When the ultra-affluent Qatar royal family bought the iconic London store Harrods from Egyptian-born businessman Mohamed al-Fayed in a deal reportedly worth around $2.3 billion, their magnanimity only increased. Less than a year after purchasing the luxury retail store in 2010, they raised the bar of opulence by partnering with London yacht brokerage Watkins to offer a range of superyachts to the store’s ultra-rich clientele. One could walk in to buy handbags but leave with something to carry them in instead!
It’s hardly an abysmal thought, as the people strutting inside wouldn’t bat an eyelid before splurging on an $11 million Ron Holland-designed Kestrel 106, built in Turkey, or a mightier $165 million, 295-foot Mars superyacht designed by the London-based H2 Yacht Design team.
The Mars superyacht was a product of the Italian shipyard Fincantieri. A six-decker, it could accommodate 14 guests in 7 cabins and could be commissioned at Harrods. If not a permanent luxury vessel, then luxe charters were made available for the sea-faring oligarchs who couldn’t get enough of these opulent ships.
‘There are a lot of potential charterers and purchasers who don’t want to travel to yacht shows and would rather meet with our expert team to discuss potential options without jargon or hard selling,’ Adrian McCourt, Watkins’ MD, told Superyacht News. ‘It’s like having Monaco at Harrods.’ The new regal owners were determined to upgrade the luxury store with plans that would even surprise the upmarket clientele of London.
‘What I can assure you is that Qatar Holding will do their best to upgrade this monument, to make it even greater and better for tourism and also for the British people,’ Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, chairman of Qatar Holding and the fifth owner of Harrods since its creation in 1840, told reporters.
The biggest shipyards, the most impressive megayachts made their way into a store that started by selling groceries from a single room. The store has sold everything under the roof from specialized tea tailor, bespoke baby furniture, eye tests, Warhol and Picasso paintings, and even superyachts! The rich never have to go anywhere else!
