Global Citizen 20

6 297000 388007

2014 may / june

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CONTENTS Business

21 First Word

42 Entrepreneurship

58 Entrepreneurship

26 World Cup Special Report

46 Real Estate

60 Philanthropy

28 Investment Destination

48 Entrepreneurship

62 Global Citizenship

30 Business

50 Business

94 Horology

34 Social Investing

52 Entrepreneurship

97 World of watches

36 Cover Story

56 Luxury

Private equity aids UAE companies abroad Has FIFA asked too much of Brazil?

Business boom in Brazil

Emirates CEO Tim Clarke Investing for Impact Angelina Jolie

Dragon Racing CEO Leon Price 15 Central Park West Newbark Sisters

Kilian Hennessy Richard Mille

ICFLIX CEO Carlos Tibi Cool Earth

Dominica economic citizenship Jean-Frede Dufour Baselworld 2014

Gulf Spending Power

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36

42

48

52

60

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INTO THE DREAM

KHAKI X-WIND

AUTOMATIC SWISS MADE Limited Edition

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lifestyle 100

130

132

100 Gizmos

116 Performance Art

126 Travel

102 Auto

118 Fashion

130 Fashion

106 Hotels

120 Little Black Book

132 Watches

114 Yachts

122 Dining

Style meets tech

Ferrari FF

Maldivian Luxury Lady Candy

Emirati visual artist Chokra

Mr.Porter’s Ian Tansley

Naples

Kenyan Safari

Nautical Chic

White Fever

New spots to keep cool

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Editor’s LETTER

“All’s well that ends well”. That is the likely mantra that will be chanted by the Brazilian authorities as their nation kicks the first ball against Croatia on June 12th in the World Cup opening game. Brazil has been dogged by criticism in the lead-up to this year’s World Cup over a series of missed opportunities, starting with last December’s missed deadline for the Fifa inspection of the stadiums, to the more recent violent protests on the streets of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Despite these setbacks, the Brazilian government insists the show will go on.

In our special report, GC’s Brazil correspondent Robin Yapp measures the legacy of infrastructure that will be left behind in 12 host cities, while Heba Hashem looks at the country’s investment grade and increasing economic ties with the UAE. Our New York correspondent Daniel Bates takes us inside what has been dubbed the world’s most powerful address, 15 Central Park West, and speaks to author Michael Gross who has penned the book House of Outrageous Fortune about the famed building and its celebrated residents.

Also in this packed issue, Paul Juziers profiles two of France’s most successful entrepreneurs, Richard Mille and Kilian Hennessy, who are dominating the global luxury market right now.

From the hustle and bustle of Naples, to the idyllic Maldivian atolls, to the more diverse African plains in Kenya, team GC has scoured the globe to bring you a bespoke travel itinerary for the summer months ahead.

Hope you enjoy the issue!

Natasha Tourish

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CONTRIBUTORS

Simon de Burton

Daniel Bates

Robin Yapp

is a UK-based journalist and author who covers a variety of subjects ranging from highend cars and motorcycles to luxury watches and international auctions. He is a contributing editor to the Financial Times How To Spend It magazine.

is a British freelance journalist based in New York. He is a regular contributor to the Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph and Daily Express in the UK and has covered major stories in his decade as a reporter, from the BP oil spill to the Boston Marathon bombing.

is a UK-based freelance journalist.

He was Brazil correspondent for the Daily Telegraph in 2010 and 2011, covering everything from business stories in Sao Paulo to favela pacification projects in Rio de Janeiro. In June, he will return to Brazil for the World Cup.

Heba Hashem

Emma Inglis

Gemma Champ

is a freelance journalist based between Abu Dhabi and Cairo.

She reports regularly on the solar and nuclear power sectors for CSP Today and Nuclear Energy Insider.

She has a BA in communications and media studies from Middlesex University.

cut her teeth on newspapers in London back in the 1990s before training as a psychologist. She recently returned to journalism and now writes for newspapers and magazines from CondĂŠ Nast Traveller to the Daily Telegraph on a wide range of subjects.

is a journalist specialising in fashion, the arts and lifestyle.

Over 14 years she has written for publications including The National, Menswear Insight, which she launched and edited, The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and the Daily Mail.

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GLOBAL CITIZEN editor Natasha Tourish - ntourish@reachmedia.ae Business Editor Tahira Yaqoob - tyaqoob@reachmedia.ae Lifestyle Editor Nausheen Noor - nnoor@reachmedia.ae ART DIRECTOR Omid Khadem - okhadem@reachmedia.ae Finance Manager Muhammad Tauseef - mtauseef@reachmedia.ae CONTRIBUTORS Gemma Champ, Heba Hashem, Emma Inglis, Simon de Burton, Robin Yapp, Daniel Bates, Bill Federman, Paul Juziers Printed by Masar Printing and Publishing www.global-citizen.com www.facebook.com/GlobalCitizenMag

Shane Phillips is a leading executive search consultant in the region and managing director of Shane Phillips Consultants, a local boutique search firm. Shane hosts his own show on Dubai Eye every Thursday evening called Eye On Careers.

MEDIA REPRESENTATIVE Fierce International Dubai Internet City Business Central Tower A | Office 2803 T: +971 4 421 5455 | F: +971 4 421 0208 tarek@fierce-international.com

REACH MEDIA FZ LLC publisher Armand Peponnet Advertising sales@reachmedia.ae SUBSCRIPTION subscription@reachmedia.ae Dubai Media City, Building 8, Ground Floor, Office 87, PO Box 502068, Dubai, UAE T: +971 4 385 5485 Email: info@reachmedia.ae Copyright 2014 Reach Media. All rights reserved.

Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the permission of Reach Media. Where opinion is expressed it is that of the author and does not necessarily reflect the editorial views of the publisher or Global Citizen.

All information in Global Citizen is checked and verified to the best of the publisher’s ability, however the publisher cannot be held responsible for any mistake or omission enclosed in the publication.

Bill Federman has worked as a journalist and editor for nearly four decades, writing for the Wall Street Journal, the Boston Globe and regional newspapers in New England. He is currently an editor and columnist for the Times Union newspaper in Albany, New York.

Getty Images / Todd Plitt

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June 2014

SERIES

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Cannes Film Festival 14th-25th May

The Global Citizen Series 19th May- 1st Sept

Grace of Monaco, starring Nicole Kidman is set to open the 67th annual Cannes Film Festival on May 14th. However there is already a transatlantic fight brewing between the US distributor Harvey Weinstein and the French filmmakers Olivier Dahan and Pierre-Ange Le Pogam over the tone of the movie that is making it one of the most talked-about premieres.

The Global Citizen Series is a network of events focusing on Global Citizenship programs. To date, the series has held events in Vancouver in Toronto and Dubai and has upcoming events this month in Pakistan followed by Iraq and Lebanon to update the industry on available second residence and citizenship programmes with unparalleled attention to procedures,benefits and timelines.

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Golden residences & citizenship-by-investment 3rd June Grand Hotel Kempinski, Geneva and 4th June Zunfthaus zur Saffran, Zurich

Philanthropy Summit June, New York City

The most traditional Concours d’Elegance event in the world, held in the idyllic surroundings of Lake Como in Italy. The classic car event was first held in 1929 and since its revival in the 1990s the Concorso has improved year on year due to the originality and state of preservation of the precious automobiles taking part in the event.

For Global Citizens who want to learn more about tax havens for over-taxed Europeans, security for MENA clients after the Arab Spring, access to Schengen area for Russians and Chinese clients or new immigrant investment programmes in Malta and Portugal as well as the UK, Canada, Singapore and Dubai.

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the first word Perspectives from the top

From Small Shoots to Global Roots “Do you think the resurgence of the private equity market in the UAE will increase the number of UAE-based entrepreneurs on the global stage?”

Samer Sarraf

partner and UAE director, Amwal AlKhaleej “The role of growth capital private equity investors such as us is to help entrepreneurs take their companies to the next level. In many cases this translates to growth on a regional level and in some cases, on a global level. However, the resurgence of private equity (PE) investments, while noticeable, is still below average and as such we will see a limited number of PE-backed companies rise to the global stage.”

Benjamin Newland

partner, King and Spalding international law firm “In the last five years there has been a significant shake-out in Middle Eastern private equity. The players that remain are stronger, with teams that are more focused on operational improvement and geographic expansion. On the company side there also seems to be an increasing recognition that the right partners can work with existing management as facilitators for governance issues, building out a brand and accessing new markets. Together with the generally improving economy, the next few years are likely to see a wave of non-hydrocarbon business success stories.”

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The first word

Dr Pablo Fetter

head of investments, GEMS Education “With regional economies (in particular in the UAE and KSA) among the fastest growing in the world, capital markets showing superb performanceand investment activity accelerating, all the stars seem aligned for a resurgence of private equity.

Interestingly, Dubai is also becoming a regional innovation hub, attracting young entrepreneurs with promising start-ups as well as a nascent venture capital and angel investment community. If this ecosystem is properly fostered, Dubai might in due course become the Silicon Valley of the East.”

Amjad Ahmad

senior managing director, Alternative Investments, NBK Capital “The private equity industry has been, and will continue to, provide capital and resources to entrepreneurs that can capture a disproportionate share of growth. Having a private equity firm as a partner prepares entrepreneurs for the global stage, given the structured and disciplined approach to business. The combination of strong local private equity firms and dynamic entrepreneurs will definitely lead to several local companies expanding regionally and possibly internationally in the coming years.”

Imad Ghandour

managing director, CedarBridge Partners “The most successful private equity funds are those that create regional and global champions, investing in emerging entrepreneurial spirit in the UAE, leveraging Dubai’s growth and global connectivity and catapulting such companies into regional and global leadership. There are few examples from the past and many successes in the making like Kids First Group in education, Metito in water and TechnoScan in healthcare.”

2014 may / june 29

World Cup Special Report

Kicking Brazil’s World Cup Plans into Touch As Brazil prepares to host the World Cup, has its plans to transform 12 host cities proven a step too far?

hen Brazil first secured the World Cup, the former star footballer Romario stood side by side with his nation’s triumphant delegation in Zurich as Fifa announced its winning bid.

But in the seven years since, Romario has entered politics and become a strident critic of the vast spending on 12 World Cup stadiums while the country’s infrastructure and public services remain inadequate. Off the pitch, he recently claimed, his country “has already lost the World Cup.” Serious delays at several stadiums have given football’s global governing body Fifa cause for concern with last minute works continuing in Curitiba, Cuiaba and Sao Paulo, host of the opening match on June 12th.

Sports minister Aldo Rebelo has guaranteed the stadiums will be ready in time, pointing to Brazil’s experience in organising the world’s biggest carnival every year, therefore the World Cup would not pose a problem, adding: “I cannot see how we will have a major challenge.” Nevertheless, Fifa has seen fit to remind the host nation there is “no choice” in the matter.

Which begs the question: why do nations spend billions every year competing to host, and then staging, sporting events on such a huge scale in what can only amount to a massive headache for governments and city planners?

On the plus side, there is the unique opportunity of demonstrating social cohesion, sound organisation, economic planning and attracting tourists.

The potential benefits are huge, as witnessed in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona and more recently with the London 2012 Olympics, where a nation perhaps better known for its cynicism than jingoistic pride unexpectedly united in patriotic fervour. The UK also received a £9.9 billion ($16.7 billion) trade and investment boost in the 12 months after the Games.

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The allure is clear – perhaps especially so for developing nations – but achieving all these criteria is a tough task.

Romario’s comments highlight mounting focus within Brazil on the choices authorities have made about wider infrastructure projects planned for the tournament, many of which have not been delivered. Of 50 urban mobility projects originally listed, 22 were withdrawn and only five were finished by April including a $705 million light rail line connecting Cuiaba and its nearest airport, which will not open to the public until 2015.

Separately, a tender for a 260-mile high speed rail link between Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro has yet to be awarded.

Meanwhile Manaus is the only host city not to receive a single urban transport upgrade while there are fears its 42,000-capacity stadium will become a white elephant in a city without a major football team.

The International Monetary Fund blames weak infrastructure for holding Brazil back - no surprise since it ranks 114th out of 148 nations in that respect, according to the World Economic Forum.

Professor Simon Shibli, head of the Sport Industry Research Centre at the UK’s Sheffield Hallam University, says sporting events can be “a Trojan horse” in the development of airports, urban transport and hotels.

He says Barcelona delivered “40 or 50 years of infrastructure improvements,” transforming its image and creating a lasting legacy as a leading tourist destination.

But he adds: “Brazil has not seen the World Cup in those terms but rather as just an event and a hassle to meet the regulations.

“Fully functioning stadia that look the part are essential. But when there is a squeeze, the first thing to go are the desirable elements – social legacy and infrastructure impact.”

Of 13 major airports undergoing improvements, only two

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

By Robin Yapp

xxxxxxx

Brazils Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo (L) and FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke (R) on a tour of the Arena Sao Paulo in January this year

– in Natal and Recife – are considered fully ready, while passengers in Fortaleza will have to pass through a temporary canvas terminal.

Eventually, these works will have to be completed and October’s presidential election will provide another incentive for the government to hurry them along.

Once the winners have lifted the trophy and the anticipated 600,000 foreign supporters have left, what else can Brazilians expect in terms of infrastructure and legacy?

Rebelo says none of the projects put forward by the Matrix of Responsibilities, a strategic investment plan for World Cuprelated upgrades in host cities signed by former sports minister Orlando Silva in 2010, will be abandoned.

“The legacy of the FIFA World Cup has been ensured,” he says. “Brazil will have safer and more comfortable cities, more modern airports and ports, in addition to a more efficient public transport system.

“Congressman Romario has the right to voice his opinion on any subject. Brazil has had several victories off the pitch:.

Thousands of workers were employed by World Cup-related construction works.

“A study by Ernst and Young Consultancy and the Getulio Vargas Foundation shows the World Cup is going to generate 3.6 million jobs in Brazil.”

According to Rebelo, the six million visitors passing through Rio, Recife and Salvador during the last carnival - about double

“Fully functioning stadia that look the part are essential. But when there is a squeeze, the first thing to go are the desirable elements – social legacy and infrastructure impact.” the total number of tourists expected for the World Cup - are a good mark of Brazil’s ability to cope with crowds.

And just as London pushed sustainability up the agenda for sporting events, Brazil has picked up the baton with solar panels in many stadiums with all 12 applying for leadership in energy and environmental design awards from the US Green Building Council.

But Adriano Pires, head of the Brazilian Infrastructure Institute, a Rio-based consultancy, said Brazil’s determination to have 12 host cities for political reasons has been a major problem.

“There will be benefits but they will be much smaller than hoped,” he says. “With fewer host cities they could have achieved more.”

2014 may / june 31

Investment destination

Business BOOM in Brazil Imports from Brazil to the UAE have nearly quadrupled in the last decade but a question mark looms over the nation’s investment grade

By Heba Hashem

ootball, carnivals and coffee have become synonymous with Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy and the world’s seventh biggest. But this vast nation of two million people has much more to offer.

As it prepares for the presidential elections, this year’s World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, Brazil has an eventful year ahead.

Public funds of nearly $5.97 billion have been allocated for the World Cup’s stadiums and related infrastructure, while another $4.9 billion has been reserved for the Olympics in Rio. In addition, private investments are expected to generate funds towards improving airports, building hotels and enhancing the telecoms network.

Unlike London, where the transport network only required upgrades prior to the 2012 Olympics, the infrastructure in Rio de Janeiro needed massive improvements, including the construction of a new underground line and four bus rapid transit links, one of which is now operational.

Strong demand is also anticipated for services within the sports sector, such as hospitality support, software development and public relations. These developments represent lucrative opportunities across various industries, which explains why companies from across the globe are flocking to Brazil.

Last year alone Skyline Worldwide, a UK-based provider of serviced apartments, Dalet Digital Media, a French developer of media asset solutions, and German logistics group Dachser all opened offices in Rio. US-based Skim and Baker Botts have also followed suit.

While the Olympics is two years away, business relationships in Latin America take time to develop, mainly due to cultural differences and language barriers.

“The greatest challenge without any doubt is the language as English is not spoken widely, particularly outside Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Basic knowledge of Portuguese is of huge assistance,” says Cecilia Paetzelt, legal counsel at Dubai-based M/Advocates of Law and a former lawyer at Unibanco, Brazil’s largest private sector banking group.

“Investors should also make good tax planning as the taxation

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system is quite complex in Brazil,” she says. Those who overcome the initial hurdles, though, can benefit from incentives including foreign ownership and permanent residency.

“The most important incentive for foreign investors is the absence of a mandatory Brazilian partner while setting up a business in the country. Foreigners can own a legal entity in Brazil entirely.”

A permanent resident visa can also be obtained by an individual who invests a minimum of about $65,000 in a new or existing company while the remittance of currency that allows foreign investors to receive dividends or capital repatriation outside Brazil is free from withholding income tax.

Concerns have been mounting in recent months over Brazil’s hard-earned investment grade, with Barclays suggesting the country could lose this rating early next year if its fiscal deterioration continues. Standard & Poor’s, which upgraded Brazil’s credit rating in 2008, said it would wait until the presidential elections later this year before deciding whether to cut the country’s rating.

In an attempt to curb state spending, Brazil has been offering concessions on infrastructure, natural resources and transport.

Last year, for example, the government auctioned off the giant Libra oilfield – believed to hold up to 12 billion barrels of crude – in the first auction for a pre-salt oilfield since 2008.

Oil, however, might not be Brazil’s biggest asset any longer since many wells that were drilled in the pre-salt area have come up dry. This is believed to have led to the bankruptcy of OGX, the country’s second biggest oil company after Petrobas, which itself is in heavy debt. In fact, the winning consortium of the Libra exploration rights was the sole bidder in the auction.

With speculations shadowing the oil sector, it might be wiser to focus on Brazil’s other assets, which range from food products and construction materials to medical and odontologic equipment.

Not only is Brazil the world’s largest producer of sugarcane and coffee, but it is a net exporter of cocoa, soybeans, orange juice and tobacco and a major producer of iron ore.

xxxxxxx

New investment projects like the Olympic Velodrome in Rio and the Octavio Frias de Oliveira bridge in São Paulo hope to reshape Brazil’s economic landscape.

“These products are well known in the world for their high quality and good prices. We believe they can top UAE consumers’ preferences,” says Dr Michel Alaby, general secretary and chief executive of the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce.

The UAE already imports large volumes of goods like sugar, meat, cereal and coffee from Brazil with total imports nearly quadrupling over the past decade and sending import sales rocketing from $551 million in 2003 to $2.58 billion last year.

