move, visit my team, visit the store, and talk
special collections for Russia and Canada that
and their success has been as good for Mr.
with customers,” and then he’s off to another
never appear in Florida or even New York. Our
Polegato as for his well-shoed customer. In De-
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cemer of 2004, Geox listed 29% of their shares
throughout Italy for the symbols of his success.
in an IPO on the Milan stock exchange. Mr.
He collects vintage Moto Guzzi motorcycles and
Polegato retains a 71% ownership stake, and
a variety of high-end Italian sportscars, including
the company’s share price has increased by
two Lamborghinis and a Ferrai 260 Modena Spi-
30% since the listing. All this expansion has
der. He’s also quite invested in horsepower of an-
been good for the company, and good for Mr.
other kind – his five Arabian racehorses,
Polegato – he was named to the Forbes Bil-
including one named Geox, making regular ap-
lionaires list in 2007. However new he was to
pearances at tracks around the world, and every
the shoe business, Mr. Polegato had been de-
year he organizes fox hunting at his home.
veloping his business sense long before he struck out on his own.
He spends so much time traveling that being at the villa is a treat in and of itself, with such a
When telling the story of his inspiration for
fast-paced lifestyle. “My travel is mostly busi-
Geox, Mr. Polegato noted emphatically that he
ness travel, and my vacations are in the Med – I
still considers himself “a winemaker, not an
don’t like to use the plane for long distances
engineer or a stylist,” and his first passion was
when I don’t have to. The Med has very wonder-
for his first job, at Villa Sandi wines, his family’s
ful places and I always have many friends
vineyard, which is partnered with wine giant
there.” But vacations are far from top priority for
Robert Mondavi in the US, and is run by his
this busy executive, who this very evening, after
younger brother Giancarlo. Villa Sandi is also the
a quick cocktail hour spin on a friend’s yacht is
name of the family home, a stunning example of
off to Mexico City to visit yet another store. “My
Palladian architecture that was built in 1622, and
dream is to become one of the biggest shoemak-
houses much of the family on its grounds. He still
ers, and it’s a possibility to realize this dream.
retains many interests and passions outside his
It’s a great opportunity. We’re investing in our fu-
all-consuming focus on Geox, and is well known
ture and our customers.” !
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By Albert M. Herrera, Vice President, Hotels & Resorts, Virtuoso
I
am a self!diagnosed luxury hotel junkie.
ment to the test, one needs look no further
There's nothing quite like the high that
than the little desk often quietly tucked into
results from an unexpected "wow"
the lobby where miracles seem to be made on
that's been personally tailored and de!
a daily basis behind a small plaque that reads
livered in a beyond bustling metropolis or an
Concierge.
especially far!flung corner of the world. While
But who are these genies whose sharp in!
my standards may be exceptionally high be!
tuition, vast networks of contacts and meticu!
cause of the number of hotels with stunning
lous attention to detail make them seem like
design and amenities I visit each year, I think
the Wizard(s) of Oz on any given day? They
most consumers would agree that true luxury
are indeed all human and they all thrive on
always comes down to one thing: service.
providing truly astounding service of all types.
The concept of luxury travel and the hotel
The concierge names that are perhaps most
experience that affluent consumers seek has
noteworthy from my experience are Colin
certainly evolved over the years and continues
Short, Frank Laino, Fred Bigler and Aldo
to redefine itself, but what remains constant
Bullo. Those who are lucky enough to know
among standout properties is their spirited en!
them personally are guaranteed to take their
thusiasm and singular passion for delivering an
experience witin these respective cities to the
unparalleled experience with an unwavering
next level. Here are a few reasons why you
commitment to service. To put this commit!
might want to join them.
