At the Genoa Boat Show in Italy this week, BMW Group DesignWorks, a subsidiary of the German automaker, will debut the new high-performance luxury sailing yacht it developed in partnership with bespoke Belgian boat builder Zeydon. The 60-ft. Zeydon Z60 (above) "combines the sailing potential of a performance offshore yacht with the substantial equipment range and unaffected elegance of a modern luxury cruiser."

Available for order this fall, the exterior of the Z60 "presents regatta-oriented functionality, outstanding seaworthiness and a generously designed deck area," while the interior features "an equipment range that is commonly associated with much larger yachts [and] high-grade materials and design with a focus on precision and perfect functionality right down to the smallest detail," the company says. As we reported recently, Porsche also has a new line of luxury yachts in the works.

Bad news for free-spending Russian billionaire and Luxist mascot Roman Abramovich: he lost a staggering $20 billion over the past few months as Russia's financial markets took a tumble. The figure was calculated "based on assets excluding property and cash," Bloomberg reports, and it means that Abramovich's net worth is now only $3.5 billion. He had previously been ranked as the 15th richest man in the world with a fortune of $23.5 billion.

Some other Russian oligarchs have fared pretty poorly as well. Russia's richest man - well, formerly anyway - Oleg Deripaska lost more than $16 billion, and Vladimir Lisin lost $22 billion. Overall, Russia's richest men have lost a combined total of $230 billion in five months, Bloomberg notes. No single man has suufered as much as Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, who lost $28 billion as we reported earlier this week. Still, Abramovich's loss is likely to affect him more as he so obviously enjoyed spending his immense wealth. So - anyone want to buy a $350 million megayacht?

On October 29, RM Auctions will present an amazing collection of classic sports cars, including several stunning multimillion dollar Ferraris, at their Automobiles of London event. The star of the sale is a highly-prized 1963 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California, estimated at $5 million - $6 million. Other hot-ticket Ferraris on the London block include a 1965 250 LM Berlinetta, est. $4.3 million - $4.8 million; a 1959 250 GT Tour de France Berlinetta, Est. $3 million - $3.8 million; and a gorgeous black 1968 275 GTB/4 Berlinetta (above), est. $1.3 million - $1.4 million. Also on offer is the ex-Park Lane 1997 McLaren F1, the last roadgoing F1 ever produced, est. $1.9 million - $2.4 million; and an ultra-rare 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante, est. $970,000 - $1.1 million. See the gallery for pix.

Sean Connery has become the latest iconic personality to star in Louis Vuitton's "core values" ad campaign. The original James Bond posed for Annie Liebovitz near his house in the Bahamas with a waterproof version of Vuitton's famous Keepall bag, WWD reports. The ad (above), which is slated to appear later this month is the latest in a series featuring the likes of Keith Richards, Francis Ford and Sofia Coppola (Vuitton's next guest designer) and Mikhail Gorbachev. Vuitton parent LVMH says the classics-oriented campaign has been getting good results.

Forbes has just released its annual ranking of the 100 most expensive zip codes in America, and what with fluctuating real estate markets some of the results may surprise you. Beverly Hills for example, the famous 90210, barely makes it into the top 10 nowadays with a median home price of $2.41 million, while Bel Air (90077) lags way back at No. 29 with a median price of $1.72 million. New York City doesn't rate an appearance at all until Tribeca zip 10013 clocks in at No. 14 with a median price of $2.2 million.

That famous province of the rich, Greenwich, Conn. (zip 06870 in Old Greenwich) is way down at No. 26 with a median price of $1.75 million. The most expensive zip code in the country? 33109, the tiny private enclave of Miami Beach known as Fisher Island (above), where sales prices rose by $525,000 over the last year and which has an unbeatable median price of $3.85 million. Listed below are the Top 10 zips. You can see a slideshow of the full list here.