Brazilian imports from the UAE have also increased in the same period from $18.78 million to $610 million.

“Many investment companies from Brazil and the UAE are creating interesting synergy and generating mutual jobs,” says Dr Alaby, who cites the opening of Brasil Food’s production plant in Abu Dhabi as one example. The Brazilian food producer owns the Sadia and Perdigao brands and has been marketing

them in the Middle East for 26 years.

UAE investments in Brazil include Dubal’s joint venture with Brazilian mining giant Vale and DP World’s majority stake in Embraport, Brazil’s largest private multi-modal port terminal. Polyolefin producer Borealis, in which the Abu Dhabi government-owned International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) has a majority stake, also operates in Brazil through its joint venture with Braskem.

There have also been several visits between the two countries by dignitaries, including Brazilian vice president Michel Temer visiting the UAE last November and Sultan al Mansoori, the UAE’s Minister of Economy, taking a delegation of businessmen to Brazil.

With three daily flights connecting Brazil and the UAE and several weekly cargo flights, the economic and political ties between the two nations seem set to get stronger.

2014 may / june 33

The president of Emirates airline Tim Clark talks rapid airport expansion in Dubai, the recent tie-up with Qantas and why Britain needs better rail connections

By Nathalie Thomas

ver wondered what happens to a 258-seater jet when it starts to look a bit dated? “Cut up in the desert,” says Sir Tim Clark, the long-standing president of Emirates airline, matter of-factly.

“Sad but that’s what you have to do. They are no use to us.”

Emirates’ Airbus A340-500 aircraft may only be eight or so years old, but some of them will soon end up in the warm waters of the Arabian Gulf, surrounded by coral and divers.

“They have no value so we strip out all of the parts as best we can and then the government takes them, sanitises them and makes them environmentally friendly and creates reefs,” says Clark.

It may seem brutal but there is no room for sentimentality in the fast-paced environment at Emirates, which is already

34 may / june 2014

the world’s biggest airline by international passenger traffic and growing rapidly. It is out with the old and in with the new after Emirates placed the biggest order in the history of civil aviation for larger, far more fuel-efficient planes in November last year.

Emirates is already the biggest operator of A380 super-jumbos - it took delivery of its 44th at the end of last year - and it has a total firm order book of 385 aircraft, also including Boeing 777s and Airbus A350s.

Although the real sums that change hands over aircraft deals always remain cloaked in secrecy, the list value of Emirates’ order book is $166bn.

It’s an eye-popping number but then that’s only to be expected for the national carrier of Dubai, which is now firmly back in expansion mode following its debt crisis of 2009.

Image courtesy of Getty Images

Flying High

Nathalie Thomas/ The Telegraph/ The Interview People

Business

Business

Last year Emirates airline carried 43 million passengers. Last year’s record-breaking order will not only help replace some of its older, fuel-guzzling jets but will also help it to reach a target of 70m passengers a year by the time the World Expo comes around in 2020. Not bad for a carrier that started out in 1985 with just two leased aircraft and was, for a long time, scorned by the establishment in the aviation industry amid accusations - false ones, Clark hastens to add - that it was being propped up by subsidies.

“Dubai... has kickstarted again in a very big way, so pressure is on,” says the 64-year-old president, who is on remarkably chatty form, despite having just completed the latest part of a journey that has taken him to Boston, Seattle, Sydney and now London for a meeting with the mayor.

Clark, an aviation man through and through who has been part of Emirates’ senior management team since its inception, is on Boris Johnson’s London advisory board, which must make for interesting conversations given that Dubai, which will have two hub airports by 2020, is attracting business away from London and other European airports, while policymakers in Britain go through another lengthy process to decide where to build the next runway in the south east of England.

The authorities in Clark’s chosen home are spending $7.8bn to enlarge the existing dominant airport, Dubai International, so that it can handle 90m passengers a year by 2018. The emirate’s second airport, Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central, close to the site where the World Expo will be held in 2020, is also being expanded into a five-runway mega-hub which will accommodate 160m passengers a year.

With the independent Airports Commission - launched in the UK in 2012 to maintain its status as an international airport hub and helmed by the economist Sir Howard Davies - not due to decide on where best to build London’s next runway until after the general election next year, Dubai authorities must be rubbing their hands with glee.

Clark, who was born in the Dutch Antilles and attended boarding school in Kent, is reluctant to brag at the expense of the nation that handed him a knighthood as part of the New Year’s Honours list.

“They [the Dubai authorities] don’t set out to say: ‘Ha ha, look at them’,” he says. “It’s a fact. Business people coming from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the Indian Ocean - whereas in the past they might have gone through European hubs, they don’t,

they come to us. The connectivity is much quicker. There are no visa requirements for them to come through Dubai. If a Sri Lankan comes through London even on a transit basis, he’s got to have a visa.”

London is still an enormous draw for passengers around the world, says Clark, but he believes the decades of political squabbling over airport expansion has cost the UK - and the national flag carrier, British Airways - dear.

“I said to Howard Davies, if you unconstrained Heathrow today in 2014, where would it be if you allowed it to grow with a third and fourth runway? I said you’d be at 130m [passengers a year] now, not 60m to 70m.”

Clark has told the Airports Commission he believes the easiest option for Britain is to put a third runway at Heathrow, followed by a second at Gatwick. Boris’s idea of a brand new hub airport in the Thames Estuary is “great”, he says, except he isn’t clear how people would actually get there: “You would have to make the M25 probably 10 lanes on either side.”

Whatever decision the commission makes, Clark is adamant that connections to London’s airports, where Emirates is a significant customer, must be improved as a matter of priority. “If you want to come from Gatwick up to central London you really don’t want to get on a train that stops at Croydon. You want to get on a high-speed train like Lufthansa does, 200 miles an hour to Stuttgart.”

As well as drawing business away from European airports, Dubai has been boosting its international passenger traffic courtesy of Emirates’ tie-up with Qantas, in which Australia’s flag carrier moved its stopover for flights to Europe from Singapore to Dubai.

Since the partnership was announced in September, however, the news out of Australia has made for painful reading. Qantas’s chief executive, Alan Joyce, has been embroiled in a battle to keep the Aussie airline flying. Last month Qantas unveiled a A$252m half-year loss and is having to axe about 15 per cent of its 30,000-strong workforce.

Before arriving in London, Clark was in Sydney for what he described as “our first get-together of any real flesh” since the partnership was launched. The arrangement was something of a watershed moment for Emirates which, apart from a foray into the Sri Lankan aviation industry in the late 1990s, has always stuck to what Clark admits is a “fairly purist” business model of organic growth. It has always shunned airline alliances, such

2014 may / june 35

Business

as oneworld and SkyTeam. With the exception of codeshares, Emirates has always doggedly gone it alone.

So when it did finally enter into a partnership, did Clark back the wrong horse? “No, I don’t think we backed the wrong horse,” he defends. “The partnership is doing what we thought it would do.

“Dubai has been a beneficiary. We have had many Australian tourists - 260,000 in the last 10 or 11 months have stopped over in Dubai.”

But he admits: “It hasn’t helped that [Qantas] has had problems. When that happens to a relatively small group, there are other things that fall slightly by the wayside.

“I’m not saying for a moment that Alan has let our relationship between the two companies and the endgame ... slip, it is just that he has got quite a tough situation on his hands.”

In 2012, Emirates Group, which also includes the Dnata air services group, made a profit for a 25th consecutive year. At the halfway stage of the last financial year, which fell on September

30, Emirates airline announced net profit of $475m, up two per cent, despite high fuel prices and economic uncertainty in some global economies.

From the outside it may seem as though everything is plain sailing for the group, which remains wholly owned by the Dubai government. Sir Tim says profits are not rising as much as he would like and nothing can be taken for granted in the aviation industry, which is littered with risks, from high fuel prices, to geopolitical events.

In February, for instance, Emirates launched a new route to Kiev only for the Crimea crisis to break out.

How is that route faring? “Badly,” the affable airline veteran says, laughing. “A few years ago I used to say to my team when we were preparing for the next year: ‘Listen, there will always be two global traumas, which will affect us quite badly. We can’t budget for that but we must expect it.’ Now I say there are five.”

Even so, Clark remains confident Emirates will continue to defy its critics and stamp its authority on global aviation.

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

“It hasn’t helped that they [Qantas] have had problems.

When that happens to a relatively small group, there are other things that fall slightly by the wayside.”

36 may / june 2014

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Social Investing

Investing for Impact Impact investing is a new model marrying wealthy investors with social businesses and philanthropic causes - but it comes with its critics. GC talks to one of its pioneers

By Tahira Yaqoob

im Radjy was on secondment to Bolivia when he had a life-changing epiphany.

Contracted to spend four months assessing microfinance schemes in the Latin American country as part of his civil service for the Swiss government, it was a revelation seeing social businesses having a profound impact on poverty without any international support.

The 39-year-old returned to his job dealing with ultra high net worth individuals within the philanthropy services department of the Swiss investment bank UBS, but an idea was already crystallising for a role which would bind his altruistic outlook more securely to his expertise in investment banking and debt funds.

“I was stunned by the quality of their management, by the high level of social impact they were having, really driving out poverty and changing lives,” he says. “I was also stunned by the complete lack of familiarity with anything approaching international investors.

“I decided to leave the bank because I felt we had pushed the envelope as much as we could with its philanthropy offering.”

Radjy, a Bolivian-Iranian born in Tehran and raised in Geneva, is one of the pioneers of impact investing, a relatively new concept which aims to encourage a form of socially responsible investing by matching the wealthy with initiatives in developing countries where there are viable economic and social benefits, with the promise of a financial return to investors.

He left UBS in 2007, when the term impact investment was first coined, to launch the Zurich-based AlphaMundi, one of the first funds set up for that purpose.

To date, it has ploughed $10 million into 13 projects, from an education bond called Finae in Mexico, set up to enable high-achieving students from low income families to attend universities, to Solar Now, a Dutch initiative behind the distribution of solar energy products to homes in rural Uganda deprived of electricity.

The latest scheme is a partnership with Changamka, which runs a health insurance programme in Kenya allowing members to pay for medical treatment by mobile phone in low, flexible instalments. In a country where just three per cent of adults have any form of insurance, Radjy says it will mean health cover for up to eight million more Kenyans within five years.

38 may / june 2014

Impact investing, says Radjy, is the “hybrid between the NGO and the banking world”, capable of tapping capital markets to support social businesses and taking greater risks in developing and backing innovative new products than charities or government institutions can afford to.

The British Prime Minister David Cameron launched a Social Impact Investment taskforce at last year’s G8 summit, hailing the movement as a “great force for social change.”

Indeed, the UK has been setting the agenda worldwide for the trend in social investing with an eye on profit. It was behind the world’s first social investment bank called Big Society Capital.

“Impact investing is the hybrid between the NGO and the banking world” Tim Radjy, founder, AlphaMundi Group

Like venture capitalists 50 years ago, impact investors like Radjy are at the forefront of a new financial trend which has not been in existence long enough to measure its benefits and shortcomings. Radjy admits funds like AlphaMundi are compensated below market value in a traditional financial market and has only been able to deliver interest rates of three per cent so far, although he anticipates that doubling when the operation expands.

But beyond that, there are much deeper and more profound questions to be asked: is it not the role of governments to fund social development in their own communities? And is there a danger impact investors could be accused of profiteering from poverty?

“I do not think impact investing is a substitute to government and philanthropy aid,” says Radjy. “I think it is a complementary

Social Investing

tool and one that will enhance the work of government and philanthropy aid and could lead to bigger and more permanent results in some cases.

“It is normal for governments to provide a certain degree of public good but we cannot rely on government the whole time to deliver 100 per cent of the public goods required for human dignity...there is an opportunity to accelerate development through impact investing.”

Impact investing can take greater risks than charitable or government institutions in funding research, advocacy and groundbreaking technological advances, he argues.

It is clearly an approach that is working. Radjy is currently in talks with public sector agencies like USAID in America, the UK’s international development fund CDC and the InterAmerican Development Bank about partnering with them and co-financing projects.

With his access to capital from wealthy European private investors and the public sector ethos of initiating social community projects, Radjy says it is a necessary next step to “get to the next threshold of scale where we can start pitching our funds to pension and insurance funds, the guys with the real big bucks.”

“Development agencies understand the markets and can commit more substantial amounts of between $1m and $5m each.

“They understand it might be a challenge in the future for developed country governments to continue to allocate so much money so they see the benefit of leveraging their expertise and efforts. By building up private sector intermediaries, they can mobilise private sector capital to complement their efforts.”

AlphaMundi, which began with two seed capital investors, opened up to new investors in March and now has six on board, each investing just over $1m.

They range from an elderly woman who decided to switch from charitable donations to impact investing, to company executives and those with inherited wealth.

For Radjy, whose father worked for the United Nations, expansion cannot come soon enough: “I am frustrated, if not scandalised, by the fact we have the technology, the knowledge and the capital to implement solutions today. If we do not do it, some people in the world are going to have to wait 20 or 30 years to have basic services. If we can shorten that waiting time and reach out to more communities and make money in the process, why not do it?”

AlphaMundi Group projects: L-R Opening of Changamka Micro Insurance, transforming access to health services in Kenya and below Terrafertil which helps smallholder farmers produce golden berry in Ecuador and Colombia, from farm to market 2014 may / june 39

Jason Bell ŠDisney 2014

Cover story

40 may / june 2014

Cover story

Living the Fairytale Fresh from filming her latest role as a vindictive fairy in the Disney film Maleficent, which premieres this month, Angelina Jolie talks about her role as a United National goodwill ambassador, happy families and nights in with Brad

By Kurt Keller

2014 may / june 41

Cover story

eing one half of the world’s most famous celebrity couple hardly registers with Angelina Jolie. She is so used to being endlessly photographed, followed and scrutinised in the media that she handles the attention as if it were routine behaviour, possessed of an iron will and clarity of purpose that would match that of any SAS unit leader or hedge fund trader - not that either occupation holds any particular attraction for her. As a mother of six children, three of whom are adopted, Jolie is insistent on having them accompany her and fiancé Brad Pitt on their various travels around the globe. Apart from their sprawling Los Angeles mansion, they also spend several months each year on their fabulous 500-acre estate on the Cote d’Azur, Chateau Miraval, which affords them a safe haven from prying eyes and is rumoured to be the location where they will tie the knot soon.

Do your children every wonder why you and Brad are constantly travelling so much?

They love it. As long as they’re with us, they’re happy. They think it’s normal to be constantly on the go and they love to travel. It’s a great adventure for the kids. It is so much fun watching them jumping on the [hotel] beds and exploring and practicing kung fu moves on each other in a make-believe way.

Your children take you on this beautiful and chaotic journey. It is always an adventure for us. But Brad is very good at making sure the children never feel stressed when we are moving around.

He always make them see it as a little game that we have to play, which in a way it is. But we also know that we have a very interesting life together and we have just adapted to what we need to do to make things as easy as possible for the kids so they can grow up as happy as possible.

Angelina, how do you manage your life with Brad, six children, your acting career, your work as a director, as well as your work as a UNHCR goodwill ambassador?

It’s a pretty wild ride sometimes but I love the idea of having this big, crazy family and being able to give them a good and interesting life. I also have a good man at my side to help me raise them and that’s basically the story...I’ve spent so many years feeling terribly unhappy and now I’m very happy and managing a big family is mainly a question of good organisation.

42 may / june 2014

Your next project is quite a change of pace - a family movie for Disney, Maleficent. What interested you in working on that?

I wanted to do something for my children. They all loved it when I voiced Tigress in Kung Fu Panda and this is a film they have been begging me to do ever since they found out I was interested in the story and had been reading the script. They have been calling me Momelicent. I was really looking forward to playing in a kind of fairytale story I have never done before.

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

Jolie seamlessly transitions between her roles; from looking glamorous on the red carpet to a refugee camp in Syria where she thrives on her role as UNHCR goodwill ambassador

Cover story

Was it exciting for you to play in a big fantasy film?

My children love Disney. You know you can bring your kids to a Disney film. Since I was a little girl, Maleficent was always my favourite. I was terrified of her but I was so drawn to her. I wanted to know more about her, know what she was like and who she was. She had this elegance and grace and yet she was so cruel, just wonderfully and deliciously cruel. As soon as rumours started circulating that the studio was planning on doing a live action version of the story, I got a call from my brother who said: ‘You’ve got to try to get in on this.’

How scary is Maleficent?

Scarier than I thought she would be. People with little kids would visit the set some days, so I would walk over to the children and say: ‘Hi,’ and they would scream and run off. I heard one little boy actually saying: ‘Mommy, please tell the mean witch to stop talking to me.’

How has having children changed you over the years ?

I have become a much softer and more open and happy person.

Those are sides of me I just buried for so long and having children has taught me so much about life, about being more open to the world. I see myself becoming more like my mother, more nurturing and caring. That is why I love my big family even though it does get kind of crazy sometimes. But that’s okay. You learn to love that controlled chaos.

Is it strange for you to find yourself leading a very selfless life now in terms of your responsibilities as a mother of six children?

When you have a big family, you just give up your personal life at a certain point. You even try to take a bath and everybody comes in, so you give up and that’s okay. As somebody who likes to be alone, I surprise myself that I am very happy to be surrounded by everybody in my family. I feel that comfort.

Jolie as the “scary witch” in Maleficent- the untold story of Disney’s iconic villain from the 1959 classic Sleeping Beauty

2014 may / june 43

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In her favourite role as mother to her six children (eldest son Maddox is missing from picture)

Do you and Brad find that some children like to spend more time with him or with you at different periods as they grow up?

I tend to let him look after the boys and take care of discipline while I keep the girls in line. Sometimes they try to play one parent off the other but Brad and I maintain a united front. It is the same rules whether it is mommy or daddy laying down the law. We don’t play good cop, bad cop. I used to be the tougher parent but since the birth of the twins, Brad has had to take charge more often. It also depends on which of the children we are talking about. Brad has always had this incredible bond with Mad, who’s very smart, and Brad loves teaching him about history and art and culture. It’s an amazing thing to watch them together. I think I am a little closer to the girls, maybe, but he is always making them laugh. The children are usually very well behaved, especially when we travel, because they understand

44 may / june 2014

there is a lot of attention when we are outside and walking around, especially in the US. Does having a family help you make better sense of life given the incredible attention you’ve attracted during your acting career?