CHECKING IN WITH ALBERT HERRERA
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The Stafford
The Lanesborough
VIRTUOSO/GUEST EDIT:10dec
Colin Short, The Lanesborough (London, England)
Frank Laino, The Stafford (London, England)
Colin is known has often been referred to as "the
He's connected, he's efficient, and, Lord knows,
concierge who can." He embodies the indispensable
he can certainly deliver. After 25 years as a conci!
link that the role of concierge provides to the local
erge, Frank Laino is known for delivering tickets to
destination and is committed to upholding the hig!
sold!out West End shows with a personal review and
hest standards of the profession. As The Lanesboro!
a smile and has repeatedly topped "best of" lists in
ugh's head concierge, Colin has an enviable black
the industry.
book and his catch phrase says it all: "Leave it to
"A lot of concierge work is common sense and
me." Short started at The Lanesborough in 1984.
local knowledge, but becoming a really good one
Since then he's filled innumerable and far!reaching
takes years of handling different situations, odd re!
requests. As one guest once put it, "If you ask for a
quests, and wild goose chases," he says.
giraffe he'll deliver one for you the next day … but
Some of the most outrageous requests Frank has
that somehow isn't the bit that makes him special. He
received – and of course fulfilled – include arranging
simply has the contacts that other concierges do not
to have a red London bus shipped to the United Sta!
have." Indeed, when it comes to being at the beck
tes, having a tailor on Savile Row make a coat for a
and call of discriminating guests, it's all about con!
dog, and finding the one place in England that offers
nections, connections, connections. And, after ne!
Tai Chi lessons on horseback. He can also arrange
arly 25 years of building relationships and
private tours to Stonehenge and various London mu!
committing guest needs to memory, you just don't
seums and on more than one occasion (through his
get any better connected than Colin, which is undo!
contacts at Dunhill) has created customized male
ubtedly why he won the 'Concierge of the Year'
emergency kits including toiletries, wardrobe items
award for 2008.
and immediate alterations.
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The Ritz!Carlton
Hotel Londra Palace
VIRTUOSO/GUEST EDIT:10dec
Aldo Bullo, Hotel Londra Palace (Venice, Italy)
Frederick Bigler, The Ritz!Carlton New York, Central Park
Aldo has been working for 50 years at the Londra Pa!
In a city where connections are most vital, Fred
lace and is still going! Having started at the hotel as a por!
is king. When it comes to organizing anything from
ter when he was 15 years old and moved up to Concierge
a balloon ride over Central Park on short notice or
in 1975, no one knows Venice like Aldo, who is without a
a back of the house tour of the Met, Fred excels and
doubt the holder of 'golden keys' for making dreams come
takes great pleasure in blowing guests' minds to the
true, especially during the city's most magical events where
max. He has been Chef Concierge at The Ritz!Carl!
it pays to be linked to an 'insider', such as the annual star!
ton New York, Central Park, since it opened in
studded film festival in August and the legendary Masque!
2002, and some of his most unusual requests have
rade Ball for Carnival.
included finding armored vehicles for the wives of the Sultan of Brunei to go shopping along Fifth Ave! nue; get well cards, carob treats and bone!shaped
Albert M Herrera joined Virtuoso in July 2004 as Managing
pillows for four!legged guests; and creating a week
Director of the company's Hotel & Resort Program. A 20
of "Charlie's Angels" for three women celebrating
year career with working for some of the world's leading
their 40th birthdays – complete with slipping a cas!
hotel groups across several continents, Albert has innate un!
sette each morning under their doors at the hotel
derstanding of the luxury market, passion for travel and en!
with whispered instructions about the day's upco!
viable network of industry contacts built over the years.
ming adventures.
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SM ALL LUXURY RESORT S OF MEXICO
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F
150
ar from the mega-resorts and all-
there is a fabulous destination waiting for you on
showers, teak flooring, private hot tubs, and all
inclusive packages, there is an-
the Mexican Riviera.
the comforts of home. Newly added in 2007
other kind of Mexican getaway that
One of the major draws to this region is the
were three luxury residences, beachfront
captures both the magic and
El Tamarindo golf course, an 18-hole champi-
houses accommodating up to eight people in
beauty of this country and the spirit of its cul-
onship course set in a natural preserve spread-
four bedrooms, spacious living areas, private
ture with uncompromised luxury and dignity.
