Monaco Classic Week – La Belle Classe has drawn to a close with the finest yachts being awarded by YCM President HSH Prince Albert II.
Photo: Yacht Club of Monaco
The much anticipated biennial vintage sailing and motorboat event saw Puritan, a 23-metre schooner built in 1930, taking home the Monaco Classic Week Trophy 2019 for being the most elegant and best restored yacht overall, clinching the top spot from the 2017 winner Voila
The Swedish sailboat Esterwas given the 2019 La Belle Classe Restoration Prize for its nearly unbelievable renewal after resting for 75 years at the bottom of the sea.
Other winners included Miss Nancy, who took home the award for most elegant motorboat, and the 1905 cutter Oriole nabbed the prize for most elegant sailboat. The Jury Favourite went to Mariella, a 1938 Bermudian yawl.
Considered the chicest event for classic sailing vessels, more than 100 participants gathered in the Principality for the week from 26 countries with more than 800 sailors in attendance.
Monaco to embark on massive waste collection on World CleanUp Day
Monaco will be mobilising efforts on both land and at sea for this year’s World CleanUp Day. It will be the first time that the Principality participates in the world-wide campaign and it has but one goal: to collect as much waste as possible.
Larvotto Beach Monaco
The Monaco City Council is backing the first edition of World CleanUp Day in the Principality, which is set to take place on Saturday 21st September. The event is being promoted by Decathlon Monaco, while the Monaco Government will be participating through its Energy Transition mission. The campaign has attracted a lot of enthusiasm from a number of environmental groups in the Principality who are actively collaborating in the preparation of the day, including Stand up for the Planet, the Monegasque Sanitation Society and Eco Angel.
World Cleanup Day aims to mobilise, raise awareness and rally people around the problem of waste that invade the land, rivers and oceans. According to the National Council, these are issues that Marjorie Crovetto Harroch, Counsellor of Environment and Sustainable Development, holds dear.
The first edition of World CleanUp Day in Monaco will echo a global initiative that was launched in 2009 and which last year brought together 18 million participants in 157 countries for the largest waste collection day in human history. It was an epic 36-hour green wave of cleanups across the globe, beginning in New Zealand and travelling around the world before ending in Hawaii.
In Monaco and the bordering towns of Cap d’Ail and La Turbie, a number of activities will be staged this year on land and at sea, combining sport with protecting the planet. On the program are walking, running, hiking, stand-up paddle and solar boat. The goal: to collect as much waste as possible.
At the end of the morning, all participants will meet at 11.45am in the Larvotto district, at La Rose des Vents, where the collected waste will be weighed. There will also be a “zero waste” aperitif offered by the Monaco City Council, which has been committed to the fight against food waste for a number of years now. Also on the menu will be fruit juices made with unsold fruit from La Condamine Market and culinary delights by Chef Julien Baldacchino made from products close to the date of consumption from the Municipal Restaurant.
The Young Economic Chamber of Monaco (JCEM) is holding a breakfast conference at the Café de Paris on Thursday 26th September to talk about technology and digital age advancements in the Principality and the impact they will have.
This is the third meeting of its kind being held by the JCEM and is a forum for these young entrepreneurs to meet and discuss the issues and opportunities they face as businesspeople with other leaders in the community.
The JCEM has designated, as honoured guest for the conference, Frédéric Genta, the Inter-ministerial Delegate for Monaco’s Digital Transformation. The event will be an excellent chance to discuss the latest topic on everyone’s mind: the program introduced by HSH Prince Albert II last May, Extended Monaco.
The aim of Extended Monaco is to attract business through the development and embrace of new technological advances such as a “sovereign cloud”, fibre optic networks and the utilisation of 5G, which was introduced this summer.
Additionally, the Principality intends to become a world leader in the environmental Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) game and is funding its first ICO to aid in the production of a new documentary by Luc Jacquet, who directed the Oscar-winning March of the Penguins.
All these matters would be of great interest to Monaco’s young entrepreneurs and this breakfast will allow them the possibility to learn and discover what the impact of these new technologies will mean to them and their futures.
