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VOLUME II / ISSUE V / MAY 2018
Haiti
POLO LIFESTYLES
iry Tale
POLO LIFESTYLES
Fairy Tale
A MODERN DAY
PRINCE HARRY & MEGHAN MARKLE page 1
WWW.STREGISMALDIVES.COM
VOLUME II / ISSUE III / MARCH 2018
POLO LIFESTYLES Haiti T H E M AG A Z I N E
L’ÉQUIPE:
Claude-Alix Bertrand President/Publisher Josh Jakobitz Editor-in-Chief
Trystanne Cunningham Senior Global Style Curator Mark Wine Fitness Columnist Joey Velez Wellness Columnist Kemissa Racine Fashion & Style Columnist Giulia Di Palma Lifestyles Columnist Hans Ebenman Travel Columnist Mystique Boivert Fashion & Style Columnist Advertising Team Jamila Sabha Trystanne Cunningham
Contributing Photographers The Polo Paparazzi Mairobi Herrera Edgar Grajo Paul Moane Will Johnson Carlotta Manaigo Felix von der Osen Polo Lifestyles is a publication of HT Polo Co. 995 Detroit Avenue, Suite A, Concord CA 94518 All rights reserved. For information or to advertise, Contact editor@htpolo.com Read online at www.pololifestyles.com
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On the cover: HRH Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
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ARE YOU GOING?
Hurlingham Polo Club The Ham House Tournament 0-2 goals New Bridge Polo Club, Aiken SC Pete Bostwick 10-12 goals Tommy Hitchcock Memorial 10-12 goals Houston Polo Club Southwestern Circuit Officer’s Cup 4-8 goals Regional Classic - Southwest 10-14 goals Polo de Paris Tournoi de Printemps 0-10 goals Tournoi de la Ville de Paris 8-10 goals 124e Open de Paris 8-10 goals Chantilly Polo Club Coupe Patrick Geurrand-Hermés 10-12 goals Trophée Bourbon 10-12 goals Villa a Sesta VaS Polo Tournament 6-8 goals WPM Polo Master Santa Maria Polo Club - Sotogrande Seasonal Opening Matches Cowdray Park Polo Club Murs Sactus Trippetts Challenge 22 goals Spink and Son Cicero Cup 12-15 goals Grand Champions Polo Club, Wellington FL The Continental Cup 12-16 goals PGH La Palmeraie Polo Club Azilah, Tanger, Morocco First Pan-African Polo Cup 8 goals Midland Polo Club, Midland TX Polo on the Prairie 6-8 goals National Commander-in-Chief Cup 6-8 goals Palm City Polo Club, LLC Land Rover Palm Beach International Gay Polo Tournament 0-6 goals
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CONTENTS We salute
The world’s most expensive sneaker page 116
VIRGIL ABLOH
newly appointed menswear designer at Louis Vuitton page 34
POLO LIFESTYLES EDITORS & CONTRIBUTORS
Ambassador Claude-Alix Bertrand
Josh Jakobitz
Publisher Polo Lifestyles
SVP Marketing and Editor Polo Lifestyles
Giulia Di Palma
Hans Ebenman
Lifestyles Columnist London
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Travel Columnist The Rooftop Guide
Trystanne Cunningham
Senior Global Style Curator Polo Lifestyles
Mark Wine
Fitness Columnist & CEO Functional Muscle Fitness
Will Johnson
Kemissa Racine
Contributing Photographer San Francisco
Fashion & Style Columnist Berlin
Joey Velez
Stanley Pierre Etienne
Mental Wellness Columnist Velez Mental Performance
Style Contributor Port-au-Prince
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Che(i)f Forager page 102
Annabel’s Re-Opens page 96
Michelle Elie page 108
Best UK Rooftops page 94
Becoming Royalty: Meghan Markle and her new job, page 53 page 11
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COMMENTS TO THE EDITOR “Pretty sweet.” “Keep up the great work.” “This is a perfect fit for my brand.” “I'm so exciting to be working in the polo world.” “Very cool.” “Thanxxx for the feature!” “Thank you for sharing.”
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
Later this month, Meghan Markle will make history when she marries Prince Harry, becoming the first American woman to marry into the British royal family and remain in good standing. In 1939, the American divorcée Wallis Simpson married the Duke of Windsor (formerly King Edward VIII) in France, where they remained largely estranged from the royal family for the Constitutional crisis they created. The engagement was approved by the Queen as Prince Harry is sixth in the line of succession (recently unseated for the fifth position by his infant nephew who remains nameless at press time), and also marks the first time that the royal family will include a mixed-race member. Markle is the daughter of a Caucasian man and African-American woman and she has not shied away from speaking about her heritage and background. But our cover story isn’t about that; it’s about a love story between two individuals who, under the uncomfortable scrutiny of the world, remain composed, elegant, and so obviously smitten with each other. In their BBC interview, both the prince and Markle spoke so eloquently about the progression of their relationship, their future endeavors, their passions and how she’s fitting into the royal family. In every public appearance – and there are a staggering number of them – the two seem, at times, as though no one else is in the room. The calmness he exudes, perhaps refined since he was thrust into the spotlight as a child, matches her confidence and composure, surely gained as an actress and honed as she preps to join one of the most famous families in the world. The photos we curated for the Collector’s Issue reflect just that: their love, their calmness in the midst of chaotic paparazzi, their youth (they feel younger than they are; perhaps that’s because we expect all royalty to be white-haired with bifocals), and the personal touch they bring with them that reminds us all of the late Princess Diana. As they modernize the monarchy with their untraditional choices and taste – see our profile on their wedding cake designer Claire Ptak, their shared love for Botswana where they ignited their romance, and their new jobs as youth ambassadors to the Commonwealth. But what would a Collector’s Issue of the royal wedding be without profiling the best event planner we know? The Nouveau Romantics is our new go-to for fabulous events. The founder, Liz McKellar, has an eye for beauty and design and a knack for the logistics of large-scale soirées. Fusing the modern with the thought-provoking, Berlin correspondent Kemissa Racine interviews Michelle Elie in our style section. Our Rooftop Guide columnist Hans recommends his top four spots in London and while we’re in the UK, we feature a profile on Chef Paul Cunningham and Brunel’s, his awarding-winning hot spot deserving of a Michelin star. The World’s Most Expensive Sneaker, manufactured by APL, and Louis Vuitton’s choice of Virgil Abloh round out our top features this month. So sit back and enjoy – and remember to set your alarms to watch the royal wedding on May 19. Best, Josh Jakobitz josh@htpolo.com
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Reposted FOR THE RECORD Curated Instagram posts from last month
@chiarofoto captures a quick pony substitution #audipolo
danielledrollins Former First Lady Barbara Bush enjoying family time earlier this year
carolradull Finally gold for Team Kenya. Wycliffe Kinyamal wins the men's 800m.
babycambridge.2018 The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge welcomed another son on April 23
dinendra_haria Two white diamonds over 50 carats each @sothebys estimated at $15m
teammissuniverso Miss Haiti and Miss Colombia at Miss Universe
thevintagepoint_ Wardrobe stylist @deejoy blogs about fashion from New York
garcelle Joined by @paulbeabrun for the screening of @laloshousefilm
weekly_feature On location in San Francisco, photo by @lushpin
casablancapolo
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Click and comment on our choices... tag @pololifestyles We will share noteworthy comments with you next month
Open de Carcajada, photo by @7chukkerpolo
Brad Pitt on his @caferacer_colombia by @sebastianm9
sylviamantella Wearing Canadian designer @mikaeldofficial at the 2018 CAFAs
samjewelrydesign German goldsmith @sambysabrina designs luxe accessories in Dubai
internationalpoloclub Team Daily Racing Form defeats Valiente in the U.S. Open final
meghanmountbatten_windsor Meghan Markle and Prince Harry one month before their wedding
michelle_elie The Misfits private collection for @commedesgarcons @punkzec
time Repost @time The world lost an iconic First Lady: Barbara Bush
lynnehutch94 Captured @hannahmartinrg mid-air demonstrating perfect form
facundopieres
epidemic_motors
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BASELWORLD
ON A MISSION TO FIND THE SEASON’S STANDOUT PIECES
Baselworld 2018 is the world’s largest and most important exhibition for the watch industry – and a key event for anyone in the market for a new timepiece. Armed with $6,970, Square Mile’s Ben Winstanley takes to the stands to find this year’s standout pieces. Things begin to get serious around the $7,000 price point. At this budget, buyers (many looking for a new timepiece for the season) are likely to encounter a mix of iconic watch manufacturers, with the allure of their recognizable brand presence, and lesser-known watchmakers who balance their lack of a marketing budget with a keener eye on hand craftsmanship. There are plenty of great timepieces available in this range, but keep an eye out for in-house movements, intricate page 20
decoration and the use of secondary materials like rhodium and bronze, and you might bag a watch worth more than the sum of its parts.
OK, so this is technically more than $7,000, but not by much. Grand Seiko gained its cult following by doing two things extremely well: timelessly elegant watch designs and world-beating accuracy. To put it another way, there’s a rea-
son why the most discerning horophiles own at least one of its timepieces. Our favorite of the anniversary 39.5mm models is the all-steel reference SBGH267. The watch manufacturer handles steel better than almost every other brand on the planet thanks to its use of the zaratsu technique (which has its origins in the Japanese art of sword making), and it wears beautifully here alongside a rich blue ‘GS’ patterned dial and rhodium-plated hands. Under the hood, regulation to +5 to -3 seconds per day puts the high-beat caliber 9S85 near the top of the mechanical watchmaking world for movement accuracy. For a shade over seven big ones, that makes this watch one of the finest three-handed pieces on the market right now. Under the stewardship of recently
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wearer looking for something a little less robust than the rest of the Black Bay collection but, beyond its perfect proportions, this is simply the vintage-inspired Tudor we never knew we needed.
appointed CEO Georges Kern, Breitling has undergone a monumental face lift over the last nine months: a new vintage-inspired logo, the phasing out of hundreds of watch references, brandnew store designs, and a more diverse offering than its iconic pilots watches, tell the story of a brand rethinking its position in the horological pecking order. If fans of the brand awaited this year’s Baselworld with more trepidation than usual, they were duly put at ease by Kern’s impressive first collection. Our highlight is a new-look Navitimer with mass appeal. For a start, this is the first time we’ve seen a Navitimer in 38mm – a huge reduction on the standard-sized 46mm case – as well as having the most accessible price tag ever in the collection. Add to the mix retro detailings like the beaded and ratcheted bezel and replacing the usual B01 chronograph movement for the automatic B20 automatic movement (made in conjunction with Tudor), and you have an old-school sports watch perfect for the modern-day wearer.
There are so many reasons to love Tudor’s slim new dive watch it’s difficult to know where to start. Certainly, the 39mm x 11.9mm case will appeal to a
The gilt finishing on the dial, the copper numerals on the wide bezel, the lack of date indicator – it all adds up into one of the best put-together purist watches we’ve seen in a long while. There’s more to be impressed with on the inside, too. Tudor has created the new MT5402 caliber in-house movement to fit inside the smaller, slimmer case, while little touches of clever watchmaking like a non-magnetic silicon balance spring also help produce a chronometer-certified 70-hour power reserve and a water resistance of up to 200m. Staggeringly, you’ll get spare change out of $3,500. The Tudor reference 7924 dive watch, upon which the Fifty-Eight is based, was a favorite of naval forces the world over. But this watch? This is the sleeper hit of 2018 that nobody saw coming.
