Monthly Archives: June 2009
Amount Of Millionaires Fell In 2008
The ranks of the world’s millionaires shrank at the fastest rate in 2008, with North America suffering the biggest wealth loss worldwide, according to a survey by Capgemini and Merrill Lynch & Co.
The global slump in property and equity markets last year cut the number of millionaires by 15 percent to 8.6 million, wiping out two years of increases, the firms said in their 13th annual World Wealth Report published today.
The value of the world’s millionaires’ assets slid 20 percent to $32.8 trillion, after a 9.4 percent increase the previous year, the survey said […]
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Porsche Design launches Panamera collection
The Porsche Panamera has inspired Porsche Design to create the Panamera collection, which includes luggage, watches, clothing and lifestyle accessories to match the luxury sedan.
As the market launch of the Panamera approaches, the new luggage series has been developed for the Porsche Travel System.
The AluFrame trolleys were designed to perfectly fit into the luggage compartment of the Gran Turismo, as well as of all the other Porsche models.
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The Zabriskie Point Suspension Lamp
Denis Santachiara has designed the Zabriskie Point suspension lamp for Italian lighting manufacturer de Majo Illuminazione.
Zabriskie Point is a large egg-shaped lamp with exploding glass fragments and points of light that seem to emphasize the explosion.
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Police arrest 25 in Harry Winston heist
The French police have made arrests in connection with last year’s multimillion-dollar robbery at Harry Winston jewelers and recovered some of the stolen rings, necklaces and watches.
The robbers, some dressed as women and wearing wigs, had grabbed $118 million worth of loot Dec. 5 at the store on Avenue Montaigne in Paris.
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Lamborghini reduces waiting period in half
Thanks to the recession, those surviving in the super-rich category will not have to wait so long for their dream car as luxury sports producer Lamborghini halves its delivery time.
Stephan Winkelmann, chief executive of the Italian car maker, told Financial Times that sales so far this year were down 30 per cent, obliging Lamborghini to reduce the waiting period to six months from one year.
Lamborghini, which built a record 2,430 cars in 2008, helps maintain its brand prestige by keeping production levels below demand, as does its rival Ferrari.
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Shanghai’s Best Presidential Suites Awards
Hurun Report, renowned for its annual China Rich List of tycoons, has recently hosted Shanghai’s Best Presidential Suites Awards.
The awards ceremony was held on 15 June, timed to coincide with the opening of the Asia Luxury Travel Market, the region’s leading showcase for the luxury travel industry.
“Before now China’s luxury consumers have had little idea of Shanghai’s top suites and executive club lounges, despite the fact that hotels spend so much money on them,” says Rupert Hoogewerf, founder of Hurun Report
“We created a scorecard to assess and rank the top Presidential Suites and Executive Club Lounges, many of which are truly outstanding.”
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Porsche Legend
The Porsche “Lengend” spec spot was created as an experiment in remote collaboration between Monovich (Stephen Fitzgerald) and The Brigade.
Located at opposite ends of the United States (Washington and New York states), both parties were connected only by broadband lines and a common interest in creating a spot with beautiful visuals.
Clean and classy, the HD spot works its way through the evolution of Porsche design. All shots were done with Lightwave and comped in After Effects.
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Samsung Mini S2 Portable Hard Drive
Samsung, known to have a penchant for pink products, has unveiled two new eye-catching colors for its Mini S2 portable HDD series.
Joining the already available Snow White are Ocean Blue and Sweet Pink, pictured, the S2 will be available in Pink, Blue and White.
All other options appear to be the same as when Samsung first unveiled the 2.5-inch drive, with capacity options ranging from 160GB all the way up to 500GB.
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Dolce & Gabbana Womenswear Fall Winter Campaign
Here is the Dolce & Gabanna Fall Winter ad campaign for the line’s women collection for 2009 – 2010.
The entire ad campaign was photographed by the amazing Steven Klein. The models featured include Mariacarla Boscono, Heidi Mount, and Edita Vilkeviciute.
Bulgarian Bentley Owners Checked for Tax Evasion
Bulgaria has recently entered the European Union and Brussels has put some pressure on the country’s officials to fight harder against the corruption and organized crime.