It gives you greater clarity. You learn that the only things which are meaningful is how much love you can bring to your world and what you can do to build a happy life for your children. It makes you forget about all the selfish concerns you might have had and which I had when I was younger and not at all at ease with who I was and what I wanted from life. Now I wake up each morning surrounded by Brad and my children and all the love and warmth that comes from being part of their lives. My children give me a sense of peace and fulfilment when I see how happy and healthy they are. I feel truly at ease when I know I’ve helped give them a safe and hopeful life. A big family can generate a lot of chaos but it is also a source of inner peace. At the end of the day it is the best feeling in the world.

Mornings must be very hectic with such a large family to look after?

There is a lot of activity. We basically step into our roles as cooks and waiters who have six customers to look after and keep them

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

You and Brad seem to have found a comfortable rhythm to your life together.

We enjoy our time together wherever we are. While I am looking after the twins, Brad will take the other kids to school and pick them up in the afternoon. We try to make sure we are both at home for meals or when I’m working I’ll try to make either breakfast or dinner. It isn’t that complicated.

Cover story

“I have become a much softer and more open and happy person.

Those are sides of me I just buried for so long and having children has taught me so much about life, about being more open to the world.�

Jolie and the British Foreign Minister William Hague during a trip to Bosnia in March this year for a conference on sexual violence in war

as happy as possible. It is a lot of work but it is also a lot of fun and there is always something going on with the kids.

What is the key to your relationship with Brad?

I am a very expressive person and have always needed that in my life with other people, so I am happy Brad is someone I can speak to and who is very open in his feelings and his passions. I love the fact we can both be so honest and vulnerable together and that I can always tell him about things I am worrying about or feeling sad or happy about. For me, having that sense of being able to be open with another human being that way is the thing that makes me happiest in life.

What are the happiest moments in the Jolie-Pitt household?

It is probably in the evening before the kids go to bed. We often play together in our pyjamas after dinner and it is like having a party sometimes where we are all dancing and jumping around and being silly. That is when you really feel the beauty of having a family. It is our little world.

You have stated in the past that you and Brad have to go on dates to make sure you spend romantic time alone.

Is it a constant battle to find enough time together for yourselves?

Oh, we are both very conscious of that and we do arrange evenings where we can go out for dinner by ourselves and have some quality time alone. It is like with any big family though; you accept the fact you are going to lose a lot of that part of your lives together. Sometimes we forget about making time for ourselves because we are so busy with the children. And

even though the children love to storm into the bedroom and play and cuddle us, we always have the option of locking the bedroom door or disappearing into another room of the house where we can’t be found.

When you look at your life as it is today, does it seem very far removed from your perspective on things when you were a teenager or in your 20s?

It is a big difference but all the pain I went through when I was younger was my way of trying to get to where I am now. I was not happy with how things were for me because I thought I was not accomplishing enough and all the characters I played in my films were leading much more interesting lives than I was. The basic thing was that I was searching for some greater purpose and goal in life and when I started worked with Unesco and doing humanitarian work, I began feeling I could point to something concrete I was doing to help people who had very little hope.

Do you feel that you and Brad have met all your expectations when it comes to creating the kind of family life you were looking for?

We did not have a clear idea about how we were going to manage as our family grew larger until we figured out a way to organise everyone and make sure that we would spend time with all the children. What is beautiful about kids is how you just watch them grow and evolve as they learn more about themselves and the world. What I felt about Brad very early in our relationship was that he was going to be a great father and in that sense he has exceeded all my expectations. He feels so close to our children and is so devoted to teaching them as much as he can about life and about the world that I get emotional thinking about it.

2014 may / june 45

Business

Racing The Dragon South African steel tycoon Leon Price gave in to his passion for racing and swapped metals for motorsports

By Natasha Tourish

You’re in the wrong office, come with me downstairs to the Dragon offices to see my real passion,” says Macsteel company chairman in his tempered South African accent as I arrive at the Macsteel offices on the 25th floor of Jumeirah Lakes Towers’ Silver Tower. Two elevator rides later, we were on the seventh floor but in the headquarters of Dragon Racing International.

The two offices are worlds apart and it is easy to see why this is Leon Price’s favourite of the two.

The glass-clad office is reminiscent of a luxury car museum complete with a high tech McLaren race car simulator and a collection of replica model cars that would make Jeremy Clarkson go weak at the knees. The first thing you notice is the giant black dragon sculpture greeting you at the entrance, an emblem of Price’s affinity with the Far East and the place where he built much of his fortune.

It is only a fraction of his entire model car collection; the rest are displayed in his homes and offices around the world, mainly in Hong Kong where he spends most of his time. The most impressive are a series of red 458 GT3 Ferrari replicas made by British company Amalgam - fine models, each costing about $8,335. Price commissioned models of the same race car in three different years (2011 to 2013) to match the real race cars he owns, which are available for track day experiences at Dubai Autodrome or Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

But Price’s real passion is for collecting Conti Le Mans cars, one of the most famous model car ranges in the world.

According to Jake Carlin, marketing manager for the dragon racing firm, Price has “one of the most substantial collections in the world”.

The most precious and perhaps most valuable (neither would disclose the cost of this one) is a scratch-made vintage Bugatti

46 may / june 2014

As well as his private collection of model cars, Price owns the largest private fleet of McLaren race cars in the world. fashioned in Italy and a vintage Auto Union replica bought from another collector in the south of England. The real Auto Union car belongs to Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone.

Price, 63, stepped down as the CEO of Macsteel, a South African steel manufacturing, trading and shipping firm, to concentrate on setting up Dragon Racing International, a new business venture in Dubai. He still remains chairman and a substantial shareholder of the billion-dollar steel company with offices in the US, Dubai, Hong Kong and Holland, where it recently relocated its headquarters.

Price moved to the Far East from his native South Africa in the late 1970s after he was offered a posting with his home country’s biggest commodity trading company, Leo Raphaely & Sons, where he had already been working for seven years in Johannesburg. The company was later acquired by Macsteel, a move that Price concedes he helped engineer with his management partners.

“The Raphaely group did not have any funds to grow internationally and we wanted to do that,” says Price of the takeover.

Price became chief executive of Macsteel in 1996 and helped

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Leon Price, owner of Dragon Racing International Top and bottom: Price’s beloved 458 GT3 Ferraris

2014 may / june 47

Business

turn the global company into a multi-billion dollar business, making it one of the top five companies in South Africa prior to selling off its US operations, which made close to $1 billion.

Macsteel has been widely described as one of “South Africa’s most secretive companies” something Price does not deny. As the company is unlisted, it is not obliged to disclose profits to the public or declare dividends.

“We are very private for a reason and we like to stay that way,” he admits.

Describing himself as a “gentleman racer”, Price now spends his time competing alongside his long-term friend and dragon racing director Rob Barff in competitive 24 hour races around the world. As well as his private collection of model cars, he owns the largest private fleet of McLaren race cars in the world.

The dragon racing business was conceived in 2012 but only launched in the UAE last April. It is comprised of a team of professional drivers, coaches and engineers who tailor track day driving experiences for corporate clients in luxury racing cars based in Motorcity. It costs on average about $116,000 for a full track day experience, which includes a six car package with

48 may / june 2014

three people per car and six pro drivers.

Price’s love affair with cars started at a young age. He says he was born with a naturally competitive streak into “a well-todo middle class family” not far from Kenilworth horse racing track in Cape Town. His father was a bookmaker, as was his father before him.

“The horse racing business was all they knew,” says Price but at 18 he was told to get a real job.

Although Price’s corporate racing model is not a new one Ferrari and other big racing companies have done it for years in Europe - Price believes a combination of good weather from November through to March, luxury hotels and world class restaurants all conveniently located in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi result in the perfect business climate for his dragon racing concept to thrive in the UAE. Price says the idea stemmed from his own corporate racing day experience organised by Ferrari in the UK. “We got taught first how to drive the road car on the track quickly and then if the professional thought we were capable enough, they would put us in a race car. We liked the concept and saw the executives were having the time of their lives so we thought, why doesn’t Macsteel do that?”

From then on Macsteel would fly in its “best clients from all over the world as well the CEOs of some of its largest subsidiaries” to corporate track days hosted by Ferrari in England. This went on for four consecutive years until the 2008 financial crisis hit and it was no longer deemed acceptable for chief executives to be racing around in expensive Italian red cars.

Price says they stopped, not because his company could not afford it, but because they had to be “conscious about their image”. “You can’t be seen to be spending money,” he explains.

“I think when Europe really comes out of its doldrums and America starts stabilising and it looks sustainably positive going forward and the East picks up a little, the big companies will go back to doing that type of entertainment and hopefully there is more here in the Emirates in a compact space than there is in Europe.”

But it was not just the bleak economic outlook that put a dampener on corporate entertainment’s future in Europe for Price. He says the inconvenience of having to take multiple flights, staying in hotels that were hours away from the track and having to ship in your own race cars for an event all took their toll. So when he decided to step down as chief executive from Macsteel, he combined his love of motor racing and business in the form of dragon racing.

“Take, for example, Mugello. You would have to stay in Florence and drive out to the track every day because the hotels and the restaurants are just not there,” he says.

“It is not just about the racetrack, it is about the arrival, having a great dinner and staying in a wonderful hotel and talking a bit of business. [The UAE] has got it all, it has absolutely everything.”

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Real Estate

The House that Fame Built It has been dubbed the most powerful address in the world. Fifteen Central Park West is the prestigious Manhattan residence where outrageous wealth is the only access card

By Daniel Bates

t has been called the most powerful address in the world where the most expensive apartment sold for a cool $88 million.

Its residents include Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein and Sting. Fifteen Central Park West has captured the imagination of the public in New York like no other residence since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Paparazzi are constantly outside hoping for a glimpse of visitors like Bill Clinton, Naomi Campbell and Robert De Niro.

Residents go by code names and staff are sworn to secrecy, their loyalty ensured by tips that can be as much as $90,000 from one resident alone.

Such is the prestige of the property that it recently had the cherry put on top of its 35-storey limestone tower built from the same granite as the Empire State Building - its very own book.

Author Michael Gross revealed the building’s secrets and identified its residents en masse for the first time, from hedge fund titans Daniel Loeb and Daniel Och to Chinese oligarchs and bosses from Google, Yahoo and Disney.

In the book House of Outrageous Fortune, Gross argues the

50 may / june 2014

202-unit “uber condo” represents the single biggest collection of the ultra-rich ever seen.

There are no rules to get in, no residents’ boards to impressif your bank balance is big enough then you are welcome to the club.

Gross says: “There is a new class and they don’t care about how the old New York families did things.

“They are inventing it all over again, creating a new world and a new way for wealth to operate.”

Right from the beginning, 15 Central Park West was going to be different to anything that came before it, Gross explains.

Developers Arthur and William Zeckendorf realised there were hundreds of people who were so flush after the dot com boom, they made the American industrialists of the 19th and 20th centuries look cheap.

Located on the southwest tip of Central Park, the plans for 15 Central Park West were drawn up by architect Robert Stern and called for two towers, one 19 storeys and the other 35 storeys.

The buildings would have a combined 290,000sq ft facade covered by 2,832 limestone panels.

Real Estate

It took three years and $950 million to build but not before the Zeckendorfs had to give $17 million to the last tenant of the hotel they demolished to start construction because he refused to leave.

The resulting building, which was finished in 2008, was made to feel like a five star hotel with a 70ft sky-lit swimming pool, a library, a health club and a restaurant which does room service.

Residents have at their disposal eight porters, seven concierges, six doormen, four security guards and three mailroom staff, plus one waiting room for their chauffeurs.

According to Gross, 15 Central Park West basically did everything else everyone else did - only bigger and better.

Explaining the appeal, he says: “It is the site, the architects, the design, the intention of the developers, the residents.

Loeb was so impressed that he bought an eight-bedroomed penthouse condo for a then record $45 million before construction had even begun.

Also among the early buyers was Och, the founder of $25 billion hedge fund Och-Ziff Capital Management Group, who

surprise present.

The penthouse was taken off him two years ago by Russian fertiliser tycoon Dmitry Rybolovlev for $88 million in the most expensive property deal in Manhattan history.

Among the celebrity residents of 15 Central Park West have been former New York Yankees baseball star Alex Rodriguez, who paid $30,000 a month for a bachelor pad while dating Cameron Diaz and Madonna.

Staff at the building saw the end of Frasier star Kelsey Grammer’s marriage when his wife Camille called their $29,000-a-month rented apartment from California, only to be told Mr Grammer’s wife was already in the building.

The couple later divorced and Grammer married his mistress, airline stewardess Kayte Walsh.

For all the A-listers and captains of industry, however, there is also a group of residents who come from more humble roots.

Alex Mikhailov arrived in New York 35 years ago as a Jewish refugee from the former Soviet Union and now owns a chain of dental clinics. He paid $7.9 million for unit 34C of 15 Central

Michael Gross’ book House of Outrageous Fortune is based on the famed New York residence 15 Central Park West

paid $38 million for another penthouse apartment.

Blankfein followed soon after with a stunning corner duplex with wraparound terrace for $25.7 million in cash, helping to open the floodgates to other Goldman Sachs financiers.

Denzel Washington bought unit 14C for just over $13 million in 2006, getting a small discount on the condition his purchase could be publicised by the developers.

A year after the first apartment went on sale “15,” as it is nicknamed, had broken North American records with $1.4 billion in signed contracts.

But nothing illustrated the hysteria surrounding the property more than the sale of the tower penthouse by Citigroup’s former chairman Sanford Weill, which he had originally bought for $43 million in 2007 for his wife Joan as a Valentine’s Day

Park West and says the building is a lot friendlier than most people think - and more down to earth.

“It is a family-orientated building with nice service features.

It is not a fortress,” he says.

“My daughter used to play with other children in the building when she was younger. They put on a Halloween party every year and I think they do something for Easter too. “ That might be true for Mikhailov, but for those looking in from the outside, 15 Central Park West stands as a monument to a world of money and prestige they can only dream of.

Inside lives what Gross calls a “latter-day priesthood of power” and this small patch of Manhattan has become their cash-fuelled version of the Sistine Chapel - with views that would make anyone give thanks.

2014 may / june 51

Entrepreneurship

Putting Their Best Foot Forward Iranian sisters Maryam and Marjan Malakpour have celebrities tripping over their heels to get a pair of their chic flats - including the Rolling Stones

By Gemma Champ

t might be a long way from Tehran to Los Angeles but it is a journey sisters Maryam and Marjan Malakpour have made with panache.

The siblings followed their engineering student uncle to California in the late 1970s and the pair are now among the world’s most in-demand fashion stylists, who in their time have helped define the looks of everyone from the Rolling Stones to David Bowie.

These days they have a new project, a roaring success from their very first collection five years ago. Newbark is a line of soft, flat, slipper-like shoes that, although originally designed for women, has translated through to menswear, with fans including Keith Richards, Seal and Elton John.

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The idea for Newbark came from their own fashion experience – the pain of working in soaring heels – and the attitude from their rock and roll clients.

“We launched it out of necessity basically,” says Marjan, pinning down exactly what makes a successful brand: focus and need.

Maryam adds: “We both felt there was a lack of flats with a rock and roll edge, because at that time the options were either Repetto ballet flats or Tod’s driving shoes. Tod’s shoes were too conservative for our taste and genre and Repetto’s were too cute.”

Rock style might have been the inspiration, but it was the sisters’ Middle Eastern heritage that helped provide the design

Entrepreneurship

for the shoes, which might be a large collection now but started out as a simple, incredibly soft leather slipper.

“We wanted to have something a bit more like a fusion of a Moroccan babouche, which kind of takes us back to our ancestry in Iran,” says Maryam. “In Persian history and culture they wear a lot of slippers and people traditionally don’t walk in their homes with shoes on, so slippers have always been a very important part of the wardrobe. So our concept was a slipper/ shoe that is foldable so you can put it in a bag ready for when your feet get tired.”

They may have an Oriental side to them, but the construction is pure LA: with around 1,200 pairs produced every season, they can still be handmade at local factories in Los Angeles, a factor that is extremely important to the brand.

“The guy who created this for us is an older man, an Argentinian, who has been around, knows a lot about all of this and helped us develop it. The construction of the original shoes is like a handbag. You can literally wear them inside out because of the way they do the seams. They are so soft,” says Maryam.

“We were researching and found there are actually a few really amazing factories,” adds Marjan. “The factory that does our biker boots does policemen’s and firemen’s boots, and we have taught them how to refine it and make it a fashion thing.

Now they have other brands like Band of Outsiders working with them. We even had an email from the police department congratulating us, saying if we ever need anything... And the

same with the mayor of Los Angeles, because it is creating jobs here.”

As long-term stylists, Maryam and Marjan have seen many a fashion fad come and go, and see a slow, steady growth as the only suitable business model for their company, despite securing a high profile launch on Net-a-Porter as their first order, the sort of opening gambit that any new company dreams of playing.

“We met Natalie Massenet [the founder and executive chairman of Net-a-Porter] in Paris, with just one item, this shoe, and she loved the concept,” says Maryam. “She loved that it was so focused and did a huge launch with our brand. That was our first door.”

Marjan adds: “This is not a heavily distributed brand. We really believe in our growth being organic; we don’t want to come and make this a fad, then suddenly you’re gone. We really focus on having products that are everlasting and work well with everyone’s wardrobe.”

The men’s line is an inevitable part of that growth, with many of the current styles already based on masculine shoes, including some beautiful monochrome loafers and biker boots with what Maryam calls “the perfect nose – not too round, not too square”. And with those celebrity fans already in place, after a special collection for the LA boutique Maxfield, there are no doubts about viability.

“We have these great, very distinguished, stylish men, who love our slippers,” says Maryam. “We always say, if Serge Gainsbourg was alive, he would definitely wear Newbarks.”

Newbark slippers are handmade in LA and have garnered a celebrity following 2014 may / june 53

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The Scent of Success Heir to a long line of cognac producers, Kilian Hennessy has created an independent perfume label with a cult following in a world dominated by global brands

By Paul Juziers

54 may / june 2014

Profile

n the courtyard of a splendid Haussmanian building, one of Paris’ secret jewels, a brass plate reads ‘Kilian parfums, 2nd floor’. The thick burgundy door opens onto a stunning all-white Parisian apartment with typical coffered high ceilings, fireplaces and Versailles parquet flooring.

Smiling, in a white shirt and stirring a double expresso, Kilian Hennessy, the grandson of the founder of the LVMH luxury group (the H represents his surname while he was named after the founding patriarch) seems perfectly at ease. “We have been here for two years but until recently, we had no cash to refurbish the place,” he says without blushing.

