Sunday,
February 18, 2007
The
ANNOTICO Report
Although
Americans are quick to spout :" You have only ONE
Chance to make a good impression" (and it's hard work to maintain), and
"Clothes MAKE the Man", Americans all walk around like
such "slobs".
No
I'm not referring merely to the Rednecks, the Hill
Therefore
I'm not surprised when Americans refer to the Italian "bella
figura" in a denigrating or vain manner. It
would not even surprise me if those same people thought that a once a week bath
showed too much attention to physicality.
This
article reports that Italians have the option of renting for a day, a week, a
month, instead of buying, the latest model automobiles, sleek yachts,
villas, helicopters, fine art and even designer jewels and custom watches.
But
this isn't News. They've been doing this in
Except
that they have even a MUCH better system
here. It's called buying it, using it for a very "Special Event", and
returning the item the next day, for full credit, like expensive evening gowns,
fur coats, expensive jewelry. :)
There
is an alternate system called buy it, claim a defect,
and refuse to pay for it, and eventually "negotiate" the price way
down.
A
special club allows the merely affluent to borrow expensive cars, yachts and
even art to present the bella figura.
By
Tracy Wilkinson, Times Staff Writer
February 18, 2007
He's in luck.
Raucci belongs to a new club in
Members such as Raucci can show up at each event in a
different car. Or they can throw a party with an impressive, albeit temporary,
collection of paintings on their walls. And soon they'll be able to snag
designer jewels and custom watches.
Although such clubs are growing in number elsewhere in Europe and the
This is not a case of the poor tryin g to look rich,
but of the rich trying to look richer. Most members of the so-called Circle
Club own multiple homes and can easily afford the club's hefty fee. But they
are not quite in that stratosphere of super-rich ? who really do own a car for every occasion ? and instead are merely affluent enough to move in circles
where the trappings of opulence are de rigueur.
On normal workdays in
"Sometimes you want to go to an elegant dinner, and you can't go in a
Lamborghini!" the goateed Raucci said over tea
in the lobby of
"The Ferrari 430 is for yourself," he
continued. "You don't even take your girlfriend in one of those, they're
so noisy."
These are choices that the average rich guy just doesn't have, not unless he
owns 20 cars. "And that's not my situation," Raucci
said.
This concept of bella figura
runs deep in Italian society. It might govern superficial appearance as well as
behavior, language and customs. As sociologist Franco Ferrarotti
once put it, the bella figura
is an Italian obsession that allows substance to be ignored for style. It is
the art of public performance.
And so the Circle Club taps into an ingrained national instinct.
The Circle Club was founded by Riccardo Schmid, a
commodities trader and businessman who lives in
Schmid, 49, said his aim is fixated less on
image-building and more on giving people luxury "without the hassles of
ownership." The enterprise distinguishes itself from run-of-the-mill
rental companies by offering only the creme de la creme, he said, and by offering the latest models before
anyone else.
For all but the richest of the rich, he said, it doesn't make sense to own a
hyper-powered car that is practical for driving only a few days a year. Plus,
with these temporary possessions, the user avoids maintenance, garaging and
depreciation, not to mention the huge outlay of money.
Other reasons to borrow instead of buy: insurance and
Such luxury "gives you pleasure, you can discuss it with friends, you can apprec iate it," Schmid said.
"We give access to people who wouldn't have the possibility." He
cites the example of a professor from
In its first year, the club has admitted about 150 members, most of them living
in
Schmid said the club probably appeals more to men
because of its emphasis on fast cars, in a country whose society is still very
patriarchal and where men are more often expected to display status.
Certainly, for members such as Raucci, sexy roadsters
are the star attraction. Italians, he said, love nice cars more than residents
of other countries where he has homes ?
"People who are successful want a nice car, and in
Schmid points to his stock with pride, especially the
new Ferrari 599 GTB, which he says usually requires a three-year wait to
purchase. Soon to be added to the inventory: an orange
Lamborghini.
"You get pleasure when you drive a Ferrari or a Lamborghini around," Schmid said. "You get to show off a little. And I
don't see anything wrong with that."
Raucci acknowledged the cachet that comes from
zipping along roads with the roar and the whiff emitted by mighty engines. But
it's not just bella figura,
he insisted.
"At the end, you discover you are not doing it to impress your friends,
but for the sensation you get. You become sophisticated."
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-bella18feb18,1,1113270.story?coll=la-headlines-world&ctrack=1&cset=true
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