Therefore, the Bulgarian revenue agency said it will strongly investigate the sources of income of the Bentley owners, suspected to be mafia bosses.
There are 105 Bentley owners in Bulgaria, which is very high compared to other European countries.
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Oprah’s Employees Vacation In Style
The AFP is reporting that Oprah Winfrey celebrated her 55th birthday in Barcelona with 1,700 of her employees and their families.
The celebration was held over the weekend at Poble Espanyol before embarking upon a 10-day Mediterranean cruise.
The Chicago Sun Times said last week that Winfrey is paying for everything from transportation to food to “special activities” at a cost of about 5,400 dollars (3,900 euros) per person.
The World’s Most Expensive Magazine
The world’s most expensive magazine, Nomenus Quarterly, is now more expensive than ever: A single issue will run you $6,500.
And the competition to acquire one of the few limited edition issues of the famous Nomenus Quarterly magazine has just got tougher as the publication has reduced the number of copies from fifty to just ten.
For now, I guess the website will have to suffice.Â
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Peugeot Metromorph Concept Car
The Metromorph concept is designed to face the evergrowing issues of metropolitan cities.
When the user is home the vehicle becomes a balcony thus addressing parking restraints and real estate value.
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Dolce & Gabbana Fall Winter Campaign: Menswear
Photographed by Steven Klein, this is the preview of the upcoming Dolce & Gabbana Fall/Winter 2009/10 campaign.
The models featured in the campaign are David Gandy, Noah Mills, Adam Senn, Julien Quevenne, Eva Herzigova, and Madonna man himself, Jesus Luz.
Print of iconic photo of Einstein sells for $74k
An iconic photograph of Albert Einstein was sold by a New Hampshire auction company Friday for $74,324, making it the most expensive Einstein photograph ever sold at auction, according to the auctioneers.
The photograph was taken in 1951 while Einstein was celebrating his birthday at Princeton University.
Photographer Arthur Sasse tried to convince Einstein to pose with a smile for the photo, but Einstein instead stuck out his tongue, producing one of the most recognizable images of the irreverent physicist.
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Bottega Veneta’s Ultra-Luxe Alligator Luggage
World class Italian luxury goods firm Bottega Veneta has come out with an elegant, extravagant set of alligator luggage for the private jet set.
The luxurious collection consists of six matching pieces harking back to the days when aristocrats required a full retinue of servants merely to look after all their luggage.
The beautiful collection is covered in a superfine and distinctive noce fume rich brown soft-finished alligator skin.
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World’s first weightless wedding
A couple proved they were head over heels in love by getting married in zero gravity.
Noah Fulmore and Erin Finnegan span around as they became the first couple to tie the knot while weightless.
They were married on a special flight that simulates the zero gravity experienced by astronauts on space walks.
The couple paid more than £10,000 to have their wedding in a converted Boeing 727 jet that undertakes roller coaster style dives.
Ferrari F430 by ASI
The Japanese tuners from ASI have released the ASI Ferrari F430 body kit and announced various other carbon fiber body parts for the Italian supercar.
The ASI Ferrari sports a unique body kit that consists of a new front bumper, aggressive side skirts and a bold rear bumper.
Although the parts were styled to provide similar aerodynamic performance to the components they replace, the ASI pieces weigh 27kg (59 lbs) less.
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Thai king world’s wealthiest royal
No. 1 on Forbes’ list, for the second year in a row, is Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
He is worth $30 billion, $5 billion less than last year, as a result of double-digit declines in real estate and stocks owned via the Crown Property Bureau, the state investment vehicle of which he is a trustee.
Rising political tensions have also destabilized the country, dampening even the important tourism sector.
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Rodin’s Thinker sets auction record
One of the Thinker sculptures by French master Auguste Rodin has been sold at auction for more than 3 million euros ($5.2 million) in Paris, Reuters reports.
The bronze, just 72.5 centimetres high, set a record for any of the Thinkers – a series of 21 sculptures made by Rodin in the late 19th century and early 20th century.
One of the most famous sculptures in the world, the Thinker represents a naked man sitting on a rock looking downwards, with his elbow on his knee and his chin resting on his hand.
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