It is an understatement that only hints at how well Hennessy and his company are doing globally now. But it is a tradition in his family to keep a low profile when it comes to business. His father has always been discreet and often went to the office by bus when he started working at Moët Hennessy. Even though he grew up without much fuss between his house in the country, Paris and the family chateau, Hennessy doesn’t trade in on his family name.

He has even named his commercial brand Kilian rather than using his surname.

Was it inevitable he would end up in the luxury industry, considering his gene pool?

“It is true I learnt at a very young age to appreciate nice things,” he says. “But it was by accident I chose perfume.”

After studying perfumery, Hennessy concocted scents for Dior, Paco Rabanne, Alexander McQueen, Armani and L’Oreal until he had an epiphany of sorts.

“I was having dinner at the Baccarat lounge in Paris and there was an exhibition about crystal and perfumes throughout history. I was fascinated by the luxury of this industry in the 1930s.”

The next day he resigned from L’Oreal to start his own brand from scratch. With 10 years’ experience, Hennessy knew exactly which direction he wanted to go in, if not the adventure he was in for.

“I never thought I had the temper to become an entrepreneur,” he says. “Until then, I had always been number two and I think it is the best position. But don’t get me wrong, I am perfectly happy now. I had to do this because the industry has become worse and worse.

“Most perfumes have ceased to be launched by real master perfumers, who had a great culture and wanted the products to be exceptional. They have been replaced by junior marketing managers who test the scents and will consider a launch a failure if it doesn’t bring $50 million in sales within the first few months.

“My first production seven years ago was 10,000 bottles. It was something I was really proud of because I had created it from A to Z. Finally there it was, my own perfume, my packaging.”

Hennessy’s ambition was crystal clear: to try to make a perfume the way it was done 100 years ago but with a contemporary touch. He took as much care with the scents themselves as with the packaging to ensure all his perfumes told a story.

“I need a script to create a scent,” says Hennessy, who aligns his work to the kind of atmosphere created by a film director with actors, setting and music. His themes are often composed of three fragrances like a movie trilogy. For example, his collection called In the Garden of Good and Evil, comprised of three scents in white lacquer cases adorned with gold serpents, was inspired by the story of original sin.

Hennessy, 42, might be sitting pretty now in his plush office but concedes the early years were challenging. In the US, where high-end retailers couldn’t get enough of his collection, Bergdorf Goodman in New York ran out of stock one Christmas because his glass provider had not delivered enough bottles.

“It was only after 24 months that I started to sleep again,” he says.

“Now we are in 34 countries and have become one of the strongest brands in the lightweight perfume market.”

But what Hennessy has achieved is even bigger than his annual turnover. He has revolutionised a very conservative industry and succeeded in selling higher end fragrances (costing $230 on average), at the same price level enjoyed by big names like Dior.

Hennessy has carefully selected distribution because he sells limited editions of luxury perfumes in which the ingredients, whether they are natural or synthetic, cost sometimes more than their weight in gold. “What is happening now in the world of perfume is equivalent to what happened 10 years ago in the make-up industry with the promotion of make-up artist brands and the rise of new care products. It is very exciting but there are only a few of us left.”

Nevertheless, Hennessy wishes to remain independent, even though investment funds and luxury giants such as L’Oreal are buying all the niche brands they can. “I consider myself an artist. I like to be free. It is a primary condition for my work.”

Still, he has plans to open five shops within the next couple of years, starting with Doha in May. He may have chosen to distance himself from his surname in a bid to create his own brand identity but the luxury heir cannot deny he has bigger battles to conquer if he is going to remain on top of the global luxury market.

2014 may / june 55

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Entrepreneurship

Keeping up with the Times Rumours have been rife that the French watchmaker Richard Mille will sell off shares in his independent company to a luxury multinational. The entrepreneur tells GC he plans to take his brand as far as he can to guarantee its survival By pAUL jUZIERS

There is nothing more precious than independence,” the French watchmaker Richard Mille says when we meet at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) in Geneva. He is there to present a first-of-its-kind piece to his collection, RM 63-01 Dizzy Hands, a timepiece inspired by the first few lines of the French poem Le Temps.

“We need to take a step back from time, to be able to make fun of it,” says the chief executive, who also speaks of another novelty, the RM 031 High Performance, as an “atomic bomb” because of the precise technology behind it - “the most efficient timepiece in the history of watchmaking”.

Later I meet the savvy entrepreneur in his office in Paris, just a few steps away from the Place de la Concorde. Mille’s first stride towards independence came in 2001 when he founded his eponymous company, which has an annual turnover of more than $207 million and was last year valued by analysts at between $320 million and $425 million.

Since creating his own watch brand, which Mille claims was inspired by his two passions in life, the motoring and aviation industry, he has had several offers from luxury titans to buy his company but until recently has always refused. It took the French luxury group Kering to persuade him to reconsider but despite widespread speculation to the contrary, he says: “It didn’t work out.”

He adds: “Finally I am happy because there are still so many things to do. My aim is to make sure the brand is strong enough to survive and take it as far as I can.”

It is clear Mille thrives on his independence and embraces

risk, which is reflective in his unusual timepieces, often using rare materials like platinum, titanium and carbon nanofibres.

This extends to his private life, where his love of vintage cars started at a young age and transpired into an obsession for racing Formula One cars. “Don’t repeat it, but I think I love cars even more than watches,” he says. “As far as I can remember, cars have always been part of my DNA.” His first car was a Jaguar XJ6 his father gave him. “I remember at one point, I was the export manager of a company and the CEO asked everybody: ‘Who does that car belong to? He is paid too much.’”

His second vehicle was a Renault Alpine. Mille bought the French sports car with his first month’s salary along with a fair bit of credit, he points out.

“I like speed; I have always liked speed. I know it is quite a caricature to say this as a man but it is true.”

Mille has a collection of more than 30 racing cars. He first started buying them at Le Mans when he was younger. “I have some in Brittany, the others I keep in a garage near Paris.

“What I like about vintage cars is not looking at them in a museum, it is to see them racing, which is what they were designed for. I like to see them among modern cars because they immediately distinguish themselves.”

Mille admits keeping a whole collection of 1970s F1 cars hidden away, including five four-wheel drives, the only ones ever built. Among his treasures is a Peugeot 905 that won Le Mans several years in a row as well as a less flashy Mini and a Volkswagen Combi. And, of course, a Type E Jaguar: “A fashion plate. One of the most beautiful cars ever.”

2014 may / june 57

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Mille will race his Lola T70MK3 (pictured) and his Matra in the Le Mans classic in July this year

Paradoxically, Mille lives a quiet existence in the countryside with his wife and two children in an 18th century chateau in Brittany called Domaine of Monbouan. He is often seen zipping around the country lanes in his Aston Martin Vantage or his Mercedes, popping into the local village for fresh bread at weekends. His factory is close by in the picturesque Suisse Jura, where he sketches each RM design before it is handmade by his team of engineers.

While other watchmakers are creating aggressive and highpriced men’s watches, Mille says he deliberately announced 2014 as “the year of the woman”.

“In the past three years, women’s watches have rocketed. It now represents 20 per cent of our business and will probably double in the two to three years to come,” he says.

Mille plans to create dedicated corners for women in each of his boutiques and open 10 new shops around the world this year.

“We will also soon have a bigger flagship store in Paris,” he adds.

Mille says he will limit himself to five or six new creations this year and try to lower the average price of his timepieces from $207,000 to $138,000.

“I have always tried to break the rules,” he says. “When I started, expensive watches had to be heavy and made of gold.

I decided to go for lightness and carbon.”

Since then he has succeeded above his own expectations,

58 may / june 2014

XXXXXXX s Dastmaltshi, co- founder of Varengold Bank

“I like speed; I have always liked speed. I know it is quite a caricature to say this as a man but it is true.”

surprising the market and collectors with his innovative designs.

“I wanted to escape from the traditional watch ghetto and make a modern product. Why would someone buy in 2014 a replica from a 1780 timepiece?”

Mille was one of the first watchmakers to convince sportsmen like tennis star Rafael Nadal and golf pro Bubba Watson to wear his watches while playing tournaments. When Watson clinched his second Masters title in April, he did it wearing a Richard Mille watch - the revised RM 038 Bubba Watson Victory Watch, no less, created to celebrate his 2012 win.

Photo courtesy of Team Sager

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Make a difference by being the difference

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2014 may / june 59

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Spending Power Luxury living is the heart that keeps the UAE beating and the queue of established international brands looking to satisfy the appetite of the newly wealthy is endless

uxury, Neiman Marcus co-founder Stanley Marcus once said, is the “best that the mind of man can imagine and the most sophisticated [the] hand of the virtuoso craftsman achieve.”

A dictionary definition tells us it is a “state of great comfort or elegance, especially when involving great expense”.

Yet luxury - from the Latin luxus, meaning excess remains one of those things which is almost impossible to place parameters around. One man’s luxury might be another’s common experience and these days, the loose term has come to be shaped as much by service as it is by a product.

60 may / june 2014

Bespoke holidays, private flights and gourmet dining now have the same cache as obtaining the latest designer handbag or shoes, according to the Boston Consulting Group, which says more than half of the $1.8 trillion spent on luxuries worldwide last year went on services - together with the bragging rights that come with living out one’s fantasies.

But here in the UAE and across the Middle East, it is still luxury in its traditional forms that is popular among the wealthy and the elite.

A recent report on luxury spending from market research firm Euromonitor International states: “Louis Vuitton, Gucci

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

By Tahira Yaqoob

Luxury

and Burberry are perennial favourites.

“Products with ostentatious ornamentation and extra large logos are especially popular among the label-obsessed consumers in the United Arab Emirates.”

The 2013 study showed “a brand’s image and prestige are hugely important” while established brands like Tom Ford, which put their names to new lines, had proven “very popular with the country’s mainly young, affluent, cosmopolitan luxury goods consumers”. Meanwhile the UAE has one of the highest per capita sales of luxury Swiss watches in the world.

So why is there such an appetite for luxury goods in the region? And is it purely driven by wealth or is there a greater attraction?

“Luxury is a promise that you as the consumer will be taken care of exactly as you would want to be,” says Mac McClelland, president of the Luxury Marketing Council in the Middle East.

The council, which has branches worldwide, launched in Dubai in 2008 shortly before the recession with the aim of bringing together synergetic luxury goods companies and services. Its 50 members were whittled down to 12 when the crash took place and have only just climbed back up to 43.

“We held on by our fingernails,” says McClelland. “People were not buying as much as they did before or as much as they do now.”

The term “luxury shame” came into play elsewhere around the world with the super-wealthy who were still shopping

new in the Middle East, there is a hunger for the finest, the best quality, the most glamorous.

“Some of it is conspicuous consumption,” says McClelland.

“Their grandfathers came from nothing. They were Bedouins, hardy men of the desert who could not collect things as they had nowhere to keep them.”

It is not just Arabs from the Gulf region and wealthy expatriates who snap up the latest designer trends.

Dubai, and increasingly Abu Dhabi with high-end developments like The Galleria shopping mall and Eithad Towers, are a magnet for shoppers from overseas.

Euromonitor says there was a surge in shoppers from Brazil, China and Russia during 2012.

Euromonitor says: “The political turmoil of the Arab Spring brought additional tourists from Middle Eastern countries, who appreciate the political stability, broad range of shopping opportunities, lack of sales tax and generally lower prices.”

Meanwhile international brands are eager for a slice of the pie.

This year has already seen the opening of the first international outpost of the 307-year-old British department store, Fortnum and Mason. Other brands set to launch in the country include Halcyon Days, Lulu Guinness and Bremont.

“This is a city that bristles with energy and throbs with great entrepreneurs,” says Ewan Venters, chief executive of Fortnum and Mason.

“It is a city where everything is possible. Even the building of

New openings: The futuristic designed Galleria in Abu Dhabi’s Sowwah Square and British export Fortnum and Mason outside Dubai Mall

doing so furtively, smuggling their booty out of stores in plain paper bags.

But if the rest of the world’s affluent were hanging their heads, it seemed less so in the UAE, which was eager to bounce back as quickly as possible.

Perhaps because the market for luxury goods is relatively

the store from scratch took 70 days - barely a blink of the eye.”

Paul Spinks, managing director of Lulu Guinness, agrees there is a growing market for luxury in the UAE. “The luxury sector is relatively immature. It has only been around a short time but Dubai is a great hub and an easy place to do business.”

2014 may / june 61

Business

Changing the Face of On Demand Viewing Icflix brings an Arabic entertainment platform to the region for the first time

By Natasha Tourish

ike so many other twenty somethings living in the Bay area of San Francisco in the late 1990s, Carlos Tibi witnessed the birth of Silicon Valley’s tech wave first hand. Now living in Dubai, the 39-year-old has embraced a new phenomenon that is sweeping global audiences: the culture of “binge watching” and he has decided to cash in on it by bringing the first ever Arabic entertainment platform, Icflix, to the region for the first time.

“While I was in the US, I felt this pent-up demand for Arabic content from the Indian and Arabic diaspora,” says the Icflix chief executive from his industrial-style office in Dubai Media City.

“They couldn’t find it anywhere else and if you found it pirated, it would be chopped up into different pieces so you had to watch one half first, then the other.

“Everyone was asking if they could get something like Netflix

62 may / june 2014

but in Arabic so I thought, why don’t I do something with Arabic content?”

Tibi graduated from university in Canada in 1995 with a degree in management information systems. The CanadianPalestinian then spent 15 years working for consulting firms in the US, travelling between Europe and South America working with clients such as Google, Oracle, Apple and Dreamworks, “helping them to architect better solutions for their customers” at the beginning of the download streaming boom.

“It was the beginning of the music streaming era,” he says.

“I advised Fortune 500 companies and had most Fortune 100 companies as clients helping them to structure and make their businesses more efficient by leveraging technology solutions.”

It was during Tibi’s time in the US that he came up with the idea for Icflix, an entertainment platform combining Hollywood, Bollywood and Jazwood content - a term coined by the company

Business

to represent Arabic cinema and programming.

Tibi hasn’t looked back since. He moved from the US to the UAE in 2011 and got financial backing from UAE-based Lebanese entrepreneur Fadi Mehio, who is Icflix’s chairman and managing partner Abdelrazak Mounayar, who deals mainly with content providers and producers in the Egyptian and Arabic markets.

The company has its headquarters in Dubai with offices in Egypt and the Czech Republic. The majority of Icflix’s Jazwood content is acquired, digitised and restored in its Cairo office while Prague acts as a technology hub for the group.

Tibi admits that Icflix is still “in the soft launch” phase, but says he is confident it already offers its 10,000 paid subscribers across 40 countries better quality content than its main competitor, Netflix.

“Our movie library is better than Netflix’s movie library,” he insists. “It is smaller but it is more selective. They don’t have the evergreen library series such as The Godfathers, Mission Impossible, Rocky, movies that you will watch over and over again. Netflix focuses more on independents.

“Middle Eastern subscribers are more interested in the Hollywood genre than Jazwood but people living abroad, especially the Arabic and Indian diaspora in the US, Canada and Europe are more interested in Jazwood. This is the first time you can find a legal platform that streams Arabic content globally.”

Icflix charge a flat fee of $7.99 to subscribers, who can then access a library of content on up to five devices per household.

Pay-per-view is yet to be launched but Tibi says as soon as a new release movie is “outside of the cinema window” Icflix will have it on its platform for $3 per movie.

But Icflix’s biggest challenge is not luring subscribers from its biggest competitors in the US or UK, namely Netflix, LoveFilm, Virgin TV and Amazon. Each of these providers has one common enemy to defeat - piracy.

For Tibi it is clear-cut: the studios are to blame. He says the timeframe between a movie being made and the release date is too long while it is up to the studios to solve the problem if piracy is going to be stamped out of the industry worldwide.

“By the time studios make the content available, it can be a three to four year window,” he says. “These guidelines were set 50 years ago when there was no digital, just your standard TV and cinema, with no other devices to access content.

“Studios are finally starting to realise they are so far behind the curve and are slowly starting to adjust those windows.

“Let’s adjust those window cycles so that when it comes to the cinema, we can get it and charge people a premium of $6 to watch it. People would rather pay and be guaranteed a high definition version than trial and error searching for links.”

Tibi concedes piracy “is a constant threat” to his business

Carlos Tibi, CEO of Icflix

“This is the first time you can find a legal platform that streams Arabic content globally.” but like everything “there are always going to be thieves out there and people who want to take the shortcut but we have the law on our side.”

He points to the fact that in the US, which has one of the highest piracy rates in the world, Netflix still has 40 million plus subscribers. “So why is Netflix adding three million new subscribers every quarter?” he asks. “There is so much piracy out there, yet they all have Netflix accounts.”

But the question is how fast will the studios adjust to this new reality? As quickly as pirate websites are shut down, new ones appear.

Tibi insists Icflix is somewhat immune to piracy because “Jazwood is our strength” and its not pirated to the same degree as Hollywood or even Bollywood is. Meanwhile, the options for the viewing public just got a lot better.

2014 may / june 63

Cool Earth’s directors Johan Eliasch and Matthew Owen and supporter Vivienne Westwood

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Philanthropy

Separating the Wood from the Trees Swedish-born billionaire Johan Eliasch is on a mission to save the rainforest through his charity Cool Earth

By Emma Inglis

ohan Eliasch is a man with many hats. A former Conservative Party deputy treasurer and advisor to Gordon Brown when he served as British Prime Minister, he is also chairman and chief executive of the Head NV sporting goods empire, a banker, film producer and professional skier.

Not that Swedish-born Eliasch wants to talk about those things in our interview. His focus instead is his preoccupation with the rainforest: how we can save it and why we must.

“The rainforest is fundamental to our existence on the planet,” says Eliasch. “Rainforests are the lungs of the earth.”

Little wonder Eliasch is upset. Not only do rainforests generate oxygen and manufacture a fifth of the world’s water, they also act as a carbon store and are a vault of biodiversity, containing around six million species. Yet an estimated 50 million acres of rainforest, an area the size of Britain, are cut down every year.

The burning and destruction of the timber emits more carbon dioxide than the total annual emissions of the United States and more CO2 emissions than the entire global transport sector.

So upset was Eliasch that nine years ago, he bought a logging concession in Brazil and closed it in a deal costing a reputed $13.5 million. In doing so, he saved about 400,000 acres from deforestation. His reasoning was simple: “I felt very strongly that the rainforest needed protecting and the only way of doing this was through making the standing tree more valuable than the cut down tree.”

The forest was returned to local communities, whose members were employed as rangers and got full access again to the forest’s natural resources.

But not all were convinced by the purchase. “The Amazon is ours. It is not for sale,” said Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who was then the Brazilian president. Others accused Eliasch of green colonialism.

