Ridicule is nothing to be scared of
The gloves are off! In one corner Giles Coren, columnist and restaurant critic for The Times. In the other, David Marks, co-founder of Brockton Capital.
“I was all about Adam and the Ants when I was 12,” wrote Coren in an article on the sad demise of bad taste in popular music last week. “When the Kings of the Wild Frontier seven-inch came out, I queued outside Our Price on Finchley Road to buy it in its beautiful red-tinted photo sleeve.
“But I didn’t like it. So I swapped it with my friend David Marks for a record I considered catchy, progressive and likely to stand the test of time: I Wanna Be a Winner by Brown Sauce (Noel Edmonds, Keith Chegwin and Maggie Philbin).
“David Marks is now one of London’s most successful property magnates. The man knows an effing deal when he sees it.”
Marks vehemently disputes Coren’s version of events.
“I wouldn’t have had a record that uncool to swap in the first place,” he insists. “At 10 years old I was already listening to James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, Gil Scott Heron, Led Zep and The Ramones.”
Diary thinks he doth protest too much…
Always a good investment
It is no secret that investment in property is a pretty safe bet. Save the odd recession-led blip, values consistently rise over time, but a recent transaction by Palmhurst Group demonstrates just how much. The family-owned investment and development company bought River House, Minories, EC3, in 1996 for £720,000 and sold it for £930,000, making a tidy 29.1% profit. Fast-forward 20 years and Palmhurst has bought the building once again, this time for £8.5m – a value more than 800% higher than it was the last time the company owned it. Where might that figure be when Palmhurst trades again?
Failing to make waves
Getting your MIPIM marketing right is never easy, but Diary hears that one law firm had a bit of a nightmare getting its bespoke business cards for the event sorted. The first proof was rejected for making the firm’s yacht look like a pirate ship, but then replaced with another of a yacht appearing to crash into the rocks. Said law firm has ended up with a “flimsy” product which partners confirmed is not up to standard to be dished out. Better luck next year.
Magic moments at MIPIM
You know that feeling of excitement and elation when you see a £10 note on the pavement? Diary may have found the MIPIM equivalent: an intact, fully operational charger cable found on the Croisette circa 10pm. Did Diary snaffle it? Of course we did. Did we feel a bit pathetic at the time? Absolutely. And when we were able to charge three devices at once this morning before hitting the Palais? Not one bit.
Forever young
Diary always does its research, particularly when preparing to meet the great and the good of global real estate. But we were momentarily flummoxed (and potentially impressed) this week when a quick background check on the chairman of Dubai developer Nakheel revealed his date of birth as 3 November 1918. That would make him a grand old age of 97. Diary suspects this was an error. If not, he certainly looks excellent for his age.
Meat and greet
At MIPIM you can wine, dine and schmooze until your credit card squeals but, as this photo demonstrates, it’s the wily French chefs in Cannes’ restaurants that have the power to make a grand entrance. Imagine the look on the face of one dinner host when waiters wheeled out these hulking boards of antipasti, each with a carefully-designed centrepiece. Cue conversations about the virile marketplace.