ing over 2000 square acres. Landscaped with
swimming pools, and outdoor dining, lounging,
Though similarly situated, along beaches and
local plants and showcasing the views of the
and jacuzzi areas — complete with maid and
nestled in mountains, they are a world away in
rocky coastline, the course is designed to wel-
butler service, on demand. The design of the re-
their experience, giving those who think they
come golfers of all skill levels, with near-per-
sort ensures that you can enjoy the beauty of
know what it means to vacation in Mexico
fect conditions year round. The course is
your surroundings in absolute serenity, with pri-
cause for a second look.
available to the public by reservation, but if
vate dining options in a variety of unexpected
Unlike the oversized properties on Mex-
golf is what draws you here, why not enjoy the
and beautiful locations, or make an appearance
ico’s Atlantic side, the Pacific Coast is home to
same natural beauty of the preserve for every
at the restaurants on property, La Higuera, next
smaller, more upscale, and infinitely more pri-
aspect of your stay? The El Tamarindo Beach
to the infinity pool, or Hole 9, perched high on a
vate resorts, with elegant styling and thoughtful
& Golf Resort sits on the Bay of Tenacatita and
hill halfway along the golf course.
amenities. Puerto Vallarta is commonly held to
has three private beaches to call their own,
For a more rustic hideaway than mani-
be the entry-level destination for this region, and
nearly two miles of oceanfront. Guests are
cured greens and sand traps, take a look at the
those who have walked its cobblestoned streets
housed in 29 perfect casitas, split between the
long sandy beaches at the Cuixmala estate,
often come back for more. Whether you’re a sea-
oceanfront, the forest and the garden. These
thought of by those who are in the know about
soned traveler to Mexico, or a first-time visitor,
freestanding houses are built with marble
the best of Mexico as one of this region’s hid-
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den gems. The resort is all about ‘eco-luxury,’
The cozy casitas and guest bungalows in
For those who come to Puerto Vallarta and
so you feel like you have fallen in to some kind
the forest are perfect warm-weather getaways,
just can’t seem to leave, the upcoming Los
of amazing tropical safari. During the day, go
but by far the best experience on property is
Veneros community is a promising treat in the
diving in Chamela Bay and see bright fish and
the estate’s private house, La Loma, where you
Puerto Vallarta real estate market for those
rays gliding through the water, and then turn
can soak in the gorgeous Mexican sunset from
looking for a second home or for a new, more
around that night and tag along on a round of
the outdoor jacuzzi off the master suite, while
sundrenched hometown. Pick out a three or
Cuixmala’s turtle protection program where
the house chef prepares dinner and your pri-
four bedroom condo – be sure to look into the
you will return baby turtles to the ocean by
vate butler supplies the frosty margaritas. For
ones that will include private pools so you can
hand. Or, simply take a walk around the Cuix-
dining, if you are the type that loves getting
keep up a fantastic Mexico glow in total seren-
mala grounds and look out for their wonders
groceries at Whole Foods, Cuixmala’s cuisine
ity. Los Veneros is being built in three phases,
on land – Cuixmala’s resort is home to deer,
will take you to an entirely new level of organic
but you can go ahead and pick out your slice of
crocodiles, zebra, and pretty little gazelle-type
bliss. Most of the food there is grown on loca-
paradise ahead of time to make sure that your
creatures called blackbucks. Every stay at
tion or at the family’s El Jabali ranch in the
Mexican dream condominium is completely
Cuixmala is personalized, so don’t plan on
Mexican highlands. Spend your morning with
perfect. Los Veneros plans to make service the
booking online. Instead, Cuixmala will have
a fresh cup of organic coffee and in the after-
hallmark of their residents’ and guests’ expe-
you work with an assistant so you can focus
noons pick up a spread of organic cheeses to
rience. Expect on-call reservations, private
your vacation on activities like hiking and
pair with a glass of white wine. Work it off with
tours, dry cleaning and shopping services, and
snorkeling if you are with children or on lazy
private yoga lessons in your suite, or don’t and
when complete, Los Veneros is going to offer
beachfront picnics and in-suite massages if
head back out to your plush white chaise on
what you might expect in a pleasantly refined
you are on a romantic getaway.
the pristine Cuixmala beach.
