Still doing your holiday shopping? Or maybe looking to ring out the old year with some new bling?
Sometimes even billionaires need help finding pricey, novelty toys. When a Saudi prince needs a Hermès helicopter or some bespoke luggage made from spaceship materials, he calls Benedict Wormald, concierge to the uber-rich. Wormald is a “procurement specialist” for ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI) - the top 1% of the world’s richest 1%! Part broker, part designer, part concierge, the principal of London-based Benedict and Company can procure anything for anyone, anytime, anywhere - if the price is right.
“Many members of Middle Eastern royal families actually sit and look at our Instagram every day for about 10 minutes after dinner,” he told Vocativ. Royals shop on Instagram?
"Just last night, I had a query on a $475,000 Patek to the Middle East, one of only five ever made and just released," he says. He handles many requests for children, too, such as children’s mini-cars that are one-third scale and achieve speeds up to 80 miles an hour. Some of his Middle East clients have tracks with a fleet of mini-cars for fully grown men to race!
Middle East consumers have the highest per capita spending on luxury goods in the world according to a report by global management firm Bain & Company. The Saudi royal family holds tens of trillions of dollars of wealth, and their appetite for lux products is legendary. But it's Dubai that's the biggest regional market, accounting for nearly 30% of total market share (the Emirati royal family is estimated to hold a paltry $150 billion).
Bain says the average per capita bling budget for the Middle East is about $1,900 per year - but you know not all of us are indulging! Pretend for a moment you were, which of these fab toys would you go for?
