What to Buy for Someone Who Has Everything?

So Labor Day is behind us and all hell is about to break loose! The Fall Social Season is already winding up, there's football parties to plan, and then of course the endless crush of holidays headed our way. The stores are already full of Halloween crap. But the big enchilada is Christmas, right?

In the world of the super rich it's never too early to start thinking about gifts, and the perennial question of "What to buy for someone who has everything?" raises its ugly head. In fact if you Google those very words you'll find about 68 million responses - everything from Forbes Magazine to Martha Stewart. So I thought I might jump in and add my two cents.

As for my ancient employer's multiple girlfriends, I'm still in touch with the former wife's Personal Shopper and will just turn this task over to her and be done with it. Honestly I can't imagine what to buy for any of these women. (Although a sterling-silver Medical ID bracelet comes to mind.)

But what if you want to buy something special for your best friend? In that respect I'd recommend a nice Richard Mille watch. So what if you have to spend $500,000 to $1 million, this gift separates the men from the boys - and it's your best friend, right? Here's a fun article on why the
Richard Mille Watch is so impressive and important to the super rich. And here's a look at the Top Eleven Mille watches - ranging from cheapskate to best buddy!

Now getting back down to earth, you don't have to spend one or two mil on each and every friend, do you? There's plenty of unique things out there at a reasonable price. Personally I always recommend booze as an easy way out for those who don't need anything else in this material world.

For example, you could give a respectable bottle of cognac for as little as $5,000 and up to $100,000, depending on how much you like the person. Here's a link to some notable and most excellent choices. (By the way, it was the poison cognac found in this house that provoked my alarm and book over the horrifying investigation!)

But to continue, thanks to our friend Josef Frieze at Von Urbanovsky - who has an excellent line of unique items for the rich - we've been introduced to a distinctive and rare bourbon from an intriguing company called Arome Spirits.

This would be a gift for a comfortable old friend who can't be impressed with money, only quality. Arome has a finely aged 28-year-old sipping rum (heartily reviewed by Robb Report) which you can pick up for around $650 a bottle - and perhaps share with your friend on a cold winter night beside the fireplace.

Aside from all that, you could always resort to frivolous gifts and gadgets from Hammacher Schlemmer, offering "Unique and Unexpected Gifts for 169 years". It's not about money here, only knowing your friends well enough to know what would tickle them. After all, the rich and super rich get tired of the battle to impress and upstage each other.

I hope this has been helpful in your gift planning this year. It's always such a nightmare and so damned tricky in the world of the rich.

Thanks for dropping in this evening,
Andrew