beach community. Think extensive spa, gour-
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met restaurants, and a boutique hotel you can
Like Los Veneros, the Mandalay will cater to the
one of a fleet of exclusive luxury boats you can
house your guests on property. Plan on parking
needs of those who are accustomed to the best
access. For tennis players, the Mandalay’s VIP
your yacht at the Puerto Vallarta marina, five
in life. Don’t worry about getting older – the
Tennis Club is choice for exclusive court time
minutes from Los Veneros, and during the day
Mandaly is going to offer a Wellness Center
and personalized lessons.
diving or snorkeling in the crystal waters of
under acclaimed anti-aging physician Dr. Hum-
Returning to the ultimate in Mexican Pa-
Puerto Vallarta. Or, stay out of the water and
berto Alcalde R.M. D. so you can draw up a per-
cific-coast vacations, if you are looking for a
pick up a round of golf on several of the no-
sonalized fitness and nutrition program and try
change of pace in Mexico that still offers un-
table courses nearby.
out the most innovative anti-aging treatments,
paralleled seclusion, like that at the Cuixmala
Also, just a few steps from the Puerto Val-
like hydro and ozone therapies. Additionally,
estate, but lets you see a different side of the
larta marina, take a look at the Mandalay Golf
the residences will feature 24-hour room service
country, your ideal destination is Hacienda de
Resort and Spa, another up and coming devel-
and a pre-arrival shopping service so your fa-
San Antonio, nestled next to a Colima volcano
opment in this area that promises to combine
vorite tequila can be waiting on your granite
just south of the Cuixmala resort. At the Ha-
the freshness of the indoors with the tranquility
counter top when you walk in the door of your
cienda, choose from one of 22 private suites or
of nature. Combining Mexican and Indonesian
penthouse. If you are thinking about the Man-
three grand suites, each with antique furnish-
accents, the Mandalay will open this year and
dalay as a new or second home, plan on picking
ings and its own personality. From charming
you will love being close to the authentic dining,
up a Yacht Membership so that you and your
fireplaces where you can warm your feet in the
shopping, and life of the Puerto Vallarta marina.
guests can enjoy all the Pacific has to offer in
cool Mexican night air to picturesque hammocks
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where you can read a good book during the af-
guests who come to this ultimate highland get-
also take off-the-menu requests for specific
ternoons, the amenities at the mountain escape
away and because the Hacienda is secluded, plan
dishes. Guests at El Careyes like to explore
of Hacienda de San Antonio are known to offer a
on flying in to the private airstrip so you don’t have
down the beach and many grab lunch or after-
unique experience that you can’t really get at any
to bother with extra transportation; however, if you
noon snacks at small beachside restaurants in
major Mexican hotel chain. Plan on spending at
so wish, the Hacienda will also coordinate trans-
the area. Think battered fish or fresh guac at a
least one afternoon on one of the Hacienda’s pool-
portation to and from Colima Airport.
beachside stand you stumble on. Many activi-
side beds that fit two. The hotel is personalized
Elsewhere, for a combination of individu-
ties at El Careyes are centered on the ocean –
and quaint, and staff are extremely friendly and
ality and beachfront relaxation, try El Careyes
kayaking, snorkeling and whale watching in
accommodating. In an atmosphere like this, you
Beach Resort, located in Costa Careyes just
the spring are favorites at El Careyes. Or if you
are probably going to get to know people’s names.
south of Puerto Vallarta. At El Careyes, skip
need to take a few hours away from the Mexi-
If you think of yourself as an outdoors type, days
the 19 standard rooms and indulge in a Junior
can sun, catch a movie in the 35-seated movie
at Hacienda de San Antonio are going to be very
Ocean Front Suite where you can lounge on
theater on property. Like Cuixmala, guests at
appealing – options include horseback riding or
your private ocean front terrace by day and dip
El Careyes can arrange to be part of a baby sea
day trips to the volcano, and organic dinners are
into your private Jacuzzi or plunge pool at
turtle release. El Careyes appeals to those in-
offered every evening at different places in the
night. If you’re really looking for the ultimate
dividuals who know they want the best of re-
hotel. If you are looking for a private dinner,
El Careyes experience, try the Careyes Suite,
laxation and aren’t looking for activities every
lunch, and breakfast, the staff at Hacienda de San
which offers a romantic overlook of the Pacific
moment – it is a perfect romantic or best
Antonio will bring you your fresh fish tacos to your
from its small balcony. The dining options at
friends getaway that could even satisfy any
suite or wherever you are on the hotel grounds. A
El Careyes are centered on the property’s La
seasoned Mexico traveler’s appetite.
