The Sunday Times Magazine – 7 May 2017

Rich List 2017

GET AWAY

FROM IT ALL

Trip to space,

£18m

THIS SPORTING LIFE

Top -level dressage horse,

£100,000

MIND AND BODY

The life coach Ruth Eira Jones,

£2,500 for 2½ hours

Personal trainer,

£2,500 a week for fi ve sessions

AT THE AIRPORT

Aerion AS2 supersonic

business jet, £90m

MONEY N

F

or billionaires,

acquiring bragging

rights used to be

simple. You bought

bigger, better and

bolder — cars, homes,

superyachts, jets,

your mistresses’

breasts. But in our new age of

austerity, the global game of

one-upmanship has changed.

Gaudy displays of wealth are

out. True status symbols are

objects your fellow 0.0001 per

centers do n’t know about yet,

even if they could aff ord them,

or experiences that are almost

impossible to access — except,

of course, for you.

“It’s about being in the

know ,” says Ben Elliot, of the

luxury concierge outfi t

Quintessentially. “What sets

you apart is dropping into

conversation that you’ve just

dined with the Dalai Lama’s

right-hand monk, your AC

pumps out purifi ed air from the

Swiss Alps, and your children

are being taught to code by

Mark Zuckerberg. ”

The way to win a bout of

high-stakes billionaire chit chat

— otherwise known as keeping

score — is to drop in a

limited-edition object or

under-the- radar experience,

but give the impression that

everyone (except your hapless

questioner) already has it or has

done it. You have confi rmed you

breathe a diff erent kind of air.

Here’s what to mention n

AT THE HOMES

Bang & Olufsen

Beo Lab 90 Ultimate

loudspeakers,

£57,295

Hand-painted Dolce &

Gabbana Smeg fridge,

£30,000

Campana brothers

x Fendi Armchair of

Thousand Eyes ,

£65,000

FOR HIM

Limited -edition Nike Mag

sneakers. Only 89 pairs

made. “ Adaptive fi t” means

they’re self-lacing, just like

in Back to the Future Part II,

from £ 50,000

Patek Philippe Nautilus

40th -anniversary

watch, 5711/1P model,

from £89,000

The game of global one-upmanship is

changing: it’s not just about what you have

— £ 2.5m Bugatti Chiron, anyone? — it’s

about being in the know, says John Arlidge

140 • thesundaytimes.co.uk/richlist