1. Fisher Island, Fla., 33109, Miami-Dade County
Median sales price: $3.85 million

2. Alpine, N.J., 07620, Bergen County
Median sales price: $3.59 million

3. Mill Neck, N.Y., 11765, Nassau County
Median sales price: $3 million

4. Newport Coast, Calif., 92657, Orange County
Median sales price: $2.8 million

5. Water Mill, N.Y. 11976, Suffolk County
Median sales price: $2.72 million

6. Atherton, Calif., 94027, San Mateo County
Median home price: $2.7 million

7. Santa Barbara, Calif., 93108, Santa Barbara County
Median home price: $2.7 million

8. Wainscott, N.Y., 11975, Suffolk County
Median home price: $2.56 million

9. Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., 92067, San Diego County
Median home price: $2.47 million

10. Beverly Hills, Calif., 90210, Los Angeles County
Median home price: $2.41 million

Flamboyant Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld has bought a historic mansion on an island in Vermont's rustic Lake Champlain. Lagerfeld never visited the 1840 six-bedroom landmark in person, but made the purchase based solely on photographs. "I love it. It's very much Emily Dickinson," Lagerfeld told WWD backstage at the Chanel show in Paris. We suspect he may be referring to the poet's picturesque houses in Amherst, Mass.

Lagerfeld tells the paper the Lake Champlain landscape reminds him of Northern Europe, and says he's planning an elegant yet still fashionable New England-appropriate décor rather than his usual Sun King splendor. He did not reveal the property's price, but declared, "I'll start doing the Chanel campaigns there" - so he obviously plans to write it off as business expense.

Omega, the Official Timekeeper of the Olympic Games, is auctioning off a one-of-a-kind limited edition watch set in a bespoke black walnut trunk (above) that's expected to fetch up to $1.5 million. Known as the Unique No. 8 Collection and based on the Chinese concept of "lucky number 8", the rare and unique item is being offered at Sotheby's in Hong Kong today, with proceeds going to The Chinese Athletes Educational Foundation (CAEF).

The set is comprised of the eighth numbered piece of each of the 32 Limited Edition wristwatches in the Omega Beijing Olympic Collection, plus three Olympic Split Seconds Chronograph 1932 pocket watches, also numbered 008 in their limited editions of 100 pieces. The watches, including a set of split seconds open-faced chronographs in 18k yellow, white and red gold, are presented in a striking black walnut pagoda-style eight-drawer tower with intricate carving and a lacquered finish, paying homage to traditional Chinese architecture. Truly the ultimate Olympic collector's item.

All connoisseurs of beautiful design and objects, be they motorcycle enthusiasts or not, will appreciate The Art of BMW: 85 Years of Motorcycling Excellence, just out from Motorbooks. There over 100 of them in the stunning volume, as lovingly photographed as any assemblage of supermodels by Henry Von Wartenberg. Though the book covers the whole of the marque's illustrious history - all 85 years - author Peter Gantriis focuses on BMW's incredibly gorgeous pre-World War II models, many from the incomparable Peter Nettesheim Collection, such as the awesome R32 from 1925 (above). These are bikes of almost sculptural beauty - but don't take our word for it, see for yourself in the gallery.

At the Paris Motor Show, Maybach announced it was taking orders for its new open-topped Landaulet at $1.4 million a pop. The car, first floated as a concept at last year's Middle East International Auto Show, seems calculated to appeal to oil-rich sheikhs. In Paris the company displayed its one-off example in Gulf-friendly white with a two-tone Grand Nappa leather interior - black for the chauffeur's compartment and white for the passengers, reinforcing the fact that this car is made for those who do not have to drive themselves.

The hand-built to order Landaulet, ready for delivery later this fall, harkens back to the open-topped limousines that popes and kings used to be driven around in. It's based on the Maybach 62 S, billed as the world's most powerful series-produced luxury saloon. At $1.4 million, the Landaulet, Maybach's fifth model, is second only to the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport in terms of the world's most expensive production cars. No doubt they're hoping the economy improves so they can sell some of them.



[via Affluent Page]

A luxurious villa in St. Barth's has just been sold by the local affiliate of Sotheby's Int'l Realty for $39 million, setting a new record for the swank French West Indies resort. Villa La Grande Maison des Etoiles, situated in an exclusive gated mountaintop community, sets a new standard in luxury for the famed getaway. The seven-bedroom, seven-bath estate features panoramic views of the ocean, neighboring islands and incoming megayachts, as well as multiple in- and outdoor living and dining areas, several pools and lush gardens, all bordered by magnificent stone walls handcrafted from volcanic rock. There are Louis Vuitton and Hermes-themed guest suites with views as well. If you missed out on this elegant property, don't despair; the villa will be available for rent a few weeks out of the year for pre-qualified individuals, at a cost of $193,550 per week during peak season.

Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, 58, the richest man in Europe and the 4th richest man in the world, can now be known as the world's biggest loser after his net worth plummeted by a whopping $28 billion over the last four months due to the global financial crisis. Mittal, a London resident who paid a record $200 million for a Georgian mansion in Kensington Palace Gardens earlier this year, still has $17 billion left, the London Times reports. We don't yet know how Mittal's stunning loss - which equates to $240 million / day or nearly $10 million per hour - re-positions him on the world's rich list as several other plutocrats have also suffered reversals, but it's safe to say he'll end up much further down unless the stock market recovers soon.

Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich's new $355 million, 555-ft. Eclipse, designed to be the world's biggest, will have a military-grade missile defense system to keep the oligarch safe. My colleague Deidre Woollard first reported on initial plans for the Eclipse back in January. Now further details are emerging about the megayacht (rendering above), which when completed next summer will be 25 ft. longer than Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid's 530-ft. Platinum, currently ranked as the biggest yacht in the world. Secrecy surrounds the Eclipse, but sources tell the London Times that an antiballistic missile defense system is being installed by AST, a company with close ties to both the Blohm + Voss shipyard in Hamburg, where the yacht is being built, and the German defense ministry.

The Eclipse is also being equipped with armor plating surrounding the bridge and Abramovich's master suite, as well as bullet-proof windows. There's also a submarine that can be launched underwater and dive to a depth of 160 ft. that doubles as an escape pod, as well as two helicopter pads. Civilian ships are not allowed to carry weapons and so have to limit themselves to defense systems, but Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz gets around this by having his 482-ft. yacht registered as a Royal Saudi Navy vessel, said to be equipped with French-made Exocet missiles. Pirate attacks on luxury craft are on the rise of late. Abramovich owns three other megayachts already: the 377 ft. Pelorus, the 282 ft. Ecstasea and the 160 ft. Sussurro.

Alpina, the Geneva-based high precision sports watchmaker whose history dates back to 1883, has just introduced their very first underwater timepiece. The Alpina Extreme Diver 1000 Meters (above) employs similar technology and aesthetics as their line of mountain climbing watches such as the Avalanche Extreme Regulator, made for conquering the heights of the Swiss Alps. It's heritage however goes back much father.

From pocket watches, early wristwatches and timepieces commissioned for military use, Alpina, whose enthusiasts were known as "Alpinists," evolved its first sports watch, the steel Blockuhr, in 1933. This early model became the Alpina 4 in 1938. The "4" stood for the four major qualities of an Alpina sports watch: 1. Anti-magnetic, 2. Waterproof, 3. Anti-shock, and 4. Stainless steel. The sports watches were a tremendous success, and at its height in 1958 the company exhibited 1000 different models.

Bernard Arnault (right), the billionaire chairman of Louis Vuitton parent LVMH and France's richest man, plans to open a $140 million art museum in Paris within the next 2-3 years despite the grim economic forecast. "It's a way of showing that luxury, which often has an arrogant, elitist, egotistical image, can be generous," Arnault's arts advisor Jean-Paul Claverie tells Bloomberg.

Dubbed the Louis Vuitton Foundation and designed by Frank Gehry, the luxury goods kingpin has high hopes for the museum in Paris's Bois de Boulogne on the site of a former bowling alley, which will display LVMH's extensive art collection. "Mr. Arnault often says that as many people will visit the building as will go see the Eiffel tower,'' Claverie says.

British artist Marc Quinn's $2.7 million life-size solid gold statue of Kate Moss, which we told you about last month, just went on display to the public, and Quinn says the supermodel's thrilled. Said to be the world's largest gold statue made since the days of Ancient Egypt, the piece was unveiled at the British Museum in London and has drawn large crowds.

"When I showed Kate the statue, she told me she loved it," Quinn says of the piece, entitled Siren. "She modeled for me for a day or so - but she didn't pose for me like that." Noting that Siren is about "trying to live up to impossible dreams or immortality," something Moss apparently contends with on a daily basis, he says, "For Kate, she thinks it lifts her into a mythic level. I think she very much loved it because she appreciates the difference between her image and herself."