private picnic in the lush Hacienda gardens or
Lantana restaurant, which serves breakfast,
If you are ready to create your own individ-
poolside is also a meal option of choice for many
lunch and dinner to guests. The chefs here will
ualized escape in Mexico, to the north of Puerto
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Vallarta in Cabo San Lucas sits the Esperanza Residences, the Esperanza Resort’s new private residence initiative with homes starting at 2 million. The city of Los Cabos is a favorite on the Baja Peninsula, and the area is known for its beautiful location on the Sea of Cortez. Nestled comfortably around the largest infinity pool in Los Cabos, the 36 Esperanza homes will combine the charm of old-world Mexico with the refinements of modern living. Expect secluded terraces and private attention from Esperanza’s chefs. Esperanza has sold out of their first round of available residences, but register through their website so that you can get ready for round two. If Los Cabos was your favorite spring break spot in college, you might want to consider this new side of the area that is springing up in luxury residences like those at the Esperanza. Our final choice for luxury vacationing in Mexico is Los Alcobas, a new boutique hotel in Mexico City’s chic Polanco neighborhood. If you prefer access to a true city experience of Mexico, imagine yourself coming back from a day in Mexico City, pulling off your Chanel python gladiators and stepping into a world of lush comfort. Unwind in the residences’ spa bathrooms that feature rain showers and whirlpool tubs, or settle in for a treatment at the Aurora Spa. Sleek rooms at Los Alcobas will appeal to business and leisure travelers alike. Designers Yabu and Pulshelberg, who have designed for the W and Four Seasons, are the visionaries behind this new frontrunner in Mexico City high-class. For dining, Los Alcobas offers Nemi, gourmet Chef Michael Mina’s newest undertaking. The hotel will only have 35 rooms so booking early is going to be priority for those who want to plan a trip to the capital. Although for many it’s the Mexican sand and sun that draw them to the country, Mexico City has a good offering of elegant and exclusive attractions. Find yourself at the D.O. or Aguila y Sol restaurants also in Polanco, or spend an evening in the city’s La Condensa district, which houses some of the best clubs and bars in town. !
TOP 10 CAR RACES:feb09 13/02/2009 14:28 Page 157
24 Hours Le Mans One of the oldest in age, this highly prestigious car race was created in 1923 near the town of Le Mans, in France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance, the race focuses not only on the speed ability of each car but also on the manufacturer’s deliverance of a car that demonstrates motoring beauty. The race demand for car reliability has led to the development of exotic supercars, which has trickled down to produce those technological innovations seen in sporty road cars today.
American Le Mans Series Created against the backdrop of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the ALMS is a race consisting of endurance and sprint racing across the US and Canada. There are four classes for the teams to be compete in: LMP1 and LMP2 for Le Mans Prototypes and GT1 and GT2 for Grand Touring Cars. Georgian businessman, Dan Panoz, created the first season in 1999 and factory teams consist of no less elegance than the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with the boasting of manufacturers such as Audi and Porsche in LMP and Cevrolet and Aston Martin in GT.
Dakar Rally Otherwise known as the ‘Paris to Dakar rally’, this annual race consists of off-road automobiles and is open to both amateur and professional entries. Beautifully set in off-road tracks from Paris to Dakar, drivers can expect to enjoy breathtaking surroundings of dunes, mud, camel grass and rocks, among others. With BMW motorcycles finishing in top positions, along with Rolls Royce deeming high in the car class, the manufacturers certainly produce a class of beauty to match the racetrack.
FIA GT Championship
TOP 10
A car-racing event initially created to run throughout Europe, the FIA GT Championship, founded by the Stephane Ratel Organization, is known to visit other continents, most recently
Asia. It holds two categories of GT cars, GT1 and GT2, and
with better aerodynamics, larger brakes and wider tires, it
boasts even higher innovation than the technologically innovative road cars upon which they are based.