German brand Nomos Glashütte diverged from its usual mastery of minimalist watches to create the Autobahn – a driving-inspired timepiece created in collaboration with renowned progressive design studio Studio Aisslinger. The subtle hallmarks of classic car design are easy enough to make out in the bold speedometer-like arch of lume and the date window that shows three days at a time like an odometer on an analog dashboard. It’s a polarizing design – some will point to this being just a little too cluttered in comparison to Nomos’ stripped-back timepieces – but fine
details like the concave dial and further sunken sub-seconds dial give this sporty 41mm watch a pleasing amount of depth that many will love. The timepiece also comes with an update to the Neomatik movement, the DUW 6101, which includes a helpful quick-set date function that allows the day to be set by turning the crown in either direction. This watch is the antithesis of the numerous OTT driving-inspired designs available today – and, for that reason alone, we think Nomos is onto a winner.
Tag Heuer has a healthy knack of producing a number of wearable motor sports watches every year, and 2018 is no different. It’s using the 55th anniversary of the Carrera as an opportunity to give the iconic timepiece an update – the result being a handsome 41mm two-tone chronograph with ceramic bezel, aged luminous treatment on the hands and baton markers, and some distinctive red accents across the dial. Package it all up and you’re looking at a bold timepiece that plays with the 1970s heritage of the Carrera while still feeling like a contemporary piece. Under the hood is the highly durable Calibre 16 movement, also known as the ETA 7750, which comes with a 42hour power reserve. Famous wearers of the Carrera in days gone by include legendary racing drivers Juan Manuel Fangio and Jody Scheckter. While we can’t make any guarantees that you’ll carry off the look with quite the same panache, this is a watch with a broad appeal.
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Scoreboards & Cocktails
TOURNAMENTS & ACTION IN APRIL
British Polo Day 2018 Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club Abu Dhabi, UAE
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British Polo Day celebrated its 65th global event in Abu Dhabi. In advance of the first British Polo Day in New York this summer, the invitation-only event was delighted to be back in the United Arab Emirates, before completing the Middle Eastern leg in Dubai.
platform celebrating the history and heritage of polo with a global community, bringing together the world’s top companies and key influencers. It provides a platform for business in emerging and growth markets, giving partners enviable access to international contacts.
ninth time, British Polo Day pitted four teams against each other for the VistaJet Ghantoot Cup and the namesake Plate.
British Polo Day is an unparalleled
Returning to Abu Dhabi for the
VIP Guests then enjoyed a private dinner and a charity auction, which raised over $27,000 USD in aid of WAHA International, established by Her Highness Sheikha Shamsa bin Hamdan Al Nahyan in a response to the unacceptably high maternal and neonatal mortality rates in many parts of Africa and Asia.
In the now legendary Camel Polo, the Hackett Cavalry Team were roundly beaten 7-1 by the Rosewood Abu Dhabi Guards Team.
“Our customers expect the most extraordinary experiences at the highest standards,” explains Ian Moore, Chief Commercial Officer at VistaJet. “Our customers’ passions become our passions and supporting them is a cornerstone of the VistaJet brand. In partnering on such opportunities with British Polo Day, we are able to continue to deliver second-tonone events to our community.” page 25
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US Open Polo Championship
International Polo Club - Wellington, Florida Daily Racing Form 10-9 Valiente
Competing for the most prestigious trophy in North American history, four elite teams qualified to advance to Wednesday’s U.S. Open Polo Championship Semifinal doubleheader on April 18, at the International Polo Club Palm Beach in Wellington, Florida. page 26
Shutting out U.S. Polo Assn. almost entirely in the first half, Daily Racing Form (DRF) played strong offensively to win 11-8. Similarly in the second game, Valiente was able to capitalize on every Flexjet mistake to pick up yet another impressive victory 17-9.
Editor's note: Breaking as we went to press was the Daily Racing Form victory 10-9 over Valiente on Sunday, April 22. Congratulations to Daily Racing Form polo team for an amazing display of athleticism on the field; we love a dramatic ending to a polo match!
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USPA Gold Cup
The crown jewel of the winter season March 17 to April 1
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Demonstrating excellent control, Adolfo Cambiaso propelled the ball downfield, expertly weaving it between Flexjet’s defenders to pick up his first goal in the second. Staying in position and making key plays happen, Valiente’s optimal teamwork secured two additional goals, keeping them ahead by two at the end of the second. “I was mainly playing back on Flexjet’s hit-ins and trying to push forward on our plays,” Tommy Beresford revealed.
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Driven by an ambitious desire to sweep the Triple Crown of Polo, powerhouse Valiente rode for the second consecutive year into the USPA Gold Cup Final on Sunday, April 1, at the International Polo Club Palm Beach. Untouchable throughout tournament play, Valiente faced a strong offensive drive by Flexjet in their second match up, but ultimately defended their title 12-11. Claiming two immediate goals in the first, Facundo Pieres set the pace for a fast, competitive final. As the first half progressed, both teams relentpage 30
lessly traded goals back and forth, Flexjet strategically taking every available opportunity to intercept the ball and capitalize from the penalty line. Staying in position and making key plays happen, Valiente’s optimal teamwork secured two additional goals, keeping them ahead by two at the end of the second. Missing several opportunities to score, Flexjet allowed Cambiaso to get on another breakaway to goal, doubling the scoreboard. Just before Facundo Pieres could score another goal, Rodrigo De Andrade
managed to steal the ball and move it downfield, ending the half 6-3 in favor of Valiente. Responsible for seven out of 11 goals, five from the penalty line and two from the field, Nico Pieres was named Most Valuable Player. Best Playing Pony honors were awarded to Macarena, a grey mare owned by Mariano Gonzalez and played by Adolfo Cambiaso in the third chukker. “Macarena is an amazing, fantastic horse that can run as long as I need her to,” Cambiaso said.
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Cartier + De Young Museum's Mid-Winter Gala
Society and Celebs Turn Out One Last Time April 6 - San Francisco Cartier turned the de Young Museum into a spring garden on Friday, April 6, with vivid red wall tapestries of thousands of roses, orchids, jasmine, anemones, cherry blossoms and peonies. The occasion for this floral artistry by Bronson van Wyck was the fifteen annual Mid-Winter Gala, a Junior Committee benefit for the Fine Art Museums of San Francisco. Earlier in the week, Cartier hosted three days of lectures, lunches, a grand party and social labs, while participants Freida Pinto, Lily Collins, Bianca Brandolini and Sofia Boutella added the gala to their San Francisco festivities. Event co-chair Kathryn Lasater noted that this would be the last and final Mid-Winter. “We’ve raised great funds for our beloved city museums, and now we’re moving forward with new plans and ideas,” she said. The fashion was dazzling. Vanessa Getty wore a Loris Azzaro vintage gown. “It’s from a secret vintage source of mine,” she said. Stephanie Marver wore a sparkling Dior couture gown, with a trio of David Webb rock crystal and diamond bracelets and mesmerizing diamond chandelier earrings—a recent birthday gift. page 32
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Stephanie Marver, top, in Dior couture; Clockwise: Jake Gyllenhal, the facade in signature Cartier red, Lily Collins was in attendance to celebrate the launch of the Santos by Cartier watch collection. Above: the interior was transformed and washed in reds for the evening. Photos by Drew Altizer. page 33
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irony, reference and the self-aware wink (plus celebrity, music, digital and hype), to re-contextualize the familiar and give it an aura of cultural currency. A champion of the cross-branded collaboration, Abloh worked with names as varied as Nike, Jimmy Choo, Moncler and, with an upcoming project, Ikea. Most recently, he teamed up with Takashi Murakami, a frequent Vuitton collaborator, for a show at the Gagosian Gallery in London.
LOUIS VUITTON’S NEW MENSWEAR DESIGNER
VIRGIL ABLOH PARIS — Virgil Abloh, the founder of the haute streetwear label OffWhite and a longtime creative director for Kanye West, will be the next artistic director of menswear at Louis Vuitton, one of the oldest and most powerful European houses in the luxury business. He will be one of the few black designers at the top of a French heritage house. Olivier Rousteing is the creative director of Balmain, and Ozwald Boateng, from Britain, was the designer for Givenchy menswear from 2003 to 2007. “I am elated,” Abloh said, adding that he planned to relocate his family to Paris to take the job at the world’s largest luxury group. “This opportunity to think through what the next chapter of design and luxury will mean at a brand that represents the pinnacle of luxury was always a goal in my wildest dreams. And to show a younger generation that there is no one way anyone in this kind of position has to look is a fantastically modern spirit in which to start.” The appointment, widely rumored in
recent months, is part of a shake-up on the menswear side of LVMH, which began in January with the departure of Kim Jones. Abloh’s appointment is also a reflection of the increasing consumer-driven intermingling of the luxury and streetwear sectors. “Virgil is incredibly good at creating bridges between the classic and the zeitgeist of the moment,” said Michael Burke, chief executive of Louis Vuitton. The two men first met about 12 years ago when Abloh spent six months interning at Fendi with Kanye West, where Burke was then the chief executive. “I paid them $500 a month!” Burke said. “I was really impressed with how they brought a whole new vibe to the studio and were disruptive in the best way. Virgil could create a metaphor and a new vocabulary to describe something as old-school as Fendi. I have been following his career ever since.” Abloh, 37, a first-generation GhanaianAmerican raised in Illinois, is widely considered one of fashion’s consummate purveyors of cool; a master of using
“In a way, all of my output has been to make a compelling case for me to take on a role such as this,” Abloh said. “I think of it as kind of the ultimate collaboration.” It also presumably made a compelling case that Abloh could be the man to make Louis Vuitton menswear more relevant — and more visible — to the millennial generation. He will build on the foundation laid by Jones, who also gave classic menswear and Vuitton’s history as a luggage expert an urban edge, and recently engineered a sellout collaboration with Supreme, another streetwear success story. “For the last eight to 10 years we’ve been having this conversation about what’s new, and for me, that has to do with making luxury relatable across generations,” Abloh said, adding that he had been putting together an eight-page “brand manual” defining the new ethos of his Vuitton. “The first thing I am going to do is define new codes. My muse has always been what people actually wear, and I am really excited Mr. Abloh will continue to run OffWhite — “It is for the 17-year-old version of myself, whereas Vuitton is for the 37-year-old I am today,” he said — and to work with Kanye West. But he said he would cut back on his other activities, including moonlighting as a D.J. He will show his first collection for Louis Vuitton during Paris Men’s Fashion Week in June. This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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2018 BILLIONAIRES There's rich. And then there's world's-richest-people rich. To make the list of the 50 richest people in the world, it takes a net worth of at least $19.8 billion. This is a list of the world's richest people. The majority of the billionaires on the list are self-made self-starters who built business empires in tech, finance, fashion, and sports.