Back in London, British MP Frank Field read about Eliasch’s purchase and was inspired. He realised although few people could make a contribution as big as Eliasch, there were probably millions who would like to make a smaller contribution to safeguard the rainforest. He emailed Eliasch with a plan to set

up an umbrella organisation to channel the money of ordinary people to buy far larger plots. And so Cool Earth was born.

But sensitive to accusations of green imperialism and recognising that “foreign ownership of the rainforest is highly contentious,” Eliasch and Field refined the model. Cool Earth would not buy land but sponsor it. The land would be held in trust with indigenous people who would farm the forest for its natural produce.

Cool Earth’s efforts did not end there. Its members worked closely with non-government organisations and local governments to create schools, health services and local co-operatives, offering local people an alternative to offers of quick cash from loggers.

For Eliasch, the solution to saving the rainforest has always been straightforward. Create a situation where the standing tree has more value than the cut-down tree and you’ll prevent deforestation.

Since its inception in 2007, Cool Earth has recruited more than 22,000 global supporters and has protected more than 356,000 acres of the rainforest in Brazil, Peru and Ecuador. And the charity has been savvy in terms of choosing to sponsor not interior tracts but huge swathes on the borders, slowly forming a shield to make neighbouring forest inaccessible to loggers.

Eliasch thinks a further 3.4 million acres of forest have been saved in this way.

Supporters of Cool Earth include an impeccable line-up of scientists, politicians and business leaders. Sir Nicholas Stern, the economist and author of the Stern Report on climate change, is a board member, together with William Cohen, a former US Defence Secretary, and Mark Ellingham, founder of Rough Guides, the travel publisher. Rock stars, celebrities and writers are also among its supporters, from Ian Hislop and Ricky Gervais to Jarvis Cocker, Pamela Anderson, and Philip Pullman. Dame Vivienne Westwood, the iconic British fashion designer, designs T-shirts for the organisation and in 2011 pledged $1.7 million to the charity.

One senses that Eliasch, this man of many hats, feels of all the things he does and the parts he plays, saving the rainforest is by far the most important.

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Economic Citizenship isn’t taxing More and more ordinary Americans are renouncing their US citizenship in favour of migrating to tax-free countries like Dominica

I think we could do it for about $200,000,” I told my wife in a text message.

“That’s not bad. I’ll do more research in the morning and let you know what I find out.”

That figure is the going rate for “economic citizenship” of Dominica, an island nation in the Caribbean that is not the Dominican Republic (the government is touchy about possible confusion). I found this out after a combination of a fresh four inches of snow outside my window, the gloom

66 may / june 2014

of late winter, a story in the New York Times and, possibly, a bottle of red inspired me to look up Dominica on the internet. I also found Dominica is about 290 square miles and has a population of just under 72,000 people, its official language is English, it has 365 rivers and its motto is “after God is the earth.”

That and the photos on the website that showed “the nature island’s” lush tropical landscape, was enough for me. Hence the text to my wife, whose scepticism was palpable across the 85 miles that separate us during the working week.

The concept of economic citizenship is not new to us. We gave serious but fleeting consideration to a vaguely similar idea last year to retire to Panama — before we visited Panama for a week. This is different though. Dominica is one of a handful of Caribbean islands, along with St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and maybe a couple of others, that aggressively market their second passport programmes.

They offer the benefits of citizenship without having to forfeit a US passport in exchange for forking over a couple of hundred thousand dollars.

Images courtesy of Corbis / ArabianEye.com

By Bill Federman

Global Citizenship

Dominica is one of a handful of Caribbean islands, along with St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and maybe a couple of others, that aggressively market their second passport programmes.

A view of Scotts Head, Dominica

A good friend of mine who is — how shall I say it? — a bit more grounded than I am in practical matters cut right to the chase and asked the question I had pretty much glossed over: Why? Why is paying a substantial sum to live there better than visiting for extended periods of time?

The answer seems mainly to do with taxes, or the lack of them. The Dominica website says the country has no wealth, gift, inheritance, capital gains or personal income taxes, which to me means that once the entrance fee is paid, my capital would be mine to fritter away without the government taking its cut. No more writing checks to various town, state and federal entities whose fees keep rising and services keep shrinking. And I could banish from my vocabulary qualifying terms such as “after-tax,” “pre-tax,” “net” and “gross”.

My favourite reason, though, is from a website that offers to guide applicants through the process of gaining economic citizenship of various Caribbean islands.

It’s a masterpiece of understatement with a hint of darkness: “You want to protect yourself and your family against repercussions or other misfortunes that you can’t fully explain.” Sign me up!

There are so many repercussions and misfortunes out there that I can’t even partially explain and that I would love to be protected from. Finally, a haven, and a tropical one at that.

Which is what is being sold here. These idyllic Caribbean islands don’t have much more than natural beauty to help them prosper. They are not exporters of indemand products except maybe a few bananas and flowers. They make most of their money from tourism and at least in the case of Dominica that option is limited because it doesn’t have the beckoning expanses of beaches that draw the big crowds that would, incidentally, negatively impact much of that beauty.

So they market themselves as secure and welcoming residences for people and their money. A fee is paid, a passport is issued

(after a background check) and everyone is happy.

Two of the happier newly minted Dominican citizens are the members of the country’s first Winter Olympics team, cross-country skiers Gary di Silvestri, 47, and his wife, Angelica, 48. It was reading their story in the New York Times that piqued my interest about Dominica.

Although they deny it, theirs seems to be a classic case of “Olympic tourism” — becoming proficient in a sport and then shopping around for a country to represent. The couple were granted Dominican citizenship, Di Silvestri said, after they “made a financial contribution to the country”. They each hold several passports and he added: “We’re hoping that we’ll have time to actually spend (in Dominica).”

But because of the snippy reply I just received from my wife and my friend’s doubts, I don’t think I’ll be having sundowners any time soon with the Di Silvestris on the veranda of an inexpensive yet palatial Dominican hideaway. I am already an economic citizen of the United States and I am in pretty deep. So I’ll play the cards I was dealt and cope the best I can with those repercussions and misfortunes. And I’ll save $200,000.

2014 may / june 67

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68 may / june 2014

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70 may / june 2014

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Arton CapitalArton is a leading Capital global is a leading financial global advisory financial firm advisory providingfirm custom providing tailored custom services tailored for immigrant services for investor immigrant programs investor to government programs toagencies government and high agencies net-worth and high individuals net-worth and individuals families from and around families from around the world. Become the world. a Global Become Citizen® a Global and Empowering Citizen® andGlobal Empowering Citizenship® Globalare Citizenship® registered are trademarks registeredoftrademarks Arton Capital. of Arton Capital.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

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2014 may / june 71

TABLE OF CONTENTS

5

Executive Summary

6

Introduction

7

Overview of HNW Programs for Alternative X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA Residence and Citizenship Across the World tneserp

10 14

72 may / june 2014

The Global UHNW Market

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17

Asia’s Giants: The Potential Of India And China’s Non-Residents .ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT

20

Conclusion

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The trend of ultra high net worth (UHNW) individuals applying for a second residence and/or citizenship seems to have recently gained more prominence with high profile examples such as Bernard Arnault Arton Capital and Wealth-X contemplating switching to Belgian citizenship, Gerard Depardieu present moving from France to Russia in early 2013, and Tina Turner giving up her US citizenship in November 2013 to become Swiss.

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship Wealth-X, the world’s leading UHNW prospecting and intelligence for UHNW Individuals

firm, in collaboration with Arton Capital, the global citizenship experts, have partnered to dig A deeper thisontrend compare various specialinto report latestand trends in global wealthHNW investment immigration programs, UHNW individuals and movement ofexamine ultra highwhy net worth individuals. choose to switch citizenships, and look into what is in store for future global citizens. This is a hugely promising area of growth that we are only Take your personal copy. at the very beginning of, and as wealth creation continues to develop rapidly, so too will global citizenship.

Mykolas D. Rambus Chief Executive Officer Wealth-X

David S. Friedman President Wealth-X

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

Armand Arton President & CEOÂ Arton Capital /5

2014 may / june 73

INTRODUCTION

X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA tneserp

pihsnezitiC labolG :dlroW gniknirhS A slaudividnI WNHU rof htlaew labolg ni sdnert tsetal no troper laiceps A .slaudividni htrow ten hgih artlu fo tnemevom dna

.ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT Global citizenship is becoming an increasingly popular tool for the world’s ultra wealthy. There are many different reasons why an ultra high net worth (UHNW) individual might seek a second citizenship including greater stability and security, tax efficiency, ease of travel, higher standard of living, increased options for children’s education, and investment opportunities that may not otherwise be available - to name but a few. There are also further considerations to be made about Immigrant Investor Programs (IIPs), and Citizenship by Investment Programs (CIPs); the former requires a residence permit as a precondition to citizenship, whilst the latter offers citizenship directly.

6/

74 may / june 2014

This study analyses the world’s UHNW individuals - defined as those with a net worth of US$30 million and above - and the potential benefits that HNW programs for second residence or citizenship offer for the ultra wealthy.

We will provide an overview of the global UHNW market, and then look in more depth at the profiles of the ultra wealthy that have either begun or completed applications for a second citizenship. We will also examine the potential for many future global citizens to come from the two giants of Asia, India and China, and their existing non-resident populations. Analysing the high return on investment that the high net worth programs for alternative residence and citizenship offer, we expect the number of the ultra wealthy seeking second citizenship to increase at an even faster rate in the next 10 years.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

OVERVIEW OF HNW PROGRAMS FOR ALTERNATIVE RESIDENCE AND CITIZENSHIP ACROSS THE WORLD Below is an overview of some of the most popular programs available for ultra wealthy citizens, including a brief summary of their investment requirements.

- Economic citizenship programs where citizenship is obtained directly. The precondition is again for the foreign individual to have invested certain amount in the pre-defined list of assets and/or projects.

There are many factors that need to be considered Arton Capital and Wealth-X Such legislative mechanisms provide for the inclusion before applying for a second citizenship, not merely present of family members, such as the spouse, underage and – investment requirements. Other factors include the in certain jurisdictions – dependent children above the time to citizenship, the number of countries that age of 18, as well as dependent parents. can be visited without a visa, physical residency requirements, and of course the country itself.

In the past decade, certain jurisdictions have become more popular destinations among HNW individuals There are two main types of programs that are who are looking for in a better future for themselves provided for in the national legislations almostreport any A of special on latest trends global wealth and their families. Application and investment jurisdiction: and movement of ultra high net worth individuals. requirements vary from one jurisdiction to another, and so do the timelines for approval of applications - Hybrid programs where (permanent) residence is Take your and thepersonal prerequisitescopy. to maintain the residence/ obtained on the grounds of investment in a pre defined citizenship status, once obtained. list of assets which may vary from government bonds, through active investments in business or governmentapproved projects, to investment in real estate and direct donation to state projects;

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship for UHNW Individuals

The specially designed ArtonINDEX enables us to compare jurisdictions by examining them based on five main dimensions:

Overall cost

Speed

Global mobility Quality of life

Simplicity

Including application fees and investment

The amount of time it takes to obtain citizenship

The number of countries In the hosting country that the passport holder can go to visa-free or with a visa upon arrival

Represented by the existence of a waiver to different requirements, such as knowledge of the local language, requirement to be physically present for a certain amount of time, and other requirements

The ArtonINDEX gives a maximum score of 100 and includes the 10 most sought-after countries that currently offer options to obtain second residence and/or citizenship against investment. The following countries in the selection below are not covered by the index: Greece, Spain, and Australia.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

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2014 may / june 75

Fact File of Select Countries

EUROPE

LATIN AMERICA & THE CARIBBEAN

Bulgaria Requirements: Proof of a minimum net worth of €1 million (US$1.4 million) and investment of €511,292 (US$700,000) in a Government Bonds portfolio for five years Arton Index Score: 66

Antigua & Barbuda Requirements: Make a donation of at least US$250,000 (for single applicant) to an approved charity, or invest at least US$400,000 in a government-approved real estate project, or invest US$1.5 million to establish a business.

Arton Index Score: 59

Cyprus X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA Requirements: Purchase of a property worth at least Dominica tnesefollowing rp Requirements: Donate US$100,000 – US$500,000 €500,000 (US$700,000) and one of the (depending on the number of the qualifying family investment options: - Donate €500,000 (US$700,000) to the Research and members) or invest US$200,000 in a government-approved Technology fund and deposit €2 million (US$2.8 million) real estate project. for the purchase of bonds/shares of the State Investment Arton Index Score: 51 Company - Directly invest at least €5 million (US$7 million) in Grenada Requirements: Purchase an approved property for at property, financial assets, or business/companies htlaew labolg ni sdnert tsetal no trleast opeUS$1 r laicmillion eps A(or 25% of a property for at least - Deposit at least €5 million (US$7 million) in a Cypriot .slaudividni htrow ten hgih artlu foUS$250,000). tnemevom dna bank for three years Arton Index Score: 61 Arton Index Score: 70

pihsnezitiC labolG :dlroW gniknirhS A slaudividnI WNHU rof

.ypoc lanosrep ruoy eSt.kaKitts T & Nevis Greece Requirements: Invest at least US$400,000 in a governmentRequirements: Purchase of a property for at least €250,000 approved real estate project, or contribute US$250,000 (for (US$350,000) a single applicant) to the Sugar Industry Diversification Arton Index Score: N/A Foundation.

Arton Index Score: 65 Hungary Requirements: Purchase Government approved zerocoupon bonds for €250,000 (US$350,000) and receive the principal back five years later NORTH AMERICA Arton Index Score: 64 United States Requirements: Investment in enterprises that create 10 full Spain Requirements: Deposit €1 million (US$1.4 million) in time jobs for US workers within two years, or invest at least a Spanish bank, invest €1 million (US$1.4 million) in a US$1 million in a commercial enterprise (US$500,000 in Spanish company, invest at least €500,000 (US$700,000) targeted areas) in property, or acquire Spanish public debt of at least €1 Arton Index Score: 48 million (US$1.4 million) Arton Index Score: N/A United Kingdom Requirements: At least £1 million (US$1.6 million) intended to be invested in the UK (or a £2 million (US$3.2 million) net worth with £1 million (US$1.6 million) in loans from an accredited financial institution to be invested in the UK) Arton Index Score: 56 8/

76 may / june 2014

ASIA PACIFIC

Australia Requirements: Investment of at least A$5 million (US$4.7 million), excluding property Arton Index Score: N/A

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

Mixed Signals Whilst there have been many countries offering investment immigration targeted at wealthy Capital and Wealth-X individuals in recent years, there have alsoArton been some countries withdrawing some of these investor programs. For example, Canada recently cancelled their immigrant investor program whilst Singapore present has made it more difficult for wealthy foreigners to gain citizenship to the city-state, scrapping their Financial Investor Scheme in 2012.

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship for UHNW Individuals

Despite this, the last few years have seen more and more programs being offered by various countries, often targeting individuals from specific regions. For example, Australia’s Significant Investor Visa has seen the most demand from Chinese individuals, whilst many Russians have used the investor programs offered by Cyprus.

A special report on latest trends in global wealth and movement of ultra high net worth individuals.

Immigrant Investor Programs (IIPs) vs.

Affordability of Programs Take your personal copy.

Citizenship by Investment Programs (CIPs) IIPs require a residence permit as a precondition to citizenship, whilst CIPs allow citizenship to be obtained directly. Of the countries tracked by the ArtonINDEX, all of the Caribbean HNW programs offer citizenship in under a year, as well as Cyprus (3 months) and Bulgaria also offers a fast track to citizenship, albeit one that still takes two years.

Hungary, the UK and USA can take between 5.5 and 8 years to obtain citizenship. For UHNW individuals leaving countries experiencing social unrest, the priority of the fast citizenship of CIPs will increase, and could well be the determining factor. However, this distinction between IIPs and CIPs should only be one of many factors to consider when weighing up HNW programs for alternative residence and citizenship across the world.

As a pure investment, some of these programs are very attractive to UHNW individuals. For example, the cost of purchasing bonds worth €250,000 (US$350,000) in Hungary gives access to visit all of the Schengen Area visa-free (with all of the European Union possible after citizenship, requiring 8 years of holding of permanent residency). After five years, this original capital is returned, so the UHNW individual has lost out on 5 years of interest, equivalent to approximately €116,000* (US$160,000). Whilst this may sound like a significant sum, this is 0.1% of the average UHNW individuals’ net worth, and will save considerable time and stress. Even as a percentage of their liquid assets, it is only 0.5% of the average US$35 million held in cash, a small expense when considering the increase in the quality of life they will enjoy. If leaving a country with higher taxes, the savings alone will pay for some of these investor programs in a matter of months.

*Assumes a 10% average growth rate over 5 years, equal to €116,000 (US$160,000) A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

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2014 may / june 77

THE GLOBAL UHNW MARKET

The global UHNW population is currently at record highs, with nearly 200,000 individuals collectively worth US$28 trillion.

UHNW Individuals by Region

X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA tneserp

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.ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT

Source: Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2013

With nearly 90% of UHNW individuals married, and an average of two children, the addressable market is four times larger at 800,000 people, and the importance of family considerations for global citizenship cannot be overstated. Often in families with UHNW individuals, the spouse may be the key decision maker at home, or the needs of the children may be prioritised. This means that it is not only the UHNW individual themselves who need to see the benefit of immigrant investor programs, but the other 10 /

78 may / june 2014

family members as well. Moving half way across the world is a huge decision to make, regardless of wealth, and this is why factors beyond just the investment requirements are important when comparing programs. The likes of safety, security, quality of life and ease of travel may be more important to the other family members than they are to the UHNW individual themselves, and is why the entire family needs to be considered.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

UHNW Individuals by Wealth Tier

Arton Capital and Wealth-X present

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship for UHNW Individuals A special report on latest trends in global wealth and movement of ultra high net worth individuals.

Take your personal copy.

Source: Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2013

When the world’s UHNW population is broken down according to wealth tiers, it is clear there are great wealth disparities, even within the 0.003%. Billionaires account for 1% of the world’s UHNW individuals but hold 23% of the wealth, worth US$6.5 trillion.