Indianapolis 500 This 500-mile race, otherwise known as the ‘Indy 500’, is billed as the greatest of spectacle racing. As one of the oldest sporting events, it is considered one of the three most significant motor racing events in the world and it is thought that more than 250,000 people are in attendance. The notoriety of the race has made it the subject of several films and it is never far away from a reference in the media.
RACING EVENTS Start your engines, these are ten you’d be foolish to let pass you by
TOP 10 CAR RACES:feb09 13/02/2009 14:29 Page 158
F1 Championship Monaco Deemed the height of luxury racing, the Monaco Grand Prix has been host
ing, as it is the first event to kick of the year’s races in the US. The man-
to one of the most prestigious races in the world since its creation in 1929.
ufacturers are of the very high end, with Ferrari, Porsche and Lexus
Held on the narrow streets of the French Riviera City, the race is one of
boasting victorious wins.
skill and has produced notorious racers of fame, such as five-time champion Juan Manuel Fangio. Accrediting distinction not only for the race,
Goodwood Festival of Speed
the Monaco Grand Prix is notorious for attracting all that is glitzy and
Located within the United Kingdom and established by the present Earl
glamourous in the life of high-end racing, from sponsors such as Mercedes
of March, the FoS is a hill climb, taking place each year on the grounds
to the hosted Grand Prix party itself.
of Goodwood in West Sussex. Despite the date of the race clashing with the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1993, Lord March still received a crowd of
Gumball 3000
30,000 on his own grounds. Not just a racing event, guests can expect
A race with no home, this annual 3000 mile international rally takes
to see a display of some of the most beautiful cars from the last 100 years
place on public roads and holds the prize above all other races for its am-
and taste a breathtaking throwback to the past with its very own, tongue-
biguity. With no official timing or checkpoints, many competitors often
in-cheek soapbox race.
find themselves with speeding fines from officials. The race attracts the likes of many in the celebrity world with its wild parties that start the
Super GT
race off; Kate Moss and Guy Ritchie are to be named as only a few of
Originated in Japan, successive rule changes expanded the location of
those found to be in regular attendance.
the race to China and Malaysia; it was authorized directly by the FIA and therefore cannot expand outside of three countries if it is to remain ‘na-
Rolex 24 at Daytona
tional’. The series is promoted by the GT-association and is focused on
A 24-hour sports car race of endurance, it is held annually at Daytona
keeping the race competitive and clean. In order to avoid one-team dom-
International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. With Rolex as its
ination, JGTC impose strict limits on car power and are known for their
sponsor, it certainly affirms the presence of luxury within sports car rac-
heavy use of weight penalties. n
F1 Championship Monaco
Dakar Rally
Super GT
Indianapolis 500
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As we showcased Mr. Nazarian and Mr. Starck on the front cover with their sterling new SLS at Beverly Hills, we felt it necessary to pay homage to those faces and smiles that made us fall in love with the allure of Beverly Hills in the first place. Alas, it isn’t the quaint village of stars and their families it once was, but that doesn't mean we can’t live vicariously. Pictured above are Frances Albert Sinatra and the lovely Grace Kelly in a convertible on the set of High Society on January 19, 1956. Oh... to be a fly on the dashboard. We hope you enjoyed this issue. Please feel free to email us all you comments, concerns, questions and praises at letters at editorial@100thousandclub.com.
T H E R E ’ S N O B E T T E R P L A C E T O H I D E AWAY FROM THE REST OF THE WORLD.
Take sanctuary beside the Pacific F O R R E S E RVAT I O N S C A L L Y O U R T R AV E L C O N S U LTA N T, C O N TA C T F O U R S E A S O N S AT 1 - 8 0 0 - 3 3 2 - 3 4 4 2 I N T H E U . S . O R E - M A I L R E S E RVAT I O N S . C O S @ F O U R S E A S O N S . C O M W W W. F O U R S E A S O N S . C O M / C O S TA R I C A
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