To make it into the super-rich group, you now need a net worth of at least $19.8 billion. Using the calculations from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Business Insider put together a list of the 50 richest people in the world. Since Bloomberg News doesn't report on Bloomberg LP, the report added him using his estimated net worth from Forbes. From tech tycoons to luxury car heiresses, here are the 50 richest people on earth.
A few of the billionaires inherited stakes in their family's companies.
50. Tadashi Yanai
49. Vladimir Potanin
48. Robert Kuok
47. Lakshmi Mittal
46. Lee Kun Hee
45. Alexey Mordashov
The founder and president of Fast Retailing, which owns retailer Uniqlo. Net Worth: $19.8 billion
CEO of ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker, which produces 10% of the world's steel. Net Worth: $19.9 billion page 38
Vladimir Potanin started his private investment company Interros, which owns 30% of Norilsk Nickel. Net Worth: $19.9 billion
Chairman of Samsung Electronics, which is known for its consumer electronics division. Net Worth: $20.3 billion
A businessman with massive businesses in Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Singapore in sugar, palm oil, hotels, and trading, among others. Net Worth: $19.9 billion
A Russian oligarch and steel company Severstal's majority shareholder. He also has stakes in mining, media, banking, telecom, and, recently, technology. Net Worth: $20.5 billion
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44. Elon Musk
CEO of Tesla, CEO of SpaceX and founder of OpenAI and Neuralink. Net Worth: $20.5 billion
43. Len Blavatnik
Founder of Access Industries in 1986. He purchased a 20% stake in Tory Burch. Net Worth: $20.8 billion
42. Michael Dell
Founded PC Ltd., the predecessor to Dell Inc. He dropped out of college to build computers, and the company went public soon after. Net Worth: $21 billion
41. Thomas Peterffy
40. Yang Huiyan
39. Stefan Quandt
38. Leonardo del Vecchio
37. Dieter Schwarz
36. Giovanni Ferrero
Chair, CEO, and founder of Interactive Brokers Group, a huge electronic broker. Net Worth: $21.3 billion
Founder of Luxottica, the eyewear powerhouse, which owns Sunglass Hut, Ray-Ban, and Oakley, and manufacturers glasses for a large number of luxury brands. Net Worth: $22.7 billion
Chinese real estate developer of Country Garden Holdings. Net Worth: $21.6 billion
He started with one discount supermarket and expanded outside of Germany. The company operates a grocery-store chain, and Kaufland. Net Worth: $23.5 billion
He inherited a stake in Bayerische Motoren Werke, which owns BMW and Rolls-Royce. Net Worth: $21.7 billion
He controls Ferrero SpA, which makes Ferrero chocolates, Nutella, Kinder chocolates, and Tic Tacs. Net Worth: $23.8 billion page 39
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35. Lee Shau Kee
34. Susanne Klatten
33.Serge Dassault
32. Georg Schaeffler
31. Paul Allen
30. Francois Pinault
29. Wang Jianlin
28. Jorge Lemann
27. Phil Knight
Founded Henderson Land Development, which grew into a top real-estate developer in Hong Kong and China, in 1973. Net Worth: $23.9 billion
Joined Schaeffler Group, which manufactures ball bearings for auto, aerospace, and industrial use. He is the chair and majority owner. Net Worth: $24.6 billion
Founder and chair of conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, with interests in property development, department stores, and entertainment. Net Worth: $27.5 billion page 40
Heiress in Bayerische Motoren Werke, which owns BMW and Rolls-Royce. Net Worth: $24.2 billion
Microsoft co-founder, he left the company before it went public, remaining a board member until 2000. He also founded Vulcan, his private investment vehicle. Net Worth: $24.6 billion
He was a journalist and professional tennis player before finance. He co-founded 3G Capital in 2004, and is known for his affinity for merges and acquisitions. Net Worth: $27.8 billion
CEO of Dassault Group, which has a controlling stake in military jet maker Dassault Aviation. Net Worth: $24.5 billion
Founder of luxury goods group Kering, which controls Gucci and Puma, among others. Net Worth: $26.2 billion
He started Blue Ribbon Sports — which was the predecessor to Nike. Net Worth: $28.9 billion
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26. Hui Ka Yan
25. John Mars and 24. Jacqueline Mars
23. Li Ka-Shing
22. Steve Ballmer
21. Sheldon Adelson
20. Mukesh Ambani
19. Pony Ma
18. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers
17. Alice Walton
Chairman of China Evergrande Group, a property developer that has worked on hundreds of projects across China. Net Worth: $30.3 billion
Microsoft's first business manager. He became CEO after Bill Gates until 2014. Net Worth: $36.9 billion
Founder of Tencent Holdings, which has a number of Internet and communication platforms in its portfolio. Among others, its platforms include WeChat and QQ. Net Worth: $43.5 billion
He opened a factory — the predecessor to today's CK Hutchinson The siblings inherited a stake in Mars, Inc. The siblings run the Mars Holdings, which has interests in real estate, energy, and telecoms. Foundation. Net Worth: $33.9 billion Net Worth: $32.5 billion each
He developed COMDEX, one of the largest trade shows in Las Vegas. He sold in 1995, and built the Venetian Casino Resort and the Sands Expo Convention Center. Net Worth: $38 billion
He is chairman of Reliance Industries and controls about 40% of the company, which owns the world's largest oil refining complex. Net Worth: $40.4 billion
The youngest heir to the Walmart fortune, she co-manages Walton The heiress to the L'Oreal cosmetics fortune, she controls 33 percent Enterprises, one of the family's two holding companies. of the company. Net Worth: $46.6 billion Net Worth: $43.9 billion page 41
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16. David Koch and 15. Charles Koch
14. James "Jim" Walton
12. Rob Walton
11. Michael Bloomberg
10.Sergey Brin
9. Larry Page
8. Larry Ellison
7. Bernard Arnault
David is EVP and Charles is chairman of Koch Industries, which manufactures, refines, and distributes chemicals, energy, minerals, and more. Net Worth: $47.2 billion each
He began working at Walmart in 1969 and served as chairman from 1992 to 2015. Net Worth: $47.8 billion
He co-founded Google and is now the CEO of Alphabet, the company that owns Google. Net Worth: $53.2 billion page 42
He co-manages Walton Enterprises, the holding company for the Walton family assets. Net Worth: $47.2 billion
He founded his eponymous financial-data firm in 1981. He added news and media subsidiaries in 1990. Net Worth: $51.8 billion
He started Oracle Corp., the second largest software maker after Microsoft. Net Worth: $55.1 billion
13. Jack Ma
Started e-commerce company Alibaba with just $60,000 in 1999. Fifteen years later, it broke records with a $25 billion initial public offering. Net Worth: $47.7 billion
He co-founded Google in 1998 and is now president of Alphabet, the company that owns Google. Net Worth: $51.9 billion
He is chair of MoĂŤt Hennessy Louis Vuitton. He bought Christian Dior when he joined LVMH. Net Worth: $64.7 billion
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6. Carlos Slim
5. Armancio Ortego
3. Warren Buffett
2. Bill Gates
He owns a large number of companies in Mexico through his conglomerate, Grupo Carso. He also controls American Movil, the largest operator of mobile phones in Latin America. Net Worth: $66.2 billion each
He bought Berkshire Hathaway in 1969 and transformed it into a powerhouse holding company. Net Worth: $86.1 billion
He controls fashion giant Inditex, which owns Zara, Massimo Dutti, Oysho, and others. Net Worth: $71.3 billion
Along with Paul Allen, he co-founded Microsoft and served as chairman until 2000. He remains on the board. Net Worth: $91.1 billion
4. Mark Zuckerberg
As a college student, he launched TheFacebook.com and dropped out of school to develop it full-time. Net Worth: $74 billion
1. Jeff Bezos
In 1994, he founded Amazon. com in the garage of his home in Seattle. On Black Friday in 2017, Bezos' net worth his $100 billion. Net Worth: $121 billion
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SAUDI ARABIA
UNVEILED
Saudi Arabia’s new heir to the throne announced plans for a beach resort where special laws will allow women to wear bikinis instead of covering up. As part of his drive to modernize the Saudi economy, Prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled plans for a luxury Red Sea resort on a stretch of coast line in the country’s northwest. Knowing that foreign visitors are unlikely to come to beaches where women are forced to cover up in an abaya - a robe-like dress - the government said the resort will be “governed by laws on par with international standards”. Saudi Arabia’s own laws on women are among the most repressive in the world, with women banned from driving and unable to travel without permission from a male relative. Women are expected to cover their skin and hair when they are outside, although the laws are not uniformly enforced. Last month, a young woman was arrested for wearing a miniskirt in an abandoned village. Alcohol is banned under the law and is unclear if it will be allowed at the resort. page 46
Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund described the project as an “exquisite luxury resort destination established across 50 untouched natural islands. “The Red Sea project will be a luxury resort destination situated across the islands of a lagoon and steeped in nature and culture. “It will set new standards for sustainable development and bring about the next generation of luxury travel to put Saudi Arabia on the international tourism map,” the fund said.
Construction is set to begin in 2019 and the first phase of the project will be completed by 2022, according to the announcement. It hopes to host a million visitors a year by 2035. The Red Sea project is part of Prince Mohammed’s Vision 2030 - a plan to diversify the Saudi economy and wean it off its dependence on oil. Some foreign investors have applauded the young prince, who is often referred to by his initials “MbS”, but others have said the plan is unlikely to succeed. Saudi Arabia may see an opening in the tourism market as neighboring Egypt
struggles to convince foreigners that its own Red Sea resorts are safe. The Egyptian holiday area has been wracked by a number of attacks in recent years, including the bombing of a Russian airliner that took off from Sharm el-Sheikh. Visitor numbers have slumped as a result. The Saudi statement stressed that the project “will be an extremely safe and secure environment that will ensure the protection of all visitors in accordance with the highest international best practice”. Most foreigners will be able to fly straight into the tourism zone without a visa, another easing of Saudi law designed to make the resort more attractive. Prince Mohammed was elevated to the role of crown prince in June after his cousin, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, was stripped of the role. Prince Mohammed is the son of the current king, Salman, and already has broad authority over the kingdom’s economy as well as its defense and foreign policies. By Raf Sanchez and originally published in The Telegraph.