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2014 may / june 79

Forecast of Future Billionaires, 2013-2020

3,605

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2,356

tnese2,788 rp 2,508 280

3,873

3,331

345

274

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268

2020

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.ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT Source: Wealth-X and UBS Billionaire Census 2013

Another subset of the world’s UHNW population who stand to gain from immigrant investor programs are self-made individuals, who account for 65% of the world’s UHNW population. This is because many lack the sophisticated financial advisors, accountants, lawyers, wealth managers, and bankers that “oldBillionaires typically lead the most global lifestyles, money” families have relied on for generations, and so their time is by definition more valuable than anyone are the most vulnerable to large costs, especially during else’s, and consequently being able to travel visa-free a potential wealth transfer to the next generation. on their private jet could be an invaluable investment For example, without proper planning some UHNW for what is a small percentage of their net worth. For individuals may have to pay large inheritance taxes example, the average billionaire owns four properties that could immediately deny their heirs half of their worth US$78 million combined, with most of these fortune. Although seeking second citizenship is a being outside his primary country of residence. 5% process that should ideally be started years in advance of UHNW individuals who have applied for second citizenships have a net worth of at least a billion dollars of any potential wealth transfer, it is a viable option for self-made UHNW individuals who wish to benefit – meaning that billionaires (who make up 1% of the world’s UHNW population) are five times more likely from more competitive tax schemes. to apply for an immigrant investor program.

These are the individuals who stand to gain the most from global citizenship, and it is predicted that the billionaire population is going to grow nearly 80% by the year 2020, an increase of 1,700 billionaires.

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80 may / june 2014

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

Global UHNW Wealth Transfers Expected, US$ trillion

Arton Capital and Wealth-X present

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship for UHNW Individuals A special report on latest trends in global wealth and movement of ultra high net worth individuals.

Take your personal copy.

Source: Wealth-X Institute

The expected wealth transfer in the coming years from UHNW individuals is going to be the largest ever, and could be one of the main reasons why UHNW individuals decide to change their citizenship. There is large variance in the inheritance tax legislation across countries, and the potential savings could be significant.

The total wealth being transferred to the next generation in the next 30 years is expected to exceed

US$16 trillion, in 2013 dollars – larger than the GDP of the United States. The countries expected to transfer the most wealth as a share of their current wealth include France, Hong Kong and Italy. Countries that have had a more recent phase of wealth creation will play a less significant role in this generational wealth transfer. China’s UHNW population, for example, is nearly a decade younger than the global average.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

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TRENDS IN GLOBAL CITIZENSHIPS OF UHNW INDIVIDUALS

X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA tneserp - The United States has by far the largest UHNW Slightly less than 60% of all UHNW second population, so the share of American UHNW citizenship applicants come from countries in the individuals wishing to move abroad is still small. For Middle East. One possible explanation for this is that example, UHNW individuals from Syria are 300 times the Middle East has a high proportion of its UHNW wealth belonging to billionaires (40%), more than any more likely to apply for a second citizenship than other region in the world. As mentioned earlier in the those from the US. htlaew labolg ni sdnert tsetal no troper laiceps A - There is greater transparency in the US, with a paper, billionaires are five times more likely to apply . s l a u d i v i d n i h t r o w t e n h g i h a r t l u f o tnemevom dna monthly list made public of those who have given for a second citizenship, as they have more to gain up their citizenship. This makes it impossible for from obtaining one and the costs of obtaining it are also lower, as a proportion of .ytheir pocwealth. lanosAsreMiddle p ruoy eAmericans kaT to renounce their US citizenship “under the radar”.

Eastern wealth is skewed towards the top tiers and - The global taxation system can make it very the attractiveness of a second citizenship increases expensive for UHNW individuals to maintain their with wealth, it would help explain why the region is US citizenship, especially if they are living in a lower overrepresented. taxed jurisdiction such as Switzerland, Dubai or Singapore. The annual savings in capital gains tax When examining this situation on a country level, it alone for an average UHNW individual could reach becomes clear that the UHNW individuals wishing almost US$1 million*. to move or change their citizenship most commonly come from those countries that do not have high Russia is also an interesting country to find near the stability of asset security. Lebanon, Syria and Egypt, for example, have all experienced unrest in the last few top of this list. Although recent developments in Crimea would have likely increased the number of years so it is logical for those who have the means to applications made, the bulk of the data comes from wish to move somewhere with greater stability. before the current crisis. Much like the Middle East, The exception to this is the United States, which is the billionaires in Russia have a disproportionate share of the country’s UHNW wealth, controlling 55% of the fifth most significant country in terms of the number of UHNW individuals applying for other citizenships. total. There are high profile examples of billionaires moving abroad, with London a preferred destination, There are three factors that would help explain this most notably Roman Abramovich whose business is apparent anomaly: headquartered in the UK.

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*Assumes an average UHNW individual receives 5% of his/her net worth in income a year, and 90% of this is subject to a capital gains tax rate of 15%.

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A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

The Most Significant Countries of Origin for UHNW Individuals who have a Second Citizenship RANK

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN

PERCENTAGE

1

PAKISTAN

17%

2

LEBANON

15%

3

EGYPT

7% Arton Capital and Wealth-X

4

SYRIA

present

5 6

Region of Application

USA

7% 7%

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship 6% RUSSIA for UHNW Individuals A special report on latest trends in global wealth and movement of ultra high net worth individuals.

Whilst the aforementioned global taxation system may Europe is the most popular region in terms of second Take your personal copy.to the US, and would help from applying residence and citizenship applications, accounting for deter some over half of the total number of applications, with the explain its lower position, the US still accounts for 1 in 7 applications made. This shows that lifestyle factors Caribbean in second place, ahead of North America. are an important consideration for global citizens and The European programs are popular thanks to free the decision to seek a second citizenship is often about travel within the EU, allowing an “arbitrage� where UHNW individuals can gain citizenship with Bulgaria more than just taxes. For example, the US could be a popular destination for UHNW families with children for example (which has top income tax rate of 10%), preparing to go to university, where they would have even if they spend a large part of their time in higher better access to world-class institutions. taxed countries such as France or Italy (both with a top income tax rate of 45%). The popularity of the Caribbean region is thanks to the lower barriers to entry offered by many Caribbean countries, such as Antigua and Dominica, where fast track programs are available, and physical residency requirements, where existent, are very low.

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The Most Significant Regions of Citizenship Application REGION

PERCENTAGE

EU

56%

CARIBBEAN

25%

NORTH AMERICA

14%

OTHERS

5%

-htlaewho W dapplies na lafor tipaC UHNW notrA individuals with a second citizenship have an The average net worth ofX someone tnes47% erp average age of 57, just below the global average of 58 a second citizenship is above US$205 million, years. This average age includes two different clusters above the global average for UHNW individuals of that both move for family reasons. One group moves US$139 million. to provide their children with increased education opportunities, and many of these individuals opt to Likewise, they are also more liquid, with 32% of relocate to the US and UK. The second cluster is their net worth in liquid assets, equal to over US$66 million per individual. In absolute terms, this is nearly elder UHNW individuals planning on transferring htlaew labolg ni sdnert tsetal no troper laiceps A their wealth to the next generation, and who apply to double the global average of US$35 million, and is laudividnofi wealth, htrow compared ten hgih to artlu fomore tnem evom dnacountries including the Caribbean tax-friendly also higher as a.sproportion countries of Antigua and Dominica. the global average liquidity of 25%. This means that all requirements of immigrant investor programs can .ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT be met with purely liquid investments by an average UHNW individual.

pihsnezitiC labolG :dlroW gniknirhS A slaudividnI WNHU rof

Wealth Deconstruction for UHNW Individuals with Second Citizenship Private Holdings 13%

Liquid Assets 34%

Public Holdings Real Estate and Luxury

21%

32%

16 /

84 may / june 2014

Despite the high liquidity, private holdings still represent the largest share of an UHNW individual’s wealth. Although the average is 34%, for those with at least some private holdings, it constitutes the majority of their wealth at 76%. In contrast, public holdings are representative of UHNW individuals with more diversified holdings.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

ASIA’S GIANTS: THE POTENTIAL OF INDIA AND CHINA’S NON-RESIDENTS

Arton Capital and Wealth-X present

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Looking forward, Asia is expected to drive global growth, and be the largest UHNW region in the world within 20 years. With over half of the world’s population, and a rapidly growing middle class, Wealth-X believes that Asia is still in the early stages of a 150-year cycle of wealth creation.

It is highly likely that we will see an increasing number of UHNW individuals from Asia’s two giants, China and India, seeking global citizenship in the coming years. These countries both already have some of the largest populations based abroad, with 5,380 NRI’s and 3,020 NRC’s.

Coupled with current residents of China and India, the two countries have a total UHNW population of 26,925, accounting for 1 of every 7 UHNW individuals in the world.

Asia overall is expected to be one of the fastest growing regions in terms of number of UHNW individuals in the next five years, with the region’s UHNW population increasing at an average rate of 5.9%. As two of the three largest UHNW countries in Asia, China and India are going to be among the key countries driving this strong growth. With each country already having large non-resident populations, the precedent of moving abroad has already been made, and so as those countries’ UHNW populations grow, there is likely to be an increase in the non-resident population as well.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

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2014 may / june 85

Comparison of China’s and NRC UHNW Individuals

CHINA’S UHNW INDIVIDUAL

MEAN NET WORTHX(US$ -htlaMILLION) eW dna latipaC notrA

NRC UHNW INDIVIDUAL

142

166

12%

23%

tneserp LIQUIDITY (% OF NET WORTH)

pihsnezitiC labolG :dlroW gniknirhS A slaudividnI WNHU rof 52

68

AVERAGE AGE

TOTAL UHNW htlaPOPULATION ew labolg ni sdSIZE nert tsetal no troper laic10,675 eps A

3,020

.slaudividni htrow ten hgih artlu fo tnemevom dna

.ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT Comparison of India’s and NRI UHNW Individuals INDIA’S UHNW INDIVIDUAL

MEAN NET WORTH (US$ MILLION)

LIQUIDITY (% OF NET WORTH)

AVERAGE AGE

TOTAL UHNW POPULATION SIZE

18 /

86 may / june 2014

NRI UHNW INDIVIDUAL

119

148

24%

26%

55

58

7,850

5,380

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

Projected Growth of UHNW Populations 16,000 14,000

UHNW Population

12,000

Arton Capital and Wealth-X

10,000

present

8,000

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship for UHNW Individuals

6,000 4,000 2,000

A special report on latest trends in global wealth and movement of ultra high net worth individuals.

0

Take your personal copy.

2013 China

NRC

India

2018 NRI

Source: Wealth-X Institute

At the average population growth rate of 5.9% that is predicted for all of Asia, these four groups of UHNW individuals (NRC, NRI, China and India’s UHNW individuals) would grow by 33% in the next five years. This equates to an additional 8,935 UHNW individuals, greater than the current UHNW population of Switzerland and Italy combined, being created in the next five years alone.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

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2014 may / june 87

CONCLUSION

X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA tneserp

pihsnezitiC labolG :dlroW gniknirhS A slaudividnI WNHU rof htlaew labolg ni sdnert tsetal no troper laiceps A .slaudividni htrow ten hgih artlu fo tnemevom dna

.ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT

The trends that have been driving global citizenship – technology, globalization, and increasing convergence of the world’s wealthiest – look set to continue, making ease of travel more important than ever. Coupled with greater stability, increased quality of life in some of the world’s most desirable cities and competitive tax rates will make a second citizenship more and more appealing as the wealth of UHNW individuals increases.

Measured solely in investment terms, the majority of these investor immigration programs are very attractive to UHNW individuals,

20 /

88 may / june 2014

costing as little as 0.5% of their liquid assets, or 0.1% of their net worth, and providing a host of positive benefits.

As education and awareness of global citizenship programs continues to increase, so too will the number of applications being made by UHNW individuals. With more and more wealth being created in Asia, yet demand for residence in European territories being so high, this trend of UHNW individuals seeking global citizenship will undoubtedly continue to grow.

A SHRINKING WORLD: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP FOR UHNW INDIVIDUALS

ABOUT WEALTH-X Wealth-X is the definitive source of intelligence on the ultra wealthy with the world’s largest collection of curated research on ultra high net worth (UHNW) individuals, defined as those with net assets of US$30 million and above.

Headquartered in Singapore, our firm has 13 offices in five continents. With our passion for prospecting with insight, diligence and strategy, we are the right way to grow for private bankers,Arton professional fundraisers and luxury brands.

Capital and Wealth-X present

A Shrinking World: Global Citizenship for UHNW Individuals A specialARTON report on latest trends in global wealth ABOUT CAPITAL

and movement of ultra high net worth individuals.

Arton Capital empowers individuals families to become Takeand your personal copy.global citizens.

We accomplish this through a high-end service and experience that simplifies complexity and which is supported and sustained by long-term relationships.

We also play a critical role in helping governments, consultants, legal and financial professionals and investors to meet their citizenship goals more quickly, efficiently and effectively.

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2014 may / june 89

CONNECT WITH US

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For more information, contact press@wealthx.com

X-htlaeW dna latipaC notrA tneserp

pihsnezitiC labolG :dlroW gniknirhS A slaudividnI WNHU rof

WEALTH-X AND UBS BILLIONAIRE CENSUS 2013 htlaew labolg nihttp://www.billionairecensus.com sdnert tsetal no troper laiceps A .slaudividni htrow ten hgih artlu fo tnemevom dna

.ypoc lanosrep ruoy ekaT WEALTH-X AND UBS WORLD ULTRA WEALTH REPORT 2013 http://www.wealthx.com/wealthxubswealthreport

www.linkedin.com/company/wealth-x www.twitter.com/wealthx www.facebook.com/wealthx www.youtube.com/user/WealthX

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WEALTH-X + GLOBAL CITIZEN

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2014 may / june 93

Horology

Clocking Off at Zenith Hailed as the man who turned around the Swiss watch company Zenith, Jean-Frederic Dufour will now become the third chief executive for Rolex in six years when he takes up his new position in an unexpected move. GC speaks to Dufour before his departure

By Simon De Burton

he world of luxury was taken by surprise last month with the announcement that Rolex has appointed a new chief executive in the form of Jean-Frederic Dufour, a 45-year-old industry veteran who has risen quietly through the ranks with leading brands such as Blancpain, Ulysse Nardin and Chopard.

But it was in his most recent role as chief executive of Zenith that Dufour made his mark, reviving this horological Lazarus in an epic turnaround that deserves to become required study on MBA courses around the world.

Indeed, it was very likely that achievement that led Rolex to appoint Dufour to the biggest job in watches. And all true horophiles will remain ever grateful to him for what he did because Zenith might just be the greatest watch brand most people had never heard of until recently.

Shortly before his appointment to Rolex, GC caught up with Dufour at this year’s Baselworld watch show, where he explained the difficulties he faced when he took over the reins at Zenith five years ago.

94 may / june 2014

“It was daunting to say the least. When I came on board, I had not really appreciated just how bad the situation was,” he says.

“It was literally a matter of wondering whether or not we were going to be able to pay our 150 staff at the end of the month.”

Zenith was founded in the Swiss town of Le Locle in 1865 by a man called Georges Favre-Jacot who set out to make inexpensive but accurate pocket watches to a high standard of quality. His philosophy worked and within a decade he was employing up to a third of the town’s working population.

The Zenith name - chosen for its meaning as ‘the highest point’ - soon became synonymous with precision and, as the century turned, its products were adopted by pioneer aviators such as Louis Bleriot who carried a Zenith watch on his historic cross-channel flight of 1909.

But, despite surviving two world wars, the trademark Zenith star began to fade with the arrival of the first quartz-powered watches in 1969, just as the firm finally perfected its now legendary El Primero movement that broke new ground by being the first self-winding chronograph capable of recording

Horology

elapsed time down to one tenth of a second.

For the following 30 years, the manufacturer survived by supplying its still beautifully made, in-house movements to higher-profile brands which used them in their most prestigious products - but rarely acknowledged the vital involvement of Zenith.

In 1999, however, a glimmer of hope appeared when luxury goods giant LVMH stepped in and acquired the brand lock, stock and barrel. Tasked with bringing this ‘sleeping beauty’ back to life was a flamboyant operator called Thierry Nataf who did a useful job of returning the Zenith name to the international stage - but, by introducing a vast and unconventional array of new designs, he was perceived by many to be driving the noble Zenith name to a place where it didn’t belong.

Fast forward to 2009 and Zenith got a new chief executive in the form of the dynamic Dufour, who went on to turn the brand around so that it was once more known for making watches which did not just harbour great mechanisms but were utterly desirable from the outside too. And how did he do it?

Essentially, by looking back at some of Zenith’s greatest historic designs and adapting them for the 21st century.

Dufour says: “I began the job in June 2009 and one of my priorities was to develop a completely new collection for the Baselworld show a few months later. To start that process, I spent 150 days travelling and talking to people who remembered what the brand was like when it was successful - and I quickly

learned that I had to get rid of most of the 850 different model references I had inherited and start again.”

Dufour set about spending many weeks searching through the brand’s extensive (but hitherto untouched) archives before instigating a streamlined series of new models based on classic pieces, such as the once-famous pilot’s watches, the Captain dress watches and, of course, the El Primero chronographs.

The effect was virtually instant, with the world’s watch aficionados giving an almost universal thumbs-up to the resized and subtly improved historic designs. The international watch press eagerly lapped up the story of the reborn brand and afforded the photogenic new products lavish coverage.

“When we began the re-positioning of Zenith, we were making fewer than 8,000 movements a year,” says Dufour.

“By last year, that number had risen to 50,000. Initially, most of the other brands paid us no attention because they thought we didn’t matter - but now they do because Zenith is, once again, a really serious player which is fighting hard and growing market share year on year.

“Japan and Hong Kong are currently our biggest markets, but we are seeing a considerable rise in interest from the Middle East, particularly in Dubai where we are undertaking a great deal of promotional work. Zenith’s star is back on the rise.”

As Dufour’s star appears to have reached a zenith of its own, aficionados the world over are waiting to see what he does with what is already the most successful watch brand in the world.

THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH - AND THE ZENITH WATCH THAT WENT WITH HIM: The Zenith El Primero Stratos ‘Tribute to Felix Baumgartner’.

Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner made world history and international headlines towards the end of 2012 when he jumped out of a balloon from the edge of space, sky diving 24 miles to Earth and reaching a terminal velocity of more than 840 miles per hour. Strapped to his wrist throughout the nine-minute stunt was a Zenith Stratos ‘Striking 10th’ chronograph, which survived the ordeal in perfect working order.

Zenith subsequently created a commemorative edition of the watch, featuring a case back decorated with the Red Bull Stratos mission logo. $10,584

2014 may / june 95

World Heritage the official publication from the UNESCO World Heritage Centre is dedicated to presenting and promoting World Heritage sites, with detailed feature articles and news items about the most outstanding cultural and natural sites around the world.

