In our past posts we examined how many big names with great incomes, went from riches to rag and died in poverty.
How many times you read of this and that superstar’s jewelry being sold in a public auction?
Or how many times you read on the papers about that NBA star ending in jail for whatever reason?
Unfortunately there’s a number of these examples.
If you want to know it all, the list is going to grow… indeed I would really like to reveal who’s the next basketballer who’s going to get broke. I really do but I hold it back.
Luckly, there are some music stars instead who are not just world famous singers, they also are great businessmen.
These are the people we should admire because they have been both successful in their art as well as in their business career, and in some cases they made their real money in this last one.
Today we talk about Sting.
According to the Sunday Times, Sting is one of the richest artist of England. Obviously everyone can imagine he made some serious money, however instead of wasting it in shenanigans like many of his colleagues, our man invested in many real estate properties.
His Real Estate list goes from NYC, London, Malibu and a number of properties in the countryside.
One of these properties is of particular importance because other than being really beautiful is also profitable (please allow me this personal judgement) and it supports his image of businessman.
You read it right. It’s profitable, it helps in supporting his image and staying there is a real pleasure.
How could this be possible?
Well that’s very simple.
Sting is a great businessman and he was able to exploit his real estate qualities and bring them out to their top.
Let’s start with his Tuscan property he and Trudie Styler own in Figline Valdarno about 45 minutes southeast of Firenze, a 300 hectares property (about 741 acres) in the world’s most exclusive countryside. The farm is called Il Palagio, (the ancient Tuscan word for Palace, a word used during the Renaissance age) which they bought from the Duke Simone Vincenzo Velluti Zati di San Clemente. Sting and Trudy they get it restored and even expanded the property with more acres (today is about 900) and they converted all the farming to Biodynamics.
At the Palagio, they produce and sell wine, Extra virgin Olive Oil and honey. Obviously their main production is wine. They hired top professionals for their business as their viticulturist is Alan York, while their Enologist is the world famous expert Paolo Caciorgna.
The property lies in one of the best areas of the Chianti. The property includes: farms, vineyards, historical buildings and from all the above listed elements combined we can conclude his food products are of the highest quality level. Indeed we know their wine and their organic olive oil are exported both in England and in the US and are sold in places like Harrods in London or Dean and Deluca in the US.
A second key element is the land. Tuscany’s land is absolutely unique, there’s no other place in the world like the Tuscan countryside and you can talk to whoever has been there he can tell you he immediately fell in love with it. Many of them bought a home there and for many is a permanent holyday destination. This made Tuscany a world’s famous tourist destination.
Of course there are other elements that made Tuscany famous abroad, Just consider the fact that the British Royals love Tuscany and when they want to spend some time there, they go visit their Tuscan peers, as still at today many land owners in the Chianti Regions are noble families who own their properties as part of their family old heritage.
However, if we talk about creating value, what’s really smart is to link excellent food products from a world famous land to a world famous music star who campaigned for environmental issues countless times.
What a better way to support the environment than apply biodynamic farming into your own land? Besides we know Trudie donates a percentage of all profits to the environmental causes she and Sting support, like the Soil Association, which promotes organic food and farming in the U.K., and the Rainforest Foundation, which the couple founded in 1989.
I really admire Sting for the way he managed to create his Tuscan business and how he did manage to communicate it.
Investing in Tuscany can be really an excellent investment other than a real pleasure.
At this point I wish you know you can follow this profitable wave of investing in Tuscany and if you are interested in it, you can write directly to myself at luigiemanuelefoscale@gmail.com
I will be happy to help you out with whatever question you might have regarding investing in Tuscany.
Luigi Foscale
Luigi Foscale