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MIAMI'S LUXURY LIFESTYLE CONCIERGE SERVICE
TO A380S
WWW.WBLUXURY.COM +1-305-807-1621 page 48
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EMIRATES ADDING MORE
FIRST CLASS SUITES TO A380S At a Hamburg Airport press conference during the 2018 Aircraft Interiors Expo, Emirates CEO Tim Clark discussed upcoming Airbus A380 fleet plans. These plans include committing to the airline’s A380 options and a “transformation”
of the cabin on its newest A380s. While these plans include adding new, enclosed first class suites to the superjumbo, unfortunately that won’t happen until at least 2021. It looks like the plagued A380 pro-
gram will soon get yet another lifeline from Emirates. At the press conference, Clark announced that “sooner rather than later” the airline would commit to its options to buy 16 more A380 aircraft. These options are from the noteworthy order of 20 aircraft this January that was hailed as saving the A380 program for a few more years. At Airbus’ greatly reduced production level of just six A380s per year, exercising these options would extend production almost three more years. In that time, Airbus is hoping for additional airlines to turn to the superjumbo due to airport and air traffic congestion. However, the Mercedes-Benzinspired first class suites now installed on some of the airline’s 777-300ERs won’t be installed on the new A380s until 2021. This delay is due, in part, to the difficulty of installing the new suites and the “extensive certification efforts” that are required to allow the suite to fly on the A380. Due to these difficulties, Emirates isn’t sure yet if the airline will retrofit any of its existing A380s with the new suites and changes to the cabin. If the airline decides to retrofit existing A380s, Clark estimates it’d cost at least $30 million per aircraft — in addition to the aircraft’s lost service time. Orginally appearing online at thepointsguy.com
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LUxury event planning & design | thenouveauromantics.com
POLO LIFESTYLES
Fairy Tale
IN CELEBRATION OF THE UPCOMING ROYAL WEDDING, WE PRESENT A SPECIAL ISSUE FEATURING MEGHAN MARKLE AND PRINCE HARRY
VOLUME II / ISSUE V / MAY 2018
HAPPILY EVER AFTER THE BRITISH MONARCHY JUMPS INTO THE 21ST CENTURY
Written by Josh Jakobitz and Stanley Pierre-Etienne
Harry & Meghan
Only 90 years ago, a divorcée scandal rocked the House of Windsor and forced a monarch to abdicate the throne. King Edward VIII, in love with the American, twice-divorced Wallis Simpson, abruptly end his tenure as sovereign of the Commonwealth and his brother Albert ascended to the throne as King George VI. page 54
Prince Philippe’s romance with then-Princess Elizabeth raised eyebrows due to his Greek and German noble background, and their royal offspring took Elizabeth’s surname, Windsor, instead of his – Mountbatten. Princess Margaret was not allowed to marry the man of her choice, the divorced Peter Townsend, in 1952. Prince Charles
loved the commoner Camilla ParkerBowles but married (and later divorced) Lady Diana Spencer to follow tradition and protocol. When Prince Charles finally wed Parker-Bowles in 2005, Queen Elizabeth II, as head of the Church of England, did not attend the wedding ceremony. She did, however, bestow Parker-Bowles
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“He got down on one knee” - MEGHAN MARKLE
Official engagement photos by Alexi Lubomirski for Harper’s Bazaar The large diamond in the center was mined in Botswana; the smaller diamonds on the sides are from Princess Diana’s collection.
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with a title – Duchess of Cornwall, and in 2011 extended the same courtesy to the commoner Katherine Middleton, now Katherine, Duchess of Cambridge, whose father Michael has ties to aristocracy. Now, Prince Harry, sixth in line to the British throne, will marry a mixedrace, divorced, American actress at St. George's Chapel, Windsor, in May. Meghan Markle, who first came to fame for her role in the TV series Suits, will become at once a British subject and a member of the most famous royal household in the world. As the prince and Markle make historic appearances – Christmas together at Sandringham, polo matches at Berkshire, the Commonwealth Youth Forum last week – royal experts have been baffled at the unprecedented level to which Markle has been included in very private royal family events prior to her wedding to the prince.
Marrying without the sovereign’s consent disqualifies heirs apparent from the possibility of ruling. The polo-playing prince knows exactly what he’s doing – by prepping Markle since day one of their public relationship for a place within the royal family, he’s showing her the ropes: protocol, expectations, order, deference, and expectations; otherwise unfamiliar to those outside of the House of Windsor. Markle will be ready for the “job” that entails public work, charities, events, tours, and appearances. Prince Harry’s own mother was overwhelmed by the “job” after marrying Prince Charles, and he won’t have the same experience for his wife and marriage. But while she’s also training to join the royal family, she and Prince Harry are rewriting history and hundreds of years of tradition and protocol regarding public appearances, private gatherings, and marriage ideals. Instead of being set up by the Queen or well-meaning courtier of the royal household, the prince and
The polo-playing prince knows exactly what he’s doing – by prepping Markle since day one and showing her the ropes: protocol, expectations, order, deference, and expectations. Markle were set up by a mutual friend. It was an immediate attraction and on their first date, they compared calendars to see when and where they overlapped in the weeks and months to come in order to see each other again. Comments from the House of Windsor about the couple are limited to primand-proper, perfectly worded press statements, but their public appearanc-
es betray the traditional (and prickly) approach to royal romance. In appearance after appearance, they’re intimate, they’re loving, they’re a real life fairy tale. The American actress will become the wife of a prince, with castles and palaces, golden carriages and footmen, tea and crumpets. And thanks to her doting finance, she will be ready for the “job” and responsibility that royalty entails. page 57
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MEGHAN AND HARRY - THE ULTIMATE MODERN COUPLE
Top: Night out on the town, they braved the rain to made an appearance at the Endeavour Fund Awards. Right top: The engagement ring is set with a white diamond from Botswana with two diamonds from Princess Diana's collection on either side. Prince Harry designed it; The couple on their way to visit Reprezent 107.3 FM in London. Right bottom: The couples first official joint visit to Scotland. They visited Edinburgh and were greeted by some very special guests - including one particularly adorable four-legged friend.
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MEGHAN’S STYLE
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Meghan Markle’s fashion choices have always been classic, elegant, feminine and sophisticated. It’s like she always knew she was meant to meet Prince Harry as she carried herself in a way that’s made her the perfect fit for her royal journey. Since her rise to fame, her fashion style was always more refined than sexy. Always classy – a big compliment and achievement considering her young age. Her outfits lend the impression that Lady Diana or Kate Middleton are some of her style icons. Her style choices are distinctly those of a non-royally blooded lady about to marry a blue-blooded gentleman. Even as shes following fashion fads throughout the years, her current style is not terribly distant from what she used to wear since first appearing in the public eye. Of course, she has made some necessary adjustments to align her style in Windsor fashion dictated by the rigid royal protocol, but Meghan has already succeeded – at least publicly. She's comfortable and relaxed (if that’s possible) in her royal appearances. She even uses some items from her own personal closet. The point is, when seeing Meghan standing next to Prince Harry since the news broke confirming that they were dating, her personal sense of style has not overshadowed. There are more than just hints of her personal taste when it comes to the clothing choices she is displaying in her outfits right now. Pairing a mermaid-style skirt with a classic top like a buttoned or belted coat is not exactly an expected royally approved outfit. Neither is carrying a crossbody bag instead of a clutch. What we’re watching is Meghan teaching us her way of dressing royally, stating outloud that she will always incorporate evidence and touches of her modern flair into her royal wardrobe, while following the rules and protocol to stay in good standing. With her wedding day in Windsor quickly approaching, the world, most of us through our television screens, will take a front row to enjoy what’s been carefully curated, as well as what she has in store for us. Up to the present, her style instincts have paid off. Pictured opposite, top: wearing a long camel coat from Canadian brand Smythe; opposite left to right: Meghan stuns in white coat and hat by Amanda Wakeley; she is casual and chic in destroyed denim at the Invictus Games in Canada; she's stunning in Carolina Herrera; her red carpet sequined look is by Roland Mouret; she chose a long wide collar wrap coat by Sentaler coat and a hat by Philip Tracy for Christmas with the royal family.
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AMERICAN ROYALTY
There is precedent for American women marrying into royal households; albeit not the House of Windsor. Lisa Halaby, known as Queen Noor, married King Hussein of Jordan 1978; actress Grace Kelly married His Serene Highness Rainier III, Prince of Monaco. Caroline Lee Bouvier, the younger sister of Jackie Onassis, married the Polish prince Stanislaw Albrecht Radziwill in 1959. Rita Hayworth married the Italianborn Prince Aly Khan, son of the Aga Khan; MarieChantal Miller became Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess of Greece, Princess of Denmark when she married Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, the son of King Constantine of Greece. Alexandra Miller, Marie-Chantal’s younger sister, followed royal suit and married Prince Alexandre von Furstenberg in 1995, making her the daughter-in-law of Diane von Furstenberg and Prince Egon, and sister-in-law to the future king of Greece. Kelly Rondestvedt married Hereditary Prince Hubertus of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, a descendant of Prince Albert and his wife/first cousin Queen Victoria. Saxe-CoburgGotha was the name of the British royal family until the height of World War II, when King George VI changed the family name to Windsor. Sarah Butler found her happily ever after with Prince Zeid bin Ra’ad Zeid al-Hussein – a member of the Jordanian House of Hashemite and Crown Prince of Iraq – becoming Princess Sarah Zeid in 2000. Kendra Spears married into the same family as Rita Hayworth and became Princess Salway Aga Khan when she married Prince Rahim Aga Khan, the eldest son of the current Aga Khan. page 62
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Prince Harry greeted by traditional dancers in St. Kitts and Nevis.
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Every article and every image of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry is filled with tenderness and dreams. Their pursuit of happiness is contagious and inspires us all to pursue our own. Wishing Meghan and Harry a joyous celebration on their wedding day.
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CREATING YOUR FAIRY TALE
EVENT PLANNING CAKES WEDDING GOWNS SHOES FLORALS Rodarte couture gowns Spring Summer 2018
INVITATIONS page 67
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THE NOUVEAU ROMANTICS
EVENT DESIGN & PLANNING STUDIO The Nouveau Romantics is a boutique event design and planning studio that takes pride in creating one-of-a-kind experiences - an approach that has landed them on multiple “Best Planners” list in the United States, including Harper’s Bazaar and Martha Stewart Weddings. TNR designs and plans weddings throughout the United States, Canada, and beyond. Given a ceremony in the countryside or a wedding on a riad rooftop in Marrakech – you’ll be seen at your best. The many, many moving parts of a wedding can create a challenge. TNR’s clients in Texas love to throw Texassized celebrations - which often means page 68
building the entire wedding from scratch on private properties, and managing planning, decor, and floral teams that are often at least 20 deep, if not upwards to 50 staff! And while staff size is one aspect, the execution of their work often comes in remote locations, with limited FedEx runs, which means they are prepared with Plans B, C, D, and E as something inevitably goes “not according to plan.”
want the planning process to feel like. It’s not just the wedding, it’s also the relationship between the couple and the planner.
When meeting with TNR, couples should bring the a list of their top priorities, a general idea of a guest list, and their vision of what they want their wedding day (or weekend) to feel like, as well as consideration on how they
Planners like TNR can guide the entire process and ensure that you’re maximizing your investment, as well as troubleshoot and avoid any big snags with venues, that might adjust your budget in a significant way.
Recently engaged couples should… "Get real about the guest list, determine who is involved in the decision making process, and rank your top priorities separately and together," says Elizabeth McKellar, founder of TNR.
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ELIZABETH McKELLAR THE NOUVEAU ROMANTICS FOUNDER ON THE FUTURE OF WEDDINGS:
“I THINK THERE ARE SOME REALLY INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITIES TO BRING IN MORE ART, LIGHTING, FLORAL INSTALLATIONS IN AN IMPACTFUL, BEAUTIFUL WAY. THEY DON’T HAVE TO BE OVER THE TOP, BUT I LIKE TO PICK A COUPLE OF BIG STATEMENT MOMENTS AND CREATE SOMETHING THAT ANCHORS THE SPACE AND THE GUEST EXPERIENCE. I’M AN ARTIST AT HEART!”
