So tiresome slumming it in Davos
27th January 2008
DAVOS is all very well - power, powder and cocktails - but, frankly, the glamour can wear off when you’re wedged between 2,500 business people, politicians, artists, plus 10,000 staff and hangers-on.
Squeezing into the Swiss resort’s hotels may have been fine for global leaders, but it certainly wasn’t a prospect that one oligarch was willing to entertain.
Oleg Deripaska actually bought a house in Davos to accommodate him in the style to which, as Russia’s second-richest man, he has grown accustomed.
The so-called King of Aluminium, who owns Rusal and is worth £6.8 billion, according to the Sunday Times Rich List, snapped up one of the oldest and most expensive houses in the resort, with beautiful views over the hills.
The chalet, called House Rutiegg, is in addition to Deripaska’s other properties in nearby Klosters that were deemed unsuitable for the week being an hour’s drive away.
But Deripaska, who’s London pied-à-terre cost a cool £25m four years ago, wasn’t selfish about his comfort and threw a big bash on Thursday night.
Guests who admired his wood-pannelled rooms and sumptuous views included Lord Levene, chairman of Lloyd’s of London, Peter Munk, chairman of Canada’s Barrick Gold, Mervyn Davies, chairman of Standard Chartered, and Jitesh Gadhia of ABN Amro.
But it was not the only show in town. On Thursday night Arcelor’s Lakshmi Mittal hired Jamie Cullum, the jazz musician, to play at the Belvedere Hotel and on Friday night the same hotel hosted a dinner for the 40 most powerful businesswomen in the world. Singer Annie Lennox and Queen Rania of Jordan both flew in for the night while actress Emma Thompson was there as a panellist on the young leaders of tomorrow discussion.
On Friday night Bill Gates and Bono jointly held their own party to celebrate the launch of their new business venture.
Politicans were out in force, including Gordon Brown and David Cameron. And JP Morgan’s new employee, Tony Blair, worked the room at the bank’s event to earn his reported £500,000 a year.
