Chris Blackhurst is a former editor of The Independent, based in London
June 01, 2022
The first time I met the Candy brothers, Nick and Christian, was at their request. I’d written something they objected to and they wanted to put me, sorry, the record, straight.
I’d said that I couldn’t think of any major city in the world that would close a major road junction for a developer to complete a block of luxury flats. That’s what happened in the centre of Knightsbridge when their One Hyde Park project was being built. For months, Londoners had to endure traffic jams and delays trying to get across one of the busiest corners of the capital.
It was absurd and appeared to sum up London’s obsession with bling, putting the needs of potential jet-set purchasers of the apartments ahead of those of locals. For many, One Hyde Park, which was all steel and glass and not the most elegant of complexes, summed up all that was wrong with London at that time.
They chose an Italian restaurant near the building. In they walked, together, both wearing dark, sharp suits, white shirts, highly polished shoes. They were pleasant enough but there was an edge to their manner. What irked them they said was that part of the reason for the closure was so a new London Underground entrance and crossing could be installed, and this was down to Transport for London, not them. I got the impression they did not countenance criticism from any quarter. Still, fair enough, and I promised I would ensure that point was made. Nick told me how they were on good terms with my proprietor.
He was name-dropping and, perhaps, seeking to influence and impress. I realised in subsequent encounters it was par for the course where they were concerned. I’ve never met anyone who referenced the rich and famous as much as the Candy pair, especially the more gregarious, ebullient Nick.
One Hyde Park was developed by the CPC Group, owned by Nick Candy’s brother Christian Candy and Waternights, a private company owned by Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, the former prime minister of Qatar. Alamy
Compared with some in their industry, however, they were fresh and different. Sure, they were focused on the top end of the market, “super” or “uber” prime as it was known. They were not alone in that ― plenty of others were doing the same ― and they were making a success of it.
But, oh dear, cut the boasting. Their problem was that they did not know when to stop; they gushed hyperbole and extravagant claims. Always, they would litter the conversation with their celebrity, power contacts.
So when I saw in The Sunday Times that Nick was subjected to what in old Fleet Street would be described as a “right doing over” with the headline “Nick Candy: the toy town tycoon trying to play with the big boys” I could only smile.
A day later too came news that the Financial Times was renaming its How to Spend It magazine “HTSI”, which could mean “spend” or “save”, in a nod to the economic travails and people’s more straitened circumstances and that felt like a further kick in Nick’s gleaming white teeth. Suddenly, Nick Candy appeared to belong to a very different age.
What prompted the attack was criticism in the City that Nick had jumped the gun on a bid for THG, the beauty and digital shopping group. He’d issued a stock exchange statement saying he was considering taking over THG, which is worth £1.9 billion ($2.39bn).
If he was expecting warm applause in going for THG, which has tested investor patience these past few months amid allegations of poor governance, he did not get it. Quite the reverse. The reaction was one of scepticism, that here was Nick Candy, a property guy, pitching into another sector. And not in a small way, but right at the top with a mega-buy. Questions were raised also as to whether he really could raise this sort of money, as to how much of his own he would be putting in and who were his backers.
His bragging may be acceptable in property; indeed, estate agent swagger is an accepted part of the process. Elsewhere, it is not so well-received.
His track record away from gold and marble interiors had not been impressive. Plus, we’d been here before, and only very recently, with the declaration he was planning to purchase Chelsea Football Club from sanctions-hit Roman Abramovich. Candy maintained he had finance from South Korea, he had been supporting the football club since he was four and, true to form, he name-checked Chelsea legends John Terry and Frank Lampard as his friends. Despite that, his Blue Football Consortium fell at the first hurdle, failing to make the shortlist of bidders.
Again, in 2019, Nick’s Candy Ventures vehicle said it was contemplating going for the property company, Capital & Counties, then priced at £2.1bn. That was later followed by the news that Candy had withdrawn his interest.
He can’t help himself. His bragging may be acceptable in property; indeed, estate agent swagger is an accepted part of the process. Elsewhere, it is not so well received. That is especially the case in the arena of stock market listings. His words have the ability to affect other people’s investments and cash, and for that reason, rightly, it’s tightly regulated.
Nick would do well to keep his counsel, to remain tight lipped, to ensure he has all his ducks in a row in future before going public. Somehow, if he wants to be taken seriously in the City, Nick Candy has to learn the art of discretion. That may be beyond him, but he has no choice if he wants to play with the big boys.
Each player begins with one of the great empires of history, from Julius Caesar's Rome to Ramses of Egypt, spread over Europe and the Middle East.
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As unruled land and soldiers are acquired, players must feed them. When a player comes up against land held by another army, they can choose to battle for supremacy.
A dice-based battle system is used and players can get the edge on their enemy with by deploying a renowned hero on the battlefield.
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Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister. "We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know. “All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.” It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins. Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement. The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
Priority access to new homes from participating developers
Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
Flexible payment plans from developers
Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