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YOUR VERY MODERN Claire Ptak, a London-based baker from Inverness, California, worked for three years at Chez Panisse as a pastry cook and then a pastry chef. Her acclaimed bakery and cafe, Violet Bakery, sells whoopie pies, cupcakes, and serving-size desserts, all crafted with a focus on organic and seasonal ingredients. Young, hip, and cool Prince Harry and Meghan Markle recently announced that Ptak's Violet Bakery - a favorite of theirs - will design their wedding cake. The couple asked her to create a "lemon elderflower cake to incorporate the bright flavors of spring." It will be covered in butter cream, and - get this - decorated with fresh flowers. The choice says "Goodbye" to the long-standing royal tradition of serving humdrum fruitcake, the holiday go-to made with nuts and candied fruit that makes most of us cringe (but, boy, do they last). The point of the tradition was that it could also be served the christening of the married couples' first child. The pastry chef tapped to make the sensationally sweet creation, was previously interviewed by Markle for her blog, The Tig. Clearly, the Suits actress kept in touch with the baker and reconnected upon her move to London. Ptak authored several books including "The Violet Bakery Cookbook" which is described as a "design-forward cookbook for sweet and savory baked goods."
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WEDDING CAKE
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MODERN BRIDES STATEMENT GOWNS
There's a reason that many a bride maintain a veil of secrecy around the wedding gown. The "Oooooohs" and "Ahhhhhs" when the organ tolls out the opening of Wagner's Wedding March are as much of a tradition as the white gown itself. This season, we are seeing beautiful modern gowns, vintage-inspired gowns and capes, both off the shoulder and from the waist. Above: Givenchy's FW 2018 modern gown; right: Oscar de la Renta never disappoints with this little-white-dress version of a wedding gown complete with metallic tights.
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Vintage gowns from Valenting Yudashkin (top left), Dior Couture du Reve (top middle), Kate Half Penny's SS18 dress with cape off the shoulders. Above: Reem Acra's vintage-motif gown with cape and right: Lela Rose's stunningly simple white gown with clean lines and embroidered train.
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New Reign Chosen Wedding Gowns, an Australian bridal fashion brand with equestrian inspirations. Available worldwide: www.chosenbyoneday.com
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Elie Saab (this page) in traditional sleeveless off-whit, intricately embroidered. Opposite left: Jenny Packham's SS18 with covered shoulders; opposite top right: Berta Wedding SS18 gives art-deco indulgence. Opposite bottom right: Zuhair Murad's SS18 wedding collection is exceptional in ivory silk and lace.
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SOMETHING OLD SOMETHING NEW SOMETHING BORROWED AND SOMETHING BLUE
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CINDERELLA SLIPPER SPARKLY SHOES BY RENE CAOVILLA
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RS
Dream shoes for women, precious, hand-made, following the noblest tradition of Made-in-Italy craftsmanship: RenĂŠ Caovilla's stunning collections range from stilettos to slippers. Starting at $1,090, each pair is hand-made in Venice. Opposite left: Mostro, Decolte, Gabbia, Fiocco Retro; this page clockwise from top: Pizzo, Fiocchetto Alto, silver sandal, Fiocchetto Basso, Snake, and Still Life. RenĂŠ Caovilla designs are available at Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. Online at www.renecaovilla.com
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FABULOUS FLORALS
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Flowers are a great place to get creative for a wedding or event. Whether you fancy full bouquets bursting with buds, minimal and understated, suspended or arranged in vases, or pinned on a lapel, florals make a decisive statement about your event. Opposite page and above flower arrangements by The Nouveau Romantics, with offices in New York, Texas, and Los Angeles, www.thenouveauromantics.com.
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INVITATIONS
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With any event, once you've "gotten realistic" about the guest list, it's time to think about announcements, save-the-date cards, invitations, response cards, inserts and programs. Top photo: the official (and traditional) invitation of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Perhaps the best souvenir for guests and the honored couple alike, the possibilities are as limitless as the imagination allows. Consider different paper weights, types, and stocks, florals, ribbons, gold leaf, hand-written or printed options to truly customize your event from beginning to end. Pictured paper products curated by The Nouveau Romantics.
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THIS SEASON’S KEY BAGS Louis Vuitton
FOR AFTERNOONS ON THE SIDELINES
Chloë and Chanel
The eye-catching bags that stormed the spring/summer 2018 catwalks came in myriad shapes and sizes. We will be seeing many of them on polo field sidelines very soon.
Tom Ford, Philip Plein and Christopher Kane
Will you fall for Oscar de la Renta's paint-splattered clutches, or Burberry's checked hold-alls? Plump for Simone Rocha's prim top-handle bags or Jeremy Scott's cartoon-printed shoppers?
Balmain, Christian Dior, Versace, and Dolce Gabbana
Balmain, Loewe, Roksanda, Gucci, Fendi, and Thom Browne
Or load up your elbow with a mega tasseled bucket bag, as suggested at Calvin Klein? Keep tabs on the key bags of the season and start building your wish list.
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A318 ELITE
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SushiSamba
THE ROOFTOP GUIDE
Four favorite rooftop bars in the UK Hans Ebenman | The Rooftop Guide
London is one of the best cities in the world when speaking about bars and restaurants. And of course, there are some spectacular rooftops here as well. SushiSamba
Our favorite rooftop bar in London. This place has it all: fantastic food, spectacular views and a vibrant and sophisticated atmosphere. Our favorite time to come here is during lunch hour. Make sure to book your table in advance and always ask for a table with a great view. During lunch the atmosphere is a page 94
little bit calmer; on evenings and weekend afternoons, there’s a more vibrant and party-friendly feeling. SushiSamba works great for cocktails, dinner or lunch. Dress for success and you’ll feel right at home up here. The highest rooftop bar in Europe!
The Rooftop at The Trafalgar St. James
One of the newest rooftop bars in this lovely city. Located on top of The Trafalgar St. James Hotel, with great views over the London skyline and many of the historical buildings and monuments. This is a perfect place to visit for some refreshing cocktails. The rooftop is open all year around,
which makes it quite unique in London. The terrace is complete with blankets and heaters, along with a retractable roof to accommodate the year-round experience. If you’re a larger group, we recommend reserving the glass box called “ROOM” – a glass box with space for up to 14 persons and no shortage of spectacular views.
Aqua London
This rooftop bar has two amazing roof terraces, located on the different side of this building. Aqua Kyoto and Aqua Nueva. The terraces look very similar, but the feeling, food and drinks differ quite a bit. As their names suggest, Aqua Kyoto has a more Asian feel and
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The press Lounge at Ink 48 Hotel - New York
The Rooftop at The Trafalgar St. James
Aqua Nueva a more Spanish vibe. This is probably the most centrally located rooftop in London. The views are beautiful over the rooftops right next to the famous street, Regent Street (that runs through the central parts of London). This is the perfect place for a luxurious after work or some drinks with your friends before heading out in the London night.
Radio Rooftop Bar
This is the trendiest and most party-friendly rooftop in the UK. Radio Rooftop Bar is also a great place to visit if you re a true purveyor of luxury. Make sure to dress up if you’d like to get in here, and it's recommended to reserve a table in advance. During weekends it can be quite tricky to get a seat here and sometimes very hard to even get in to the place. But well up here, you
Aqua-London
won’t be disappointed: amazing skyline views over almost all of London, a party atmosphere to die for and drinks and food of top-notch quality. During winter time you can even rent a private cabana lift that cruises between the rooftops close by - the only place in the world with this feature. These are our four favorite places for a drink with a view in London. You can find a complete list of 14 rooftop bars in London here.
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THE
REINVENTION OF LONDON'S LEGENDARY
ANNABEL'S
“I
’m getting bribed!” gasps Alexander Spencer- Churchill. “Hampers! Baby clothes!” This well-connected, socially adept 34-year old, whose dapper style generally consists of a sharp Douglas Davis suit and pale-blue silk tie and pocket square, is incredulous at people’s attempts to become a Legacy member of the new Annabel’s club.
membership cards needed,” he says. “A roaring fire. Oldschool style.”
“It’s like The X Factor,” he says, propping himself languorously against the marble fireplace just inside 46 Berkeley Square, the Georgian mansion that houses the club in London’s Mayfair. “Everyone needs to be approved by the committee.”
The late Mark Birley opened the original Annabel’s nightclub in 1963, naming it after his then wife, Lady Annabel Vane Tempest-Stewart, who later married James Goldsmith. Situated in the old coal cellar at 44 Berkeley Square beneath the Clermont Club, a gambling den famously frequented by Lord Lucan, Annabel’s was funded by 500 of Birley’s friends, who stumped up five guineas a year to become life members. Sixty-nine are still alive. “It’s costing us more money to collect the £5 off them than the £5 they owe!” quips Spencer-Churchill.
The magnificent hall hints at extravagance within: The walls are lined in pleated pistachio silk; bunches of fruit-and-flowers plasterwork tumble from the ceiling; glimmering crystal girandoles stand sentry beside the fireplace. “When you go into most members’ clubs you don’t see a Picasso hanging on the wall,” adds Ali, as he’s known to friends. Ali’s job, right now, is right-hand man, confidant, and arbiter of all things chic to London restaurateur Richard Caring, who is in the throes of reinventing Annabel’s. He points at a space on the wall in front of me where Picasso’s "Girl with a Red Beret and Pompom" will soon be installed in time for the opening. “No
Birley’s exquisite taste lured a louche, glamorous set, and Annabel’s, from the sixties to the eighties, became the spot— the most fun place to go after dinner for a late-night boogie, or for cocktails and cigarettes in the atmospheric Buddha Room. Its opening coincided with the moment when the old aristocratic order was breaking down and British society was starting to embrace the creative and bohemian set—you were as likely to see an earl or a duke at Annabel’s as Vidal Sassoon, Mick Jagger, or Diana Ross. The decor was akin to that of a cozily chic English house: Birley’s collection of horse and dog paintings and prints covered the walls top to toe; flickpage 97
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ering candle lamps lit the tables while guests ate dinner seated on banquettes upholstered in red velvet; the cramped dance floor, almost an afterthought, was hidden at the back of the club and boasted only a couple of disco lights; the wait staff wore white tuxedos and bow ties and knew everyone’s name. Guests felt more like they were at a party in someone’s fabulous drawing room than in a London nightclub. When Birley sold Annabel’s to Caring in 2007, some in London society were alarmed. Caring planned to reopen the nightspot in the basement of the building immediately next door to the original and turn the rest of the house into a dayto-night members club. Many die hard members, worried that Caring’s cash would bring too much flash to their beloved Annabel’s, fled to 5 Hertford Street, with its nightclub Loulou’s (named for Loulou de la Falaise), started by Mark’s son Robin Birley in 2012. Still, there is a palpable excitement around the reopening of Annabel’s: Last summer, a handpicked few were invited to preview parties, and, says one new member, stylist Olivia Buckingham, “we all had to wear our bespoke Annabel’s builders’ jackets and hard hats. We had dinner in the courtyard, with a band playing and surrounded by scaffolding—it was fabulous.” Meanwhile, says 36-year-old Nasiba Adilova, the Dallasbased creator of the e-commerce children’s-clothing site The Tot, “It’s always been the club. I feel like nowhere else can compare.” When the chic mother of five Claudia Rothermere threw a page 98
birthday drinks party in December for her husband, Jonathan, in the nearly finished space, to which everyone from director Guy Ritchie to the Duke of Beaufort was invited, it was a final stamp of approval. “I’m so excited that the new club has been reborn into the most ravishing building in Berkeley Square,” she says. With Charlotte Tilbury advising on the beauty side (there will be a spa in the mews behind the courtyard garden) and Hikari Yokoyama as contemporary-art director, it feels as though the cool crowd is invading Annabel’s once more.