Interview: Alberto Vitale on creating coral jewellery and a legacy of sustainability
At first sight, Vitale 1913 appears to embolden everything that Felice Vitale had envisioned when he first set up his jewellery workshop in Valenza, Italy, more than a century ago.
A perfectly crisp-white salon features plush blue accents and a view towards Monte Carlo Square. Around a majestic dining table are a handful of small display cabinets, glistening with bespoke pieces of refinement.
But on a table beside the lush white sofa, where I would expect to see copies of Tatler, Elite Traveleror Vitale 1913’s latest jewellery collection catalogue, I see magazines about the Ocean, information about the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, and pamphlets on sustainability.
Upon closer inspection of the jewellery I see a ring that resembles the majestic dance of the waves, ear rings that float like swaying sea grass, and the brilliant colours of coral.
And it becomes clear that Alberto has his own vision for Vitale 1913: one that not only focuses on creating magnificent jewellery, but a company that is also committed to helping save the planet.
Monaco Life: You are a fourth-generation jeweller, tell us how you came to take over the family business?
Alberto Vitale: When I was younger, I was working in Monaco for private banking and I learned a different mentality than my family before me. When my father died in 2008, I decided to move the company to Monaco and I started to offer diamonds as an investment. I was mixing my family history of jewellery manufacturing and my expertise in finance, and began offering structured proposals and personalised solutions, for everyone from a father wanting to buy diamonds for his daughters to a professional investor wishing to spend a million euros.
Four years ago, I decided to return to jewellery manufacturing but only to create unique pieces. We do only bespoke pieces handmade in Italy, because I think that every woman is different and they should have a unique piece of jewellery. I am not a fan of big brands who propose the same things to everybody.
When did you start to look at the world differently?
I think that in life we have to believe in something. I have my faith, but I also have my values, and through my collection I am trying to send a message. It began a few years ago after I watched a documentary at the Yacht Club of Monaco called ‘Plastic Ocean’. It was incredible.
There were 200 people in that room and at the end of the film no one was able to talk. We were all shocked and I remember I thinking: “Ok, now I want to use all of my personal stone collection, my diamonds, to create a jewellery collection that is inspired by someone who does something for the Ocean.”
So, I did my research and I discovered that the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation is doing a great job. I met them and after one month I had already produced a ring that I offered to the foundation which they auctioned at the first ever Monte Carlo Gala for the Ocean, attended by Leonardo DiCaprio. They sold the ring for €200,000; it was my first gift to the foundation.
After that, we started creating these unique pieces, inspired by the sea.
Why did you decide to use coral in your creations?
I discovered coral during my research and I asked myself how I could use this in the collection without damaging the ocean. By that point I had learned that coral is very important for the sea and if the coral dies, around 500,000 species will die also.
Eventually, I found a company in the south of Italy which offers coral that has broken naturally. Of course, it is difficult and expensive to get because it is up to 80 metres below the surface. But I only buy that coral, and it is a beautiful colour.
What are you aiming to achieve with your coral collection, beyond its uniqueness and beauty?
Through my collection I try to send a message. Look around this office. You don’t see any magazines about jewellery, you only see magazines about saving the ocean. I meet a lot of investors and important people in my line of work, and I give them all the information I can on the ocean.
I am also working with Vincenzo Liverino, President of the Coral Commission, at the CIBJ, World Jewellery Confederation, to create a new practice to use only ‘ethical and responsible coral’ for jewellery to help preserve our endangered coral reef barriers and not contribute to further damage. We hope that all jewellery companies in the world will follow these protocols.
We also have a collaboration with the Scientific Centre of Monaco, which is the worldwide leader in coral research. We organised the presentation of our collection in the centre itself, so I could explain to my clients what the Scientific Centre is doing and the current state of the Ocean.
I am also hosting a dinner highlighting the significance of coral reefs at the Monaco Yacht Club on 23rd October, in partnership with the Scientific Centre of Monaco. During the event, Vitale 1913 will present a small fashion show to highlight the beauty of coral in jewellery.