World Heritage is particularly designed to reflect and enhance UNESCO’s dedication towards Heritage; our legacy from the past, our responsibility for the present and our duty to future generations.

Each issue is extensively illustrated with striking high-quality images, which accompany cuttingedge articles from the leading authorities on World Heritage, together with news items, analysis and a sharing of best practices in heritage preservation and promotion.

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Published four times a year in English, French and Spanish, World Heritage embraces a wide international audience particularly sensitive to cultural, historical, archaeological, ecological and conservation of nature issues.

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Horology

A World of Watches Baselworld 2014 produced a line-up of new luxury timepieces that show the watch industry is as bold as ever, bravely experimenting with colourful materials and ceramic coatings to give an elusive lightweight feel. GC rounds up a few of the new releases

A Touch of Manliness Rado debuted ceramic touch technology last year and it made a welcome return at this year’s fair with the popular Rado HyperChrome family and the first crown-less gents’ watch.

There are five new models in total that make up Rado’s first selection of touch technology complications where users can activate the function and set the time by touch. Perfect if you’re a businessman often caught between two time zones as the watch features two hands on the main dial display with the time of your current location and the time of a second time zone, making it the ideal travel companion. The new touch tool design also gives the option of adjusting the time with just a swipe of your finger.

Matthias Breschan, CEO of Rado

Available in matt black with rose gold coloured details and a stylish leather strap, shiny white for a dash of flamboyant style, polished black on a ceramic bracelet, shiny grey with rose gold coloured details or matt grey with rhodium details and in full high-tech ceramic, you won’t even need to take it off to get through airport security. Lightweight, hypoallergenic and scratch resistant, it can stay on your wrist whatever you have planned.

Rado Hyperchrome Ceramic Touch Dual Timer 2014 may / june 97

Horology

Germany’s Finest Watchmaker Glashütte Original has returned to the pillar of traditional watchmaking with its new chronograph movement, designed and handcrafted entirely in its own workshops in the birthplace of German watchmaking, Glashütte.

A watchmaking school is helping the Saxon town attract talent away from its Swiss neighbours as well as keeping the watchmaking tradition alive among the younger generation in this part of Germany.

“We want to be as good as the Swiss when it comes to watchmaking,” says Yann Gamard, chief executive of Glashütte.

And with the hype surrounding its new chronograph movement at this year’s fair, Glashütte, which is owned by the Swatch Group, is becoming a noisy neighbour. “ We have grown from 350 employees three years ago to 550 and a lot of the new faces are coming from further afield. In every

Yann Gamard, Glashütte chief executive Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Pamorama Date

new project we do, we have an 18-year-old, a 40-year-old and a 60-year-old all working together. That is very unique,” he says.

The brand, which has really gained strides over the past couple of years, has “revisited a traditional function of the watch industry” in the Chronograph, according to Gamard. “It took us three years to develop the movement alone,” he says.

However much the company has spent on developing its talent, with 438 components in the new Chronograph and the order books filling up since Baselworld, the chief executive admits satisfying consumer demand is still its biggest challenge.

“We can only go as fast as our production line.” But Gamard says the one thing Glashütte will never do is compromise on quality. “We want to minimise our after-sales service as we expect pieces like the chronograph to be around 100 years from now.”

98 may / june 2014 62

Horology

Omega Leads The Way Omega has been leading the way when it comes to amagnetic technologies since introducing its Seamaster Aqua Terra- 1500 Guass. To date, none of its competitors have developed the same level of anti-magnetism, although Rolex and IWC pioneered the technology.

“You can find magnetism everywhere from a handbag to a fridge to an iPad,” explains Raynald Aeschlimann, Omega’s vice president and international sales director. “We got a lot of watches coming back because they were going too slow or too fast and when we opened them up, the watchmaker said there was nothing wrong, it was just magnetism.” The new amagnetic technology Omega has developed protects mechanical watches from magnetic fields that can cause severe damage to the mechanisms inside.

“...magnetism has made a big boom within the watch industry this year.”

Raynald Aeschlimann, Omega’s vice president and international sales director

“This technology will be used within all of our models in the next three to five years,” Aeschlimann says.

He adds: “That’s the paradox about watches; people want to be very clear that they get the best for what they invest.

If you spend money, you want to get value for your money and that’s why magnetism has made a big boom within the watch industry this year. “[The industry] knows we are serious and are going to do it an industrial way. That is our mission to the [Swatch] group. We are selling 650,00 watches every year and doing it on another level from anyone else.”

The manufacturing process behind last year’s Omega antimagnetic calibre has been refined, allowing for the creation of five new anti-magnetic calibres now renamed as the Master Co-Axial calibres. Watch out for the new Speedmaster Mark II and Seamaster 300, which are available in stainless steel, grade 5 titanium, 18ct Sedna gold as well as bi-metal variants.

A platinum version is limited to 357 pieces.

2014 may / june 99

lifestyle

Leica T

Leica has embraced new technologies with its new T system.

Heavily focused on design, the camera targets the luxury market with a sleek, heavy body that is crafted from a single piece of aluminum.The back of the camera has a large 3.7in touchscreen LCD, while inside is a 16.5 megapixel sensor and integrated wi-fi, which makes uploading images to tablets and smartphones that much easier.

From $1,850

100 may / june 2014

gizmos & gadgets

NOD

One ring that controls them all. Nod has created a wearable Bluetooth ring that controls everything from your Google Glass, smartphone, tablet and Nest thermostat with only a wiggle of your index finger. The device detects spatial motion with more than 0.1mm accuracy and can personalise content based on a user’s proximity and identity. Just point and move your finger and a cursor moves around wherever you’re aiming. Once charged, it lasts for up to 24 hours. The device will be available in the US this autumn.

$149

Rizoma 77/011

Style meets multi-functional technology in this classic Italian product, the metropolitan bicycle. The bike’s carbon fibre frame weighs just 8kg so it’s lightweight enough to fling over your shoulder and carry up a flight of stairs. But the most unique feature is that it comes with a flip-flop rear wheel hub so the rider can chose between a single-speed and fixed-gear mechanism by pulling a lever and flipping the wheel over, ideal for urban cyclists. The bike is also outfitted with custom components milled from solid billet aluminum. Instead of a chain, there’s a gates carbon-drive belt, which means there’s no danger of getting oil stains on your trousers.

Available in matte white or glossy black, $4,700

2014 may / june 101 101

Outfits by Harvey Nichols, Footwear and bag provided by Ralph Lauren

Eyewear provided by the Ferrari Store Watch by Hublot

102 may / june 2014 94

Four-wheel Ferrari Ferrari launches its first four-wheel drive with the Ferrari FF, a 335km/h powerhorse

ove or hate the rear end, there is a lot to like about the FF. Dubbed the Ferrari Four model, it is Ferrari’s first four-wheel drive and features a lightweight 4WD system with four comfortable seats that cocoon the driver and occupants alike. It’s a four-seater that some say utterly changes the whole GT sports car concept.

Regardless of weather or surface, the FF will more than match anything that’s asked of it because it is quite simply the most versatile car ever produced by the pens, computers, monkey wrenches and milling machines of the Prancing Horse technicians, engineers, designers and mechanics.

The FF: a name, as we said, inspired by the car’s four generous, body-hugging seats and, more significantly, the new Prancing Horse-patented four-wheel drive system. Purists will be overjoyed to know it is still the rear wheels that actually provide the power, with torque being transferred only to the front axle when required and even then intelligently and predicatively distributed to all four

wheels. Yet another reason why this is the most versatile Ferrari ever built. But take note: the FF is also the most exclusive GT on the market, the very pinnacle of achievement in the extreme GT segment, the most powerful four-seater in the world. It has it all: exceptional, class-topping performance that pushes its signature Ferrari thoroughbred DNA and driving pleasure to the utmost, regardless of weather or terrain - even on snow, ice and dirt.

The FF also sets a new benchmark in terms of sheer innovation: it is the first four-wheel drive V12 with a rear-mounted electronic differential, the E-Diff. The Ferrari-patented four-wheel drive system is unique in its class and is integrated with the new generation F1-Trac traction control developed specifically for the track. The FF is also the first and only V12 in the world to sport the sevenspeed dual-clutch F1 gearbox with 20 per cent more power output and 25 per cent lower fuel consumption. It offers four occupants superb in-car comfort with wraparound seats and absolutely unprecedented cabin and luggage space for a car in its category.

2014 may / june 103 103

Riva Yacht courtesy of Art Marine Outfits provided by Vilebrequin Eyewear provided by the Ferrari Store

The FF’s architecture too ticks all the boxes with authentic sports car driving dynamics, braking and suspensions. It also boasts the best weight-power ratio ever achieved, thanks in part to the fact that its patented four-wheel drive system is just half the weight of a traditional version.

Technology and innovation Make no mistake about it: the FF has the DNA of a thoroughbred Ferrari. It is not only sporty in the extreme but also comfortable and easy to handle. It brings a wealth of technology to the mix, starting with a completely new midfront-mounted 6,262 cc GDI V12 that delivers unprecedented performance and responsiveness at all engine speeds: the FF has a top speed of 335km/h and sprints from 0 to 100km/h in just 3.7 seconds. This impressive result is attributable to a whole series of factors affecting every area of the car. They include the introduction of the HELE (high emotions, low emissions) and the stop and start systems, which cut out the engine during short stops and then restart it within 230 milliseconds, optimised braking, intelligent engine fan control, constant fuel pump capacity control, and electronic air-conditioning compressor displacement control. All of these solutions combine to cut fuel consumption to just 15.4 litres per 100 km and carbon dioxide emissions to 360g/km, a 25 per cent reduction on the previous Ferrari V12s.

The engine’s geometries and materials were also developed to harmonise intake and exhaust sounds to underscore the car’s extremely sporty character without impinging on acoustic comfort.

104 104 may / june 2014

To the ears of the driver and passengers, the FF’s engine sound is seductively clear and powerful because the intake noise is channelled from the filter casings into the cabin. It is also designed to ensure that anyone who hears an FF go by will instantly recognise its unmistakable Ferrari soundtrack without experiencing the slightest discomfort. This isn’t noise, it’s music to the ears.

Bespoke Programme Ferrari owners can tailor their car’s interior, exterior and spec to their individual tastes and requirements. The FF’s bodywork, for example, can be painted not just in any of the 16 standard Ferrari colours, but also in six model-specific ones (Rosso Maranello, Grigio Abu Dhabi, Blu America, Verde British Racing, Grigio Ferro Met, Bianco Italia).

The wheel rims can also be personalised with a high polish aluminium, or high gloss black and several of the dashboard features can be ordered in carbon fibre or in any of the two new fabrics, alutex with aluminium-effect or titantex with titanium-effect.

To ensure a completely comfortable ride, the FF also has a car riser that will lift its rear and front by 40mm at speeds of up to 30km/h to allow it to glide effortlessly over even the roughest of terrains. The already superb standard of in-car comfort can be further enhanced by an optional panoramic roof. This is made from low emissions glass and thus easily holds cabin temperature steady in both summer and winter for optimal climate control. The glass is also tinted for privacy but regardless of this, still gives the occupants the feeling they are travelling with the top down.

Outfits by Puma at Progolf, Eyewear provided by the Ferrari Store, Watches by Hublot 2014 may / june 105 105

hotels

Treasure Islands The Maldives abound with luxury eco-resorts all vying for the same elite demographic, making it difficult to distinguish between the top few. There is no shortage of resorts with villas over water, private pools and chefs’ gardens.

But when it comes to giving people the space and discreet service they need to relax, here are some of the top picks.

For uber luxury Cheval Blanc With LVMH’s luxury credentials, a few nights at the Cheval Blanc Randheli is guaranteed to be a rarified experience. This is the second property launched by the group’s hotels division following an opening in Courcheval. Even the brand’s name is exclusive, coming from LVMH’s chateau, which produces a premier grand cru classé Bordeaux.

The hotel has been designed in synergy with the island’s natural surroundings, lush vegetation and lagoon view. The property consists of 45 villas in three styles designed by celebrated architect Jean-Michel Gathy. Garden villas are stilted but with a private tropical garden space, water villas offer multiple terraces over the sea and island villas feature an outdoor dining pergola.

Day or night excursions include reef snorkelling and diving expeditions, fishing adventures and sunset cruises, either on one of the traditional dhonis (sailboats) or the private yacht. The neighbouring Maakurandhoo island is the perfect place to play

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a round of tennis, perfect your golf swing with a state-of-the-art simulator, work out with a personal trainer.

When it is time to relax, the spa is a destination in itself. Take a dhoni to the resort’s dedicated spa island. The Guerlain treatments have been created exclusively for the hotel and include the Randheli sun ritual to prepare the skin for a perfect tan. The island also has its own spa bar, sweeping pool and private beach, so guests can enjoy a full day of relaxation before a sunset sail back to Randheli.

It is also no surprise that with a luxury goods conglomerate at the helm, the opportunity to shop for beautiful products is close by.

In addition to apparel and home items, the resort’s store offers a selection of 21 different Hublot watches, including the iconic white Cheval Blanc edition, only available for purchase at the resort.

Island villas from $1,300 per night

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hotels

For rOMANCE Baros Within minutes of stepping outside Male airport, guests are gazing out over turquoise waters while being transported on the 20-minute boat ride to Baros in the northern Kaafu atoll of the Maldives. The tiny island resort is the third oldest in the Maldives and managers have spent the past 40 years perfecting the art of great service and understated elegance.

Baros’ Lighthouse restaurant offers a fine dining menu packed with fresh local seafood ingredients and authentic Maldivian flavours. It also sources the finest from further afield, including Alaskan crab legs and freshly shucked French fines de claire oysters. The lobster bisque is prepared to order right at the table.

Baros has an above eight child policy and the resort tends to be filled with couples. The water villas are overwhelmingly romantic. They are the perfect hideout, ideal for lounging on a four-poster day bed by the pool or having an in-room massage if a trip to the resort spa seems a step too far.

Each villa comes with an on-call host who will attend to every need from booking a sunrise breakfast in the middle of the Indian Ocean on Baros’ private piano deck to a sunset champagne cruise on the Nooma sailing boat.

The more adventurous should make an appointment with the marine biologist to take a guided snorkelling tour, which can be experienced during the day or at night when underwater sea creatures take on a new colourful persona.

For an experience that lasts beyond the holiday, guests can take part in coral transplantation, the resort’s ongoing conservation programme. After collecting corals while snorkelling or diving, the marine biologist will guide you through planting the coral onto a dedicated iron frame with your name tag on it.

These previously damaged corals will thrive in their new home on Baros lagoon and guests receive regular updates via email on the coral’s progress.

Water villa with pool from $1,200 per night

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For a Remote hideout Shangri-La Villingili A coconut drink, the de rigueur beverage of a tropical holiday, is even more refreshing when you find out it has been handpicked by one of the Shangri-La’s resident coconut tree climbers.

The resort’s remote location is its biggest challenge and greatest asset. The southernmost atoll in the archipelago of the Maldives, the nearest southern land mass is Antarctica. This means unless you have a private jet to land at Gan International airport on the Addu Atoll, where the Shangri-La 10 minutes away has its own private terminal, most guests have to take the 80-minute domestic flight from Male to reach the resort.

Once you set foot on the island there is plenty of room to spread out with two miles of lush vegetation, natural lagoons and nature trails and a nine-hole golf course at the tip of the island. Cycling is the main mode of transport on the island and each of the 132 villas are equipped with chic white and brown leather seat bicycles. Fret not if you have overdone it at lunch or dinner, you can always call for a buggy to take you back to your villa. More energetic cyclists can cruise the 17km coastal road in Addu City that links the three neighbouring islands, catching glimpses of Maldivian way of life along the way. Afterwards unwind with the resort’s signature cowrie shell massage at the Chi Spa before ending your trip with a private dinner on Mount Villingili, the highest natural point in the Maldives overlooking the Indian Ocean.

Treehouse villa with pool from $1,125

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hotels

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hotels

For Barefoot Luxury Sovena Fushi “No news, no shoes” is the policy at this resort where guests surrender their footwear at check-in. Sovena Fushi is a haven of calm tucked away in Kunfunadhoo island, part of the Baa Atoll Unesco world biosphere reserve.

The founders, husband and wife team Sonu and Eva Shivdasani, subscribe to a ‘slow life’ philosophy, an acronym for sustainablelocal-organic-wellness-learning-inspiring-fun-experiences. The couple, who live at the resort, beautifully blend luxury with sustainable living. All of the buildings have been constructed using natural materials. Even the villa roofs are made from woven coconut leaf. There is an on-site desalination plant, recycling plant and a carbon offset initiative on the island.

The rustic chic resort has been designed to have minimal impact on environment but luxury still abounds. Each of the 65 villas open onto dense forested areas with private pools that lead to an outdoor bathroom. Guests are tended to by a dedicated Mr Friday, named

after Robinson Crusoe’s loyal assistant.

Just a short walk across the canopy bridge is the organic garden where the resort grows much of its own fruit and vegetables. There is no shortage of dining experiences with a choice of restaurants and a well-stocked underground wine cellar. But if you are looking for something a bit more special, private dinners can be arranged in the garden or as a picnic excursion to a nearby island.

There is a Six Senses spa for rejuvenating massages from visiting therapists from around the world including reiki specialists, acupuncturists and naturopathic doctors. The dive centre holds marine biology programmes to learn more about the house reef before snorkelling in the clear waters around the island. After the sun goes down, the entertainment doesn’t have to end - there is always the open air cinema under the stars.

From $1,673 per night for a Crusoe villa

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yacht

Fit for a Lady

A floating home that is as sweet as its name

or billionaires, managing multiple properties can be a burden. However, a Chinese businessman has found the perfect solution to this dilemma by creating a floating home on the sea, the Lady Candy.

“I used to have homes in different places, but once I got a yacht I got rid of all of them because you don’t want to go to the same house every time. The yacht is a floating house,” he says.

After 40 years of large yacht ownership, the entrepreneur, who wishes to remain anonymous, took his first foray into custom building.

He collaborated with Paul Brackley, the founder of Central Yacht, on the design. “We designed the yacht from the inside out,” he explains. “We started with an interior layout based on sound hotel, operational and technical principles. For example, food service must be quick and efficient, not just to save the crew time, but also to make sure food arrives hot and without delay.”

Such forethought is important to ensure that ice in your drink

doesn’t melt by the time it arrives at Lady Candy’s spectacular beach club, which includes a lounge, bar, gym and sauna. A large 30sq m fixed swim-platform can actually be used as a beach while sailing. It doesn’t even bounce when the seas get rough.