As a former fond Annabel’s-goer, I can safely say that Caring’s Annabel’s is flash—very. But somehow it works. For a tiny elite, this is the London aesthetic of now—out-and-out gilt-trimmed maximalism. “I wanted to create the idea of a home within a townhouse that was fresh for the greatest party of the season,” says interior designer Martin Brudnizki, who has designed numerous restaurant and hotel interiors, including the Beekman in New York and Caring’s The Ivy and Sexy Fish in London. “You can wear all your jewelry, your evening bag, your fur stole . . . it’s party time when you walk in.” As Ali and I explore the building, it’s
apparent that a Birley-inspired joie de vivre has exploded into the decor. The various bars throughout are lavishly finished: One is covered in hand-painted de Gournay wallpaper depicting scenes of elephants and maharajas; in another, jungle scenes are extravagantly rendered. One private room, paneled in glass, with an extraordinary verdigris marble floor, is intended for Legacy members—100 people (about a quarter of them are Americans) who have bought lifetime memberships, which can be inherited by their children. The Garden Room is a glitzy but chic restaurant with mirrored panels, a gilded ceiling, and trellises of roses painted by muralist Gary Myatt. French doors open into a courtyard garden scented by springtime fig and orange trees. “The roof retracts in two minutes,” Ali tells me, pointing at the glass ceiling. “Just like the one at Wimbledon.” Promising one final moment of excitement, SpencerChurchill leads me to the top-floor Powder Room. I am not disappointed: The washbasins are pink onyx carved in the shape of oyster shells; the taps, gold swans; the ceiling, a carpet of silk roses in pale pinks; the feeling, Liz Taylor meets Marie Antoinette. “One person asked me if they could do a dinner here!” exclaims Spencer-Churchill. “In the loo!” There’s nothing more glamorous than supper in the loo, I muse to myself, if the loo looks like this one. This article originally appeared in Vogue.
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“I WANTED TO CREATE THE IDEA OF A HOME WITHIN A TOWNHOUSE THAT WAS FRESH FOR THE GREATEST PARTY OF THE SEASON.”
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WHERE SCIENCE AND BEAUTY MEET IN A BOUTIQUE EXPERIENCE. Dr. Melissa Hubiak, MD 925.334.2210 / www.skinsciencemedspa.com 101 Gregory Lane, Suite 27 Pleasant Hill, CA 94523
One s ma l l esthec ho c a d ay helps t o r eg a i n y o ur s k i n h e al t h and slow d o w n y o ur agi n g pr o c e s s
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IRELAND'S FORAGING CHEF AWARD-WINNING CHEF KEEPS IT FRESH, LOCAL AND INVENTIVE Written by Trystanne Cunningham Photographs by Paul Moane Photography
I remember Paul Cunningham visiting us in San Francisco and cooking up a storm in our tiny kitchen. One meal I distinctly have not forgotten was a delicious paella – fluffy yellow rice with flavors and aromas of saffron, sautéed bell peppers, peas, chicken, chorizo, prawns, seasoned with herbs, spices and pimentos for spiciness. page 102
Who was this “other Cunningham gentleman” I had never heard of? Although no relation to my husband’s (Cunningham) side of the family in their shared hometown of County Down Northern Ireland, over time, he has become a friend who happens to bear the same surname. During that trip, he often spoke about cooking, food, anything and everything culinary-related and always, always would say “Someday soon, I am going to have my own restaurant. It will have a tree in the center, and I will always sundry my tomatoes.”
Fast forward to 2014 – Chef Paul, was able to open his first restaurant. Brunel’s, a tiny space seating 48, nestled in Newcastle County Down. We dine there every chance we have during our frequent visits to my husband’s beautiful homeland. Our palates are never more aroused than when we indulge and savor a meal prepared by Chef Paul. Just a few months ago, Chef Paul opened a larger space with more visibility, more seating – 65 patrons – in the same town. The space the new Brunel’s occupies very strangely ties to Paul’s grandparents: his
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mother’s father, a nurse, used to care for a patient in the same space. He met Paul’s grandmother while living and working there. Chef Paul’s opinion of this very poetic synchronism is no coincidence. “I am meant to be here,” he says.
adorned plates.
Chef Paul’s love for food began at a young age. His paternal grandfather “Granda Paddy” preferred Paul to all of his cousins for hunting, foraging and helping around his green houses. Granda Paddy taught him everything: Notably absent from Brunel’s from picking honeysuckle is the “tree in to sand eels in “Various chefs the center,” and Dundrum Bay. he admits to Granda Paddy inspire me, not sun drying grew his own I’m into wild chefs crops and lived his own tomatoes – yet. with hard-hitting, off the land. His rekindled He could catch ballsy flavors." passion for fora fish with a aging infringes on his tomasnare, with undeniable great to-drying time. skills and knowledge. Chef Paul learned how to nurture Foraging is a form of acquirand care for the crops and ing food through hunting respect the land from Granda or gathering plant matPaddy. ter. Foraging in Ireland takes him to places with enchantHis paternal grandmother ing names like The Mourne was a baker who provided Mountains, Tullymore Forest, the family with endless soda Slievedonard and the bread – Paul’s favorite - a shoreline along the coast famous type of Irish bread: of Ireland. This is one of very buttery and crispy on Chef Paul’s favorite ways to the outside, an established discover unique flavors, new favorite with tourists and ideas for menus and decor locals alike. Although there for his exquisitely, artistically are many variations: wheat, page 103
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with raisins, with caraway seeds; Granny’s most memorable was ”treacle soda bread.” Paul’s wife, Jennifer, does the cooking at home, and indulges him in soda bread on occasion. A mother to their two children and an artist, she uses her love for pottery to create serving plates and platters for the restaurant. By the time he was 14, Paul realized he wanted to become a chef. He fell in love with cooking instantly. He attended Belfast Tech for two years and worked in various restaurants. He quickly learned hands-on experience was key. After working his page 104
way through, he found his partners who truly believed in him and began his journey as a restaurateur. Today he loves the buzz and thrives on the creativity even more. When it is time to create new menus Chef Paul does a lot of reading and gets most of his inspiration from foraging as the seasons change. In the kitchen, he describes himself as a wild chef. He is not a fan of dullness or predictability, he prefers to push boundaries and does not believe the word “guidelines” belongs in the art of cooking. His reputation for a foul mouth and temper precedes him. He’s been called every
name imaginable in the kitchen. "I’ve gotten better now. I shout less. I don’t win awards; our team wins awards." Recently he was awarded “Best Chef In Ireland.” While he was absolutely delighted, he feels the burn to push even harder. A Michelin star is not out of grasp for him. He is grateful for “the support of his staff, partners, family, friends and of course (his wife) Jennifer for holding down the fort at home” while he works long hours to fulfill his dream to create a lasting legacy.
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Shop the collection online at michelleelie.com and follow her on Instagram @michelle_elie
SOUL DEEP. CHAPTER ONE
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Written by Kemissa Racine Photos by Carlotta Manaigo and Felix von der Osen
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SOUL DEEP BY KEMISSA RACINE IS AN IDIOSYNCRATIC INTERVIEW SERIES THAT EXPLORES THE INNER WORKING OF INSPIRING CREATIVES AND CREATORS; FIRST AND FOREMOST, AS PEOPLE BUT ALSO VIA THEIR OPUS. SOUL DEEP SEEKS TO DISCOVER WHO THEY ARE, WHY THEIR BRAINS ARE WIRED IN A UNIQUE WAY, WHAT THEIR NARRATIVE IS AND HOW THEIR EXPERIENCE ON THIS EARTH DRIVES THEM EVERY DAY TO CHALLENGE THE STATUS QUO.
MICHELLE ELIE MEIRE THE AVANT-GARDE GODDESS
Mundé Ring from the Makak Collection
Makak Blan Ring from the Makak Collection
I do not know how many of you reading this believe in the balance between serendipity and kismet; you know… that sweet spot where fate ordains and faith prevails. Well, the day Michelle Elie-Meiré – Haitian-American woman, jewelry designer, influencer and probable indigo child – accepted to do this interview, the concept that fate plus faith creates magic had never been more veracious.
When I think of Michelle, the first words that come to mind are unapologetic and daring. From her breathtaking front-row-worthy and conversation-striking ensembles, to her way of guiding her craftsman into molding metals into succulent works of art featured in her jewelry collections: every single thing about Michelle is unique and courageous and I want to know why.
I have idolized this woman for years and now I finally get to pick her brain, I feel like a kid in a candy store; or more appropriately, like a goldsmith in a majestic goldmine.
Dearest eyeballs and minds perusing these words, kindly be forewarned: this is not a white picket fence, lollipops and rainbows interview. This will be a raw, thought inducing and revealing Q&A. Grab your metaphorical scuba gear, we
are going Soul Deep! It was early in the morning when Michelle and I spoke. She had a time window between preparing for a trip to Nigeria Fashion Week and sitting down with a graphic designer to finalize invitations for her Comme des Garçons collection showcase and discussion she is hosting in Köln during its upcoming Art Week. As she settled in choreographically for the interview, she opened up the pearly gates to her marvelous brain and it was as if I walked in to a grand library of knowledge adorned with floor to ceiling 50-foot shelving that went on as far as my third eye could see; I instantly felt page 109
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privileged to be speaking to her. She is of the likes of an ultra-modern Mary Poppins juggling conjugal and maternal life, influencing people and fashion, creating a legacy whilst being kind and down to earth. It was evident to me, that Michelle is living her best life which makes it ironic how she answered my first question. PL: So, Michelle, what’s your story? Introduce yourself. There’s never really a story, is there? It rewrites itself every day. Life evolves too quickly and reshapes itself every day. I can tell a story through my art and my work, but I can’t tell my life story. What I was yesterday is not what I am today. And what I’ll be tomorrow will not be the day after. So telling a specific story about myself will have meant that I stopped evolving which is never the case. By the time this article is published, I’ll be a completely different person. PL: People being unapologetically themselves comes with a price, do you always pay it?
PL: Tell us of a time when adversity introduced you to yourself? A childhood in Haïti with very old fashioned Haïtian rules was quite challenging. We had a good life but being raise traditionally and having to get married to be allowed to move out of the bird’s nest was not an option for me. So choosing to move away to pursue modeling introduced me to myself and to my future.