So, I use my jewellery collection as an excuse to talk about environmental issues with my clients.
‘Bague Corail Beauty’ from Vitale 1913’s showcase of coral in jewellery. It is crafted from a combination of diamonds and coral
And how are people responding?
I have noticed that over the past two years, around 80% of people are now aware of the problem. But they don’t know what they can do. The younger generation are very motivated though.
I am also a teacher at the University of Monaco and this year I asked my students which kind of work they wanted to develop. Three out of five groups decided to do something connected to ethics. So, for example, one was about coral and another was about synthetic diamonds. Young people today know we have problems and they want to solve them.
And as Prince Albert has told me on more than one occasion, the next generation will be the generation that saves the world and solves the problem, otherwise it will be the last generation.
Some people feel so overwhelmed and think that the problem is so much bigger than one person…
But we all have to do what we can do. In Monaco I have been using an electric bike for five years, I brought a hybrid car, and 90% of my Facebook content is about saving the planet. I make jewellery so I use my work to send this message.
Also, when someone buys a piece from my collection, they receive a letter of thanks from the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation because I am donating an important part of my margin of every piece sold to the foundation.What I give is not just money, it is an exchange: I am helping to create a connection between my clients, my stakeholders, the foundation and the Prince himself, The Scientific Center of Monaco, and the Yacht Club of Monaco. I think we are creating a worldwide family of responsible people.
To me, a company is a family, a community, and together we can all make a difference.
A new report has placed AS Monaco as the top earner of all European football clubs in the transfer business, raking in an impressive €1 billion since 2010.
The latest CIES financial analysisof the transfer market in the big-5 European leagues shows a sharp contrast between the Monegasque club and the likes of Manchester City, Paris St-Germain and Manchester United, who have all recorded the most negative net balances for transfers over the past decade.
This summer’s transfer window, a three-month period in which teams can sign players, closed for most big European leagues the first week of September. By that stage, data shows that Monaco had received €394 million in transfer indemnities for squad members and had reinvested €105 million in new signings.
Previously, the sale of Fabinho to Liverpool for €50 million, Benjamin Mendy to Manchester City for €57.5 million, Thomas Lemar to Athlético Madrid for a fee of €72 million and the record-breaking amount of €180 million that PSG paid for Kylian Mbappé, have all contributed to a €1.02 billion sales portfolio that Monaco have accumulated since 2010.
In turn, ASM have invested €860 million in transfer fees, demonstrating its incredible financial clout.
Among the 10 clubs with the most positive balance are three teams from Italy (Sampdoria, Lazio and Fiorentina), two from England (Swansea and Arsenal), two from France (Monaco and Lyon), two from Germany (Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen), as well as one from Spain (Real Madrid).
Meanwhile, Paris St-Germain invested €418 million to recruit new players, while it only received €75 million in transfer fees for players under contract.
When it comes to net balances for transfers, AS Monaco ranks another impressive second behind LOSC Lille with +215 million euros.
Overall, the amounts at stake on the football players’ transfer market have strongly increased over the past decade. At big-5 league level, the investments in transfer indemnities have grown from €1.5 billion in 2010 to a new record of €6.6 billion in 2019, representing an increase of 340%.
Monaco’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Isabelle Picco and Nicaraguan Permanent UN Representative Jaime Hermida have signed joint agreements declaring a new bond between the two states.
Though they may seem unlikely friends at first glance, the two nations are both highly committed to environmental issues. To this effect, both are active in the fight against climate change and have money where their mouths are to achieve this end. Like Monaco, Nicaragua is taking huge steps to protect the planet by switching to renewable energy sources where possible. In fact, more than half of Nicaragua’s electricity supply is furnished by use of solar or wind power through a set of collaborations between the government and private energy companies.
The Central American country is one of the largest in its region and has been a member of the UN since its inception in 1945. Monaco joined more recently, in 1993, and has become an active participant ever since.
Last week, Monaco and Nicaragua signed a joint communiqué in an effort to open the doors to a future relationship.
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