The living quarters are no less luxurious. Lady Candy has two large master suites, each with a private office and both forward and back private terraces. The four guest cabins are found on the lower deck. There are two twin-sized cabins with twin beds and two with queen beds, all with vanity desks, large closets and spacious bathrooms.

Although the owner may have intended for the boat to house his family, the yacht is party-ready at short notice. The main deck welcomes guests with an enormous saloon, bar, powder room and lobby area with ample sofas for relaxing. A large dining room with a circular table seats 14 guests for gourmet meals. The sundeck can be set up for karaoke or disco with the central ring forming a lighting stage.

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Fringe Benefits Emirati visual artist finds his voice in New York

By Nausheen Noor

he short but eviscerating email, written by the owner of a prominent art gallery in Dubai telling him: “We will never feature your work,” left the 14-year-old boy devastated.

Born in Mankhool, Dubai, to a South Asian mother and Emirati father, the artist now known as Beloved Boy Chokra was no stranger to being ostracised. His bi-racial, bi-religious identity often found him on the fringes of both communities. That combined with his unusual artistic leanings as a visual and performance artist resulted in him being bullied and misunderstood by his peers.

Chokra, who prefers not to reveal his birth name or age, knew a drastic change was in order. With the help of his parents, he applied to art school in New York and prepared for a new beginning.

He felt his life was in danger, adding: “I was beaten up nearly every day. No one understood my practice.”

New York provided a young Chokra with a freedom of expression and a kindred artistic community that was not available to him in Dubai.

“I went to liberate myself. It was amazing. I lived in a tiny bedroom with a shared bathroom. There were rats there. It was disgusting but I had the time of my life. I’d sneak out in the middle of the night and go to Kate Moss’ parties. I learned to vogue,” he recalls.

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He was also able to develop his craft.

“We would organise shows independently, people I still collaborate with. We did it guerrilla style — trespassing and shooting videos, even using flares and pyrotechnic explosions.

It was all about taking risks artistically,” says Chokra, whose boyish demeanour belies a thoughtful intelligence.

Fluent in eight languages, Chokra’s performances often incorporate multilingual rap in Arabic, Urdu and English, dispersing pigment in brilliant hues, live visuals, digital sound and ceremonial attire from South Asia and the Gulf.

In New York, his career gained traction. He performed at the New Museum, Art Basel Miami and completed a residency at Robert Wilson’s Watermill Center. He was also featured in Vogue Italia and Domus, the design and architecture magazine.

When Chokra was invited to perform at the Sikka art fair in Dubai in 2012, it represented a kind of homecoming. Chokra’s performances often explore themes of nationality, origin and cultural identity.

In a flamboyant show called The Trucial Case, he took to the stage in an explosion of hot pink pigment, six-inch platform heels and a modified kandoura to explore themes of representation,

“What boy who grows up in Mankhool gets to perform at the MoMA? I would never have imagined this.”

the history of the Emirates and the notion of what it means to be Emirati but the controversial performance was pulled from the fair.

That turned out to be serendipitous as it sparked the attention of Klaus Biesenbach, the director of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Ten days after his Sikka show, Chokra performed the piece at the MoMA. From there, his career took off.

Chokra says: “That’s when you realise you don’t belong to a place, you belong to your work.”

Next year will be a whirlwind one for Chokra, who has appearances scheduled at the Palais de Tokyo and the Centre Pompidou in Paris. He is also due to release a single in the summer on Jay-Z’s label Roc Nation.

Recently the same gallery owner who spurned Chokra approached him and asked if he would perform in her gallery.

After he reminded her of their first correspondence, she was left open-mouthed.

“I thanked her for it, really truly from the bottom of my heart,” says Chokra.

“If [she] had not written me [that email], I would have never gone to New York. What boy who grows up in Mankhool gets to perform at the MoMA? I would never have imagined this.”

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Style

Suited and rebooted Ian Tansley, managing director of MrPorter.com, chats to GC about fashion and the demands of men in the Middle East

Have you seen an increased presence of men shopping online from the Middle East region?

The Middle East has always been massively important to Net-aPorter.com, the female side of the business. When MrPorter.com first launched four years ago, we saw slow sales from the region but in the last year that has improved massively and it is now one of our fastest-growing regions.

Why do you think that is? What’s changed in the last year?

I think we have established our brand more and optimised our site.

What trends do you see among customers from the Middle East?

The Middle Eastern customer spends slightly more per order. That is not only about buying high-end products but also because they purchase more units per order. Wednesdays are the busiest day in the Middle East.

Who is buying?

In general, 25 per cent of all our orders are women shopping for someone. There is a slightly higher percentage of them in the Middle East. There is also a slightly higher percentage of mobile and tablet purchases.

Which brands do customers prefer in this region?

Overall we see success with the higher-end luxury brands - Lanvin, Loro Piana, Bottega Veneta and Gucci. What still sells, but are not as successful as in the rest of the world, are fashion brands such as Givenchy and Yves Saint Laurent. But more straightforward

brands like Slowear, Paul Smith and J Crew also do well.

It is more classic luxury that sells well rather than the latest fashion, such as chinos, loafers and structured blazers.

How do you compete with other online men’s sites such as Matchesfashion.com and East Dane?

Mr Porter is about content and commerce, so we spend a lot of time producing really nice content, which hopefully adds value to the brand because we are helping people understand how to wear things and what to buy. That is combined with the best selection of products and the best brands.

Is there a male individual from this region whom you would consider a style icon?

The website has a section called style icons and the man we are thinking about has a global perspective, travels the world and has his own identity.

Tell us about your collaboration with Grenson We have six London designers working with heritage brand Grenson to produce a capsule collection of shoes. They will be made in the Grenson factory in Northamptonshire and will be available for sale on the site. The aim is to continue our support of emerging London talent, which we have been doing for the past few years, as well as giving our customers interesting and exclusive products from a design and quality perspective.

Who is the ideal Mr Porter customer?

A man who wants to look great and thinks about style.

From left shoes designed by Christopher Raeburn, Katie Eary, and Matthew Miller for MR PORTER made by Grenson 2014 may / june 119 119

little black book

Little Black Book Naples The chef and proprietor of the eponymous two Michelinstarred restaurant Don Alfonso 1890 has just opened an outpost of the famed restaurant in Dubai’s Shangri-La hotel.

When he is not managing his restaurants in Rome, Macau and Marrakesh, he calls Naples his home. He shows GC around his favourite hometown spots.

Neapolitan masterpieces “The Musee di Capodimonte is the best place to see the paintings of the Neapolitan School. I especially love the architecture of Van Vitelli.”

Tailor made

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The pizza expert “Franco Pepe is famous for his technique of dough fermentation.

There is no recipe, he judges it daily based on the level of gluten, humidity and temperature… It’s fantastic.”

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

“Kiton is a great place to shop.

Everything is handmade and top quality. It is a real Neapolitan, traditional place and people come from all over the world to shop there.”

little black book

Great produce Taking a stroll

“I have a wonderful farm where we grow vegetables for our restaurant — tomatoes, eggplant and wild herbs. It is also open for our guests to go around.”

“Walk through the San Gregorio Armeno church in the historic centre. It is Christmas all year. The artisans make incredible religious figurines for nativity scenes, or just of other famous people.”

Images courtesy of Corbis / ArabianEye.com

Pompeii is only 20 minutes from Naples and you can see how people lived and ate 2,000 years ago, baking bread and making wine.

The perfect cup “The espresso bar in Don Alfonso. We make our very own special blend sourced from a small producer.”

A quiet repose “Our restaurant has its own Relais & Chateaux boutique hotel. The design is a mix of family antiques and modern accessories from local artisans.”

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dining

Keeping it Cool In a city packed with dining options, some new openings give a trendy twist to the offerings

Sass Cafe For two decades, this Monaco restaurant has entertained the rich and famous. Bono celebrated his birthday there last year with a guestlist that included Prince Albert II, The Edge, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. The Dubai location is the first outside the small principality. With its bold interior, red chandeliers, velvet coffered ceilings and black accents, the restaurant certainly looks primed for celeb-spotting. The menu is classic Mediterranean fare, which is well-executed. A standout dish is the braised lamb chops served with shallots and half a head of garlic. Live music comes on at 9pm and as the evening approaches midnight, tables are whisked away, and the restaurant is ready to switch into a nightclub at a moment’s notice.

Al Fattan Currency House, DIFC, +971 4 352 7722

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dining

Atelier M With its opulent art deco furnishings, mirrored surfaces and dramatic chandeliers, Atelier M oozes glamour. Following stints at the Chateau Marmont and Mercer Kitchen, chef Mohammad Islam’s menu draws heavily on French and Asian cuisine.

The watermelon and grilled octopus salad is enlivened with a cumin and orange vinaigrette that is spicy enough to cut through the sweetness. The duck with foie gras sauce arrives perfectly

cooked, the fatty skin rendered to a puffy crispness. Post-dinner, be sure to check out the spectacular rooftop terrace suspended over Dubai Marina. Atelier M also hosts prominent hip-hop artists and DJs to entertain guests. Past performers have included Jeremih and Benny D. Pier 7, Dubai Marina, +971 4 450 7766

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dining

A private glass elevator whisks you up 40 flights to the city’s highest rooftop lounge. At this vantage, you are practically on a par with the Burj Khalifa in the distance and Sheikh Zayed road appears as a river of molten mercury snaking its way through the city. With the breeze and DJ Dany el Zein’s perfect succession of pulsating tunes, there is an instant holiday feel to this chic establishment. The bar menu is mainly composed of sharing snacks such as salmon tartare and zucchini fries. Those who want to linger a bit longer and sun worship can come for the new Saturday brunch and indulge in spaghetti alla vongole and croissants with kiri cheese.

The Monarch Hotel, Sheikh Zayed Road +971 4 355 8896

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Images courtesy of Corbis / ArabianEye.com

40 Kong

dining

Cafe Belge In a city full of over-fussy restaurant interiors, Cafe Belge stands out for its elegant restraint. Modelled after the 1920s grand cafes in Belgium, the restaurant effortlessly incorporates art nouveau design elements in the glossy marble floors, coffered ceilings, antiqued mirrors and a sleek carved wooden bar. The menu is comprised of Belgian classics. The moules frites are satisfying with suitably plump mussels and crispy, salty fries. A spin on the classic asparagus salad includes a breadcrumbed, deep-fried egg that releases its rich golden centre when cut. While the weather is still good, be sure to take advantage of the outdoor terrace with the soothing sounds of the water feature and jazz tunes to accompany your meal.

Ritz Carlton, DIFC, +971 4 440 9300

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Born to be Wild Meru National Park in Kenya, immortalised in the book and film Born Free, has experienced a comeback since poachers were driven out

Don’t take a picture of that, that’s not a lion,” says our safari guide.

My husband and I are in Meru National Park, a fertile savannah east of Mount Kenya, on my first game drive. We had just followed the fresh tracks, manoeuvred the Land Cruiser off-road, and there she was. I lower my camera.

Could I be mistaken?

I look over at the lioness, lying on her side next to the watering hole with her ribs pushing through her fur, her mouth agape as she struggles to inhale. She is definitely nearing the end of her

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life. But she is a lion nonetheless.

Our expert guide, however, is interested in showing us a far more photogenic big cat. Which is understandable, given the park’s historic marriage of celebrity and lions. This is the site where conservationists Joy and George Adamson first successfully reintroduced their lion cub Elsa back into the wild. Their efforts were immortalised in the book Born Free, which was followed by the Oscar-winning 1966 film by the same name.

The Adamsons put Meru National Park on the Kenyan tourist map. In the early 1980s, it was a star attraction with up to 40,000

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

By Nausheen Noor

Travel

annual visitors. Sadly, the park became a target for poachers at the end of the decade and tourism started to decline. The park’s infrastructure nearly collapsed and large mammals were almost wiped out. In 1979, 80 per cent of the park’s once famous rhinos were slaughtered. Between 1984 and 1989, ivory poachers reduced the elephant population from 3,500 to just 210. The situation escalated when bandits killed two French tourists and murdered George Adamson, the man who had done so much to promote the park.

The park has been safe since the mid-1990s. Its revival can be largely credited to the building of Elsa’s Kopje, a boutique safari lodge, by the Cheli and Peacock tour company. Prior to their investment, there was government talk of de-gazetting the park and turning the fertile land into rice plantations.

Though tourism has been trickling in, it is still a relatively undiscovered place, a boon for travellers in search of a wild and empty African experience. It is unlikely you will come across any other cars, which means you and your companions are the sole

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Travel

pausing only to watch our reaction. The leader of an elephant herd stands on guard in the distance, deliberating whether to charge.

The vehicle weaves perilously off-road and stops in the middle of the bush. Animals surround us. It is a panoramic view from every corner of the car of individual herds of buffalo, elephants and zebras drinking, eating, lolling. A flock of egrets fly overhead.

I am in the middle of my own personal National Geographic special and wonder how much our presence might be causing a disturbance in this vast prehistoric-looking part of space and time. We are the interlopers and they are just politely tolerating us.

As the sun begins to set, we return to Elsa’s and I pause to reflect on the day. It is impossible not to be acutely aware of one’s own insignificance compared with the sheer size, power and magnitude of these beasts.

As I began to ponder human beings’ evolutionary place in the world, my thoughts return to that dying lioness, the memento mori of our trip. She and her equally mature male companion are the only lions we saw on the game drive.

Though they may not have been the mighty lions we had initially hoped to see, those lions represent something much more. Their existence in this wild and remote park, brought to near desolation by humans and revived, is a story of survival and resilience. I wish I had taken her picture.

Photography by David Crookes

witnesses to marvel at this vast wilderness.

At dawn, the early morning sun bathes the savannah in pure golden light. The plains come to life with intensely saturated colour — carnelian earth, flaxen grass, viridescent shrubs, black rocks and cerulean sky.

It is overwhelming to take in that much visual beauty. It looks like high definition television. Sadly in this age of digital enhancement, we compare the reality to its likeness.

With no air pollution, the vistas are clear and it seems I can see for hundreds of miles, straight to the peak of Mount Kenya. It is incredibly peaceful. Inside the open vehicle, the crisp air hits my face, gently lulling me into a trance, with only the sighting of the animals to wake me from this state of near meditation.

For most safari goers, it will not be the first time one has seen these animals. But seeing them in situ is an entirely different experience. Details come to life, such as the deeply ingrained wrinkles on an elephant’s skin, the enormity of a hippo’s head as it opens its jaws, or the languid gait of a giraffe as it saunters through the plains.

Out here, the animals are as interested in you as you are in them. Our car drives by and a group of reticulated giraffes stops grazing to curiously observe us. Adolescent baboons in the trees start showing off, swinging and flipping from branch to branch,

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Travel

Where to stay

Elsa’s Kopje hotel

After the thrill of the safari, it is a pleasure to retreat to this cliffside sanctuary. Each of the charming Robinson Crusoe-like cottages commands spectacular views of the plains. The staff are warm and welcoming and all the small touches make a huge difference, such as being woken up pre-dawn with a tray of tea and homemade biscuits or a portable sundowner to take with you on the afternoon game drive. In the evening, while enjoying dinner al fresco, be sure to gaze up at the stars shining brightly over the empty land below.

Travel Info Cheli & Peacock Tours

With 25 years in the business, Cheli and Peacock offers upmarket bespoke safaris for clients who want an authentic experience with knowledgeable tour guides and welcoming lodge staff.

Contact info@chelipeacock.co.ke or call +254 20 600 3090

East African Air Charters

For the full VIP “Out of Africa” experience, a private flight charter is a must, giving a viewing platform with a difference.

Contact admin@eaaircharters.co.ke or call +254 20 600 3858

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fashion

Nautical Chic Blues, whites and stripes with a dash of yellow is a classic and effortless way to keep cool as the temperatures rise.

Anchor and swallow cufflinks, Paul Smith, Dubai Mall, $115

Jacket, Alexander McQueen, Bloomingdale’s Dubai $2,030

Missoni spring/summer 2014 Loafers, D’Squared, Dubai Mall $495 130 130 may / june 2014

Leather trimmed canvas bag, Mismo, mrporter.com $560

Image courtesy of Gettyimages

Woven straw fedora, Lanvin, Dubai Mall $313

fashion

Acetate sunglasses, Oliver Spencer, mrporter.com, $291

Woven suede and cotton belt, Loro Piana, mrporter.com $560

Knitted cardigan, Beams Plus, mrporter.com $182

Printed swim shorts, Vilebrequin, Bloomingdale’s, $255

Straw shoes, Dolce & Gabbana, Saks Fifth Avenue $595

Striped knitted cotton sweater, Junya Watanabe, mrporter.com, $670

Emperor 1688, spring/summer 2014 at Fashion Forward 2014 may / june 131 131

horology

WHITE FEVER

Three luxury lightweight watches to perfect your summer style

RM 038 Tourbillon Bubba Watson

Professional Golfer Bubba Watson joined Rafael Nadal and Felipe Massaa as Richard Mille sports ambassadors. Watson wears the RM 038 on the field giving kudos to Mille for creating a timepiece that is lightweight, comfortable and extremely shock resistant. The RM 038 case is made of a rugged and light alloy called magnesium-aluminium, which is treated using a practice that is common in the aerospace and automotive industries to turn it into a cristalline oxide ceramic which gives the whitish colour and improves the hardness and scratch resistance of the timepiece.

Limited to 38 pieces $525,000

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver

Hublot Unveils OCEANOGRAPHIC 4000 Cheval Blanc Randheli Special Edition

Hublot created the Oceanographic 4000 for the Cheval Blanc Randheli, a luxury resort in the Maldives owned by LVMH group. The case is made of titanium but is still light on the wrist - although its diameter of 48 mm and its volume are substantial. From a brightness standpoint since it’s a divers watch, the time and elapsed time measured by the flange must be legible from a distance of 25 cm in the dark. To meet this requirement, the dial, the flange and the hands of the Oceanographic 4000 have been optimised to have a larger surface area treated with SuperLuminova, a luminescent material emitting the signature Cheval Blanc Randheli yellow colour. Hublot tested in Roxer Tank creating pressure equivalent to 5000 meter under water.

Limited to 20 pieces. $26,000

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This is Audemars Piguet’s third outing with its Royal Oak Offshore Diver model, first we had it in forged carbon, then last year in black ceramic and now they have a dramatic all white ceramic look. It features a case fully made with their Super Ceramic composite, which is ultra-light and nine times harder than steel, making it almost scratch-proof. The all-white dial is contrasted with deep blue details and is fitted with a matching white rubber strap. $23,900

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