The birth of my first son also comes to mind. It was a huge transformation in my life. Before a woman becomes pregnant, her body is her own. Everything is about the self. And then suddenly, there is this creature growing in your body. You don’t know what it looks like, what its character will be. You are no longer first, you lose a certain sense of control. Then appears this baby and you realize that certain goals and priorities that seem relevant and important no longer hold any weight. My life was still incredible but in a very different way. PL: What was your Makak Collection inspired by? It was mainly inspired by Haitian and African culture. My husband gave me a great book depicting the carnival in Jacmel. Many of the “characters” you see in the Prim series spurred from traditional costumes seen at this carnival. Anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss’ travels and exploration of the native-Indian cultures did also influence the Prim collection. The gorilla rings, Makak Blan & Makak Noire and the phallic ring called Mundé are very important pieces. Makak symbolizes our evolution
Taureau Handbag designed with son Zec for E1027 Collection
Yes, and that price is very high. In a way, I pay it with my family, my husband and
my kids. But mostly, I pay it living here (in Germany) because that’s a challenge. It is not a very “self-abundant” society. It is rather reserved. And that has to do with its history. The past is always present. After the war, people weren’t keen on self-expression, on being evocative in the way they present themselves. And I am. So I find myself laughing at this all time and also having to dance to the beat of my own drums. Having Haitian blood running through my veins and having grown up in New York, Miami, Paris and now in Germany are advantages in that sense. I refuse to subdue myself and compromise the pursuit of my happiness to accommodate other people albeit I do not cross the line into being offensive.
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as humans. And Mundé symbolizes the simplicity, self-sufficiency and resourcefulness of ancient tribes people. Every piece of the animals they hunted was utilized. From the meat they ate, to the bones they wore as jewelry and the leather hides they protected their private parts with. That and more is referenced in Prim, a collection that is an ode to mankind. PL: What is your vision for the fashion world as a whole and what do you think is wrong with it? My wish is that we all take a very serious look at the effects of blind consumerism. We always want more. We are like rats in a cage chasing the latest bag and the latest sneaker. As a society we need to be aware of wear the products we use come from, who makes them, what conditions they are working under. But more than anything, the consumer is wrong. We should all educate ourselves, learn how to shop and realize the dangerous ripple effects of buying certain products on the environment and humanity itself. If we really cared where this fast fashion comes from, we wouldn’t support certain brands. This is why a label like Comme des Garçons is relevant to me and should be more relevant to everyone. It is conscious fashion. It is art. PL: If someone wrote a book about you, what do you think the title would be and what would the moral of the story boil down to? I’m actually now writing a book about myself and the working title is “Life Does Not Frighten Me”. It’s about not being afraid of the challenge that is life. Embracing the good and the bad. The one scary thing I can think of is the sun imploding. PL: Tell us about a mentor you had and the most beautiful lesson they taught you. My mother definitely takes that title. She would always say “Go out into the world, learn everything, do everything, accept every challenge; nothing is too small”. She had 12 siblings and her parents could not afford to send her to
school at some point. Her father said of all his kids, he was not worried about her learning on her own because she was clever. And she proved him right. She taught herself everything and was a brilliant woman. My husband is also a constant mentor of mine. He is involved in everything I do and constantly pushed my creative boundaries. When we met, many worlds I had been curious about opened up to me. He was the perfect person for me to meet and that blossoms more and more every day.
PL: What is the best advice you’ve received from your husband? Every time this man gives me any piece of advice, he is right. Even when I don’t share or accept his point of view, days, months or years later retrospect always proves him right. I learn every day from him. The man’s a genius! PL: Your son Zec has been creating graffiti inspired by really dope streetwear under the Punkzec. You’ve called him the Joan of Arc of Fashion’s Future Continued on page 130
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RUTH MASTENBROEK
SELECTING YOUR SIGNATURE SCENT Josh Jakobitz josh@htpolo.com
In an industry dominated by million-dollar conglomerates, marketing teams and instant shelf-recognizability, the perfume house of Ruth Mastenbroek in London basks in the olfactory glamour without the corporate restraints. “I can be as daring and creative as I want. I am not directed by the latest crazes. This allows me to create timeless pieces that are contemporary and distinctive,” says the brand’s namesake and renowned nose, Ruth Mastenbroek.
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“I recently created an amazing scent for a client that smells like soft diamonds.”
Creating up to 15 fragrances at a time, both for her own brand as well as consulting on other projects, such as the scented candles she did for Jo Malone (Jennifer Lopez is a fan… she ordered 300 of that particular candle), she offers pointers on selecting a signature scent. “The first thing to consider is when you intend to wear the fragrance; it is for a spe-
cial occasion, evening party or for everyday wear? Then the most important question to answer is what you are expressing when you wear the fragrance. A scent is part of your wardrobe; it expresses an aspect of your personality or conveys your state of mind. Do you want to make a statement by wearing something daring, or are your looking for something more subtle and understated?” Scents from Ruth’s formative years play an important role in her fragrance development. “My mother wore Youth Dew by Estée Lauder. Smelling this iconic perfume in-
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stantly transports me to age 7, in my parents’ bedroom, trying on Mother’s perfume. When I was 18, my favorite scent was Mitsouko by Guerlain – it is an almost perfect blend of natural oakmoss and a synthetic peach note. This perfume inspired me to create my signature fragrance in 2010,” she says.
“Go with your instinct and you can’t go too far wrong.” For her own perfume wardrobe, Ruth favors four of her fragrances. Firedance, the newest fragrance to her line, rejoices in big occasions and champagne moments, as well as the small contentment in life. “I’m wearing Firedance the most these days,” she says. “With sparkling rose, leather, and radiant amber notes, it is perfect for giving off a warming glow.” In her line of work, not all of the customized requests are glamorous: “Once I was asked to mix the smell of a gorilla’s armpit for a children’s scratch-nsniff book!”
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THE WORLD’S MOST EXPENSIVE SNEAKER Perfect for the polo crowd and the ultimate in luxury performance, the made-to-order APL Lusso Supreme in Black/Pure Gold is entirely handmade in Italy from Nile crocodile skin painted in 24K pure gold and supported by the famed Athletic Propulsion Labs Propelium® performance cushioned midsole-inspired by the shape of a feather.
As the “World’s Most Expensive Sneaker” it is truly the definitive expression of made-to-order luxury complimented by stunning detailing from subtle hand-stamped logos and waxed cotton laces. Each privileged owner also has the option to personalize their bespoke shoes with their name detailed on the inside of the shoe. APL co-founders Adam and Ryan
Goldston revealed that the APL Lusso Supreme “is the epitome of luxury performance. It’s been exciting to introduce something the world hasn’t seen before.” The shoes are available exclusively online, with a 12 week lead time, at www. AthleticPropulsionLabs.com. At $20,000 only 20 pairs are available worldwide. Truly where luxury and performance intersect.
TRULY WHERE LUXURY AND PERFORMANCE INTERSECT. page 116
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ZAG R EB, C ROAT I A // WWW.M U CCAM U CCA.COM
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THE PEARL OF THE CARIBBEAN
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Jennifer Lopez Selling Her Posh Penthouse in NYC for $27M
Multi-talented entertainer Jennifer Lopez is selling her fly New York City duplex apartment, according to the New York Times. This two-floor penthouse on the fifth and sixth floors is guaranteed to make you feel like a diva. Described as the “crown jewel of the Whitman Mansion,” according to the listing, the 6,500-square-foot spread has four bedrooms, six full and two half-bathrooms, and 3,000 square feet of outdoor space—the size of many single-family homes. The outdoor space spans four terraces and two floors, with views of Madison Square Park. Enter on the fifth floor through a private elevator landing. There’s a massive great room with a skylight, three French doors, and an outdoor terrace overlooking page 122
the park. There’s also a “spectacular” kitchen with breakfast bar and dining area. Completing the floor is a private bedroom wing with three en suite baths, a staff room with full bath, and a laundry room. Upstairs is a master suite with two bathrooms and two outdoor terraces. This floor also boasts a media room with en suite bathroom and another terrace. Outstanding architectural details include ceiling heights of up to 12 feet, wide-plank oak floors, marble slab bathrooms, and views galore. The sparkling terraces give the urban space a magical, serene quality, with such perks as festive lighting, a putting green, and lots of comfy couches. The Whitman, which was constructed in 1924, was converted in 2013 into
four condominiums. The boutique building, which includes Chelsea Clinton as one of its high-profile residents, has a full-time doorman, private storage, and key-locked elevators with private landings. Lopez bought the place in 2014 for $20,161,350, according to Variety. It’s unclear if “Jenny From the Block” is searching for another NYC block for a new home, or planning to permanently settle in SoCal. The “Shades of Blue” star seems to be focusing on her acting career, which might explain the real estate moves. She recently snapped up an estate in the exclusive Bel Air area of Los Angeles and finally unloaded her Hidden Hills home that had languished on the market since 2015.
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Welcome Home
GEMINI MANALAPAN FLORIDA OCEAN-TO-LAKE ESTATE IN PALM BEACH
Todd Peter +1-561-281-0031
Cristina Condon +1561-301-2211
Gemini, a 15-acre ocean-to-lake estate, stands alone in all of the Palm Beaches for its beauty, privacy, amenities and sheer scale. Offering a remarkable combination of 1,200± feet of dune-lined beach on the Atlantic with 1,300± feet of frontage on Lake Worth, Gemini is unrivaled among South Florida’s most significant waterfront properties. Perched atop a dune, with 360-degree views, it is page 124
Listing Price: $165,000,000
the only home on the ocean beach for almost a mile, yet just minutes from Worth Avenue. Like many estates in the area, the property is divided by South Ocean Boulevard, yet the road is essentially imperceptible thanks to a series of tunnels including one that is a furnished 15-foot-wide gallery. A true family compound, the estate offers a 12-bedroom main residence; two four-bedroom beach-side cottag-
es; the seven-bedroom Mango House; and a guest or staff house comprising four studios and apartments. In total there are more than 30 bedrooms, a series of formal and informal living and dining areas, a media room, libraries, offices, numerous terraces, an expansive wine cellar and two elevators. The centerpiece main residence offers 62,200± square feet with both ocean and lake views. Gemini
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offers an array of recreational amenities, including a swimming pool, PGA standard golf area, regulation tennis court, half basketball court, fitness center and spa. Pathways lead to the beach on the ocean as well as to a dock and pier on the lake for boating and water sports. The proximity of the Gulf Stream affords Gemini a singular micro-climate, with refreshing breezes and warmer waters, even when cooler weather prevails in Miami, 65 miles to the south. page 125
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Welcome Home
EATON SQUARE UNITED KINGDOM THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS ADDRESS IN LONDON
Shereen Malik +44 7525595520
A stunning contemporary house hidden behind a classic stucco fronted façade on one of London’s most prestigious addresses, Eaton Square. Internally arranged over several page 126
Listing Price: £30,000,000
floors, this property is a true family home comprised of five bedroom suites. With the ground and first floors dedicated entirely to entertaining, there is a large dining room, functional bar area, open plan
kitchen and a bright first floor formal reception room. The lower ground floors of the house comprises a state of the art cinema and separate staff accommodation with kitchen and living room.
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The property has been meticulously designed to an exacting standard with attention to detail and security in mind. There is a double garage accessed directly from the rear of the house, Crestron home automated system, and the house has the added benefit of a lift, gym and large terrace. Eaton Square has always been one of London’s most sought-after addresses, the jewel in the crown of Grosvenor’s Belgravia Estate. The King’s Road, Sloane Square, The Duke of York’s Square, Sloane Street, Knightsbridge and Victoria provide excellent nearby options for shopping, dining, entertainment, culture and both underground and overground transport. page 127
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SOUL DEEP WITH MICHELLE ELIE ON HER COLLABORATIONS WITH HER SON ZEC, HER COMME DES GARCONS REVEAL AND WHAT HER FUTURE HOLDS Continued from page 111
Generation. Can you enlighten us on why you think so and how you see him contributing to the world of fashion?
Elie's son Zec
He created his first piece when he was 14. I see him as a pioneer and someone with a very unique vision that fights for with a sword. He understands the difference between commercialism and vision. He is presenting a new collection at Nigeria Fashion Week called “Punkzec on a Budget”. Two of the pieces from your E.1027 Handbag Collection - Taureau and Cap Martin - look like Punkzec pieces, did you collaborate on them? How was that experience? Yes, I created the handbags and let him customize them with his art. E1027 is the name of a modernist villa designed by Irish architect Eileen Gray. She was one of the lesser recognized pioneers of the Modern Movement in architecpage 130
Eileen necklace from E1027 Collection
ture. E1027 was built by Gray and her third son and I was itching to get back partner Jean Badovici. After they split, into fashion. Mike wrote to Shala and Badovici would invite Charles-Edouard Chloe subsequently who invited me to Jeanneret better known as Le Corbusier join them for Milan Fashion Week. The - also considered a pioneer of modfunny thing is I had no tickets to the ern architecture - for stays at the villa shows so I snuck in to all the shows. The between 1938 and 1939. Legend has it next season I joined them again, still that Le Corbusier held some with no tickets. And by then "ALL I EVER WANT I was starting to get recogsort of existential grudge TO BE IS ME" against Gray and during nized and photographed. So his stays at the villa painted this rogue mission had to MICHELLE ELIE large murals that still exist stop. Shala and Chloe then today. These murals in my opinion were suggested I do something for the magathe catalyst of the “graffiti” movement zine which would allow me to officially though the term graffiti didn’t exist in request tickets and get invites. Since I the 30s. So when I design the E1027 col- had a passion for film, I started maklection, it was fitting to have Zec paint ing these videos for Garage based on on some of the bags as an homage to a the creative aspects of these shows and story that fascinates me. fused them with art. And that’s how I became an online editor for Garage and Speaking of fascinating things, you have regular attendee of Fashion Week. a Michelle Elie x Comme des Garçons reveal coming up. Can you tell us more Who is currently your favorite person in about that? the fashion world and why? I bought my first Comme des Garçons runway piece in 1994 and over the years, I have collected 35 pieces. I only call it a collection for lack of a better term. All of these pieces are important to me and have influenced my voice as a creator and my passion for fashion. The upcoming showcase is called Misfits will be shown at Pop68 during Köln Art week starting on April 16 and will run through May 16. How did you get into the fashion week/ couture circuit? My good friend Shala Monroque, creative director of Garage Magazine and Chloe Kerman, fashion editor also at Garage were closely working with Mike, my husband during the inception of the magazine. I had just had my
Besides Comme des Garçons, I really admire Viktor and Rolf because of their ability to create conceptual and avant-garde pieces. Their “NO” collection is to die for. Rodarte also deserve a mention. They make beautiful handcrafted fashion. Their knitwear is exquisite. What can we expect to see from you as a creator in the future? Even more punk. Even more rebellion. Even more kitsch. It’s the age of extra. And I’m going hardcore into fusing art and fashion. There is only one life to live, darling! What do you want to be when you grow up? All I ever want is to be me.
WITH NONSTOP SERVICE BETWEEN HAITI AND ORLANDO WWW.SUNRISEAIRWAYS.NET
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MOLD YOUR MIND
CHOICE
CONFIDENCE IS A
Joey Velez MA, MBA | joeyavelez@yahoo.com
“You have to be a legend in your own mind before you can be a legend in your own time.”
I saved this quote from a book I read last year. The author believes – as do I – that confidence and a belief in your own ability are essential to being great. Everyone can act positive and confident when things are going their way, when everything is going right, but what happens when things don’t go your way? When no matter what you do, you always end up on the wrong side of the equation? Having self-confidence at all times can carry you through the jungle of misfortune, safely to the other side. Confidence isn’t some crazy concept; yet it isn’t something you are born with, or can improve through medicine, but there are ways to enhance and build your confidence. One way is to look back on previous performances or accomplishments. Think of a time where you performed well, whether on the playing field, in the classroom, in the office. What happened? What was going on? What did this moment feel like? What emotions did you experience? What thoughts did you have? Confidence derives from positive emotions, feelings, and thoughts that we have throughout our day. If you answer those same questions about an instance when you performed poorly, you’re most likely going to compile a list of negative emotions, feelings, and thoughts. Therefore, the first step in building confidence is to think back on those previous performances or accomplishments and latch onto the positive emotions, feelings, and thoughts that were present. page 134
Another way to build confidence is through verbal persuasion. This can be accomplished through a coach, a teammate, or yourself, with the goal of receiving positive, motivational statements. There are times when we need to hear those special words from a third party, to get us psyched up or to instill belief in ourselves that we can do it, but it is also important to be able to build confidence without the assistance of others. Self-talk is a great way to build self-confidence. It is impossible to stop negative thoughts from appearing in our minds, but we have the ability to respond the way we want. During any type of performance, pressure situation, or when negative thoughts appear have several “power” statements at your disposal to assist you in those times of need. A power statement is one that is purposeful, one that is productive, and one that is possible. We don’t want our self-talk to limit ourselves, or to restrict how we perform. Therefore, making a power statement can give you the confidence necessary to increase your odds of success. A power statement can include a phrase to focus on the task in front of you, what you want to accomplish, or what your next move is. It can be a positive affirmation, such as “I can do this” or “I am ready for this.” It can be a statement to counter the thoughts you are having, such as in pressure situations, you can state “I’ve practiced these moves before, so I know I can do it now”. Alter your self-talk and watch your confidence climb to new levels.
This past Christmas, I obtained my motorcycle license. I registered for a safety course and a part of this course was a two-day training period riding the bike, when on the last day, there was a seven-step evaluation to receive your license. I felt pretty comfortable throughout the training period except for two exercises on the final day. Upon the completion of the final day of practice, we began the evaluation process, and of course, the first step included the two exercises I was not confident in. To make matters worse, out of the 12 riders, I was the first in line. Needless to say, I was incredibly nervous, thinking that “I do not want to fail” and “I hope I do not mess up.”
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Through the use of positive self-talk, I changed my tune and responded with “I can do this” and “I am going to give it my best shot and see what happens.” Although I was still nervous and did not go through the obstacles perfectly, I did enough to pass that step which gave me a huge boost in confidence the rest of the evaluation process because I knew I had passed my most difficult exercises. Nerves are normal and a part of every performance, but had I gone into those two exercises with any forms of doubt or worry, I am certain I would not have been able to pass that portion of the evaluation. Confidence is a choice. Responding to our thoughts is a choice. We have the ability and the right to think on purpose. When you need that extra boost of confidence in your next performance or your next presentation, replicate those positive experiences, incorporate power statements in your self-talk to give you the confidence that you need to step out of your comfort zone and into a realm of possibilities.
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M U S C L E
F I T N E S S page 137
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FUNCTIONAL TRAINING SOCCER PERFORMANCE IMPROVED WITH STRENGTH TRAINING PROGRAMS Mark Wine BA; CSCS; USAW; NASM PT, PES, CES
on-the-ball skill work, and much more.
squats, dead lifts and various other compound movements.
What makes the world’s game (soccer, Fútbol, Football) such a difficult sport to master? And why is American soccer behind Italy, Brazil, Germany, England and so many other countries? Although multiple factors play a role, the answer is fairly simple, it’s how these young players are trained.
A German case study correlated levels of strength, squat strength to be exact, and its relation to COD performance. Keep in mind in soccer COD is the most repeated skill in the sport.
Results demonstrated that the strength training group saw dramatic increases to their sprint speed and COD ability versus the control group that only did soccer training. As well, the training group significantly increased their strength levels, particularly in the lower body, thus decreasing their likelihood to suffer from injury. The strength was measured by back squat 1RM relative to body mass.
In many countries, young soccer athletes join soccer schools and clubs that have set curricula focused on developing them physically, technically, tactically and psychologically. These traits create a much quicker, stronger and smarter soccer player. So what do we do about our U15, U16, U17, etc… when they have missed this window of opportunity to develop them? We immediately involve them in a long-term athletic performance program that focuses on physical development coupled with technical training. The program should involve weightlifting, resistance training, dynamic agility, change of direction (COD) training, page 138
COD is a vital component in soccer – it allows soccer athletes to juke their opponents, recover the ball faster during transition and react quicker to the game. The German researchers studied a group of youth soccer players for two years as they underwent a specific strength training program. They compared the results to a group with no strength training and only soccer training, as well as professional adult soccer athletes. They tested strength levels using the following: Maximal front and back squats Short sprint speeds 10-30 meters COD ability The training program went through a month-long technique training phase followed by repeated two-month cycles of hypertrophy training, strength training and then maximal strength training. The exercises were front squats, back
The study was broken down into the age groups under-19, under-17 and under-15. The U19 soccer athletes who strength trained became faster than adult professional athletes over that same two-year period. As well, the strength group improved COD by as much as 10 percent compared to the soccer-only group. The final analysis showed that a two-year strength program dramatically increased the soccer athletes’ performance versus that of a soccer player without strength training. The strength group saw the following improvements: Increased maximal strength resulting in an enhancement of COD ability along with an ability to excel and complete other complex tasks Improved strength levels led to a decrease in the risk of being injured;
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Youth training should start as young as 6-7 years old with the focus on technique training. Moving efficiency is developed slowing and progressively, focusing on strength and speed.
a direct result of the high levels of dynamic and eccentric strength performed while squatting Short speed, agility and acceleration levels were drastically enhanced; a direct result of the concentric action performed during squats, dead lifts and other compound movements
The eccentric training performed during a squat also led to more efficient amortization phases (i.e. relies on an ability to decelerate) while sprinting, which dramatically enhanced sprint times The study concluded that youth training should start as young as 6-7 years old with the focus on technique training. As movement
efficiency is developed slowly and progressively, it focuses on strength and speed. Strength during these years creates smarter muscles by developing more nerve endings within the muscle thus becoming active when they are needed. We are teaching them how to use the correct muscles efficiently at a subconscious level. page 139
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PROUD SPONSOR OF THE HAITI POLO TEAM.
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