Full transcript: Dubai Real, Episode 2
0:00 Last week on Dubai Real, an opportunity landed on my desk. Not traditional real estate, but a luxury transformation. I met Chris, an operator in this little-known space.
0:16 I’m going to take you around and show you what luxury really is.
0:20 I see a real gap in the market here. Something that feels almost unbelievable.
0:25 Luxury is defined by scarcity. Something that’s not readily available.
0:30 In a deal like this, every second counts, leaving no time to hesitate. This is Dubai Real.
0:44 Wall Street, 1993. From the outside, it looked like business. Inside, it was a war. But we didn’t fire bullets, we fired information. Every battle is won before it’s ever fought. Every phone call carried consequence. Every meeting tested your edge. Every dinner was a negotiation for power. Money moved at the speed of fear. And that’s where I was forged.
1:16 People come and work at this firm for one reason: to become filthy rich. That’s it. We’re not here to make friends. We’re not saving the **** manatees here, guys. You want vacation time, go teach third grade public school.
1:27 That’s where I learned one unbreakable rule. Winners never follow the first emotion. Those are the most lethal.
1:35 I don’t throw darts at a board. I bet on sure things.
1:41 That discipline built the nervous system I needed to survive. In the last few years, I’ve deployed over 25 million dollars with surgical precision. And here’s the real secret. The signals that move markets rarely show up in the headlines. They travel quietly, through closed doors, private dinners, discreet handshakes.
2:08 So, I slow things down. I question, and question, and question again. Because if you want to understand who’s really buying, not the sales pitch, not the marketing brochure, you go to see the OGs.
2:34 There he is, Ben Banderi. How are you, sir?
2:36 Brian, how you doing? Oh, it’s good to see you, man. Good to see you.
2:38 I’ve got so many questions for you. You got 5 minutes for me?
2:41 Yeah, of course. Always 5 minutes for you, 10 minutes. Let’s do it, man. Let’s do it.
2:49 Ben, ever since your episode on London Real, all I can think about is Dubai property. And I’m here on the ground to deploy some capital. And I’m curious, where do you think I should look?
3:01 So, Europeans, everyone who’s looking at relocating and coming here, they walk in with their suitcases, they want full turnkey.
3:08 What does that actually feel like?
3:11 So, turnkey is basically where you’ll be able to move into your property with your suitcase. The house is ready, it’s fully furnished. It’s an emotional decision. They walk into the property, they see it, they fall in love with it, and you know, it’s their sanctuary, their place where they build memories together for a lifetime, or for the coming years.
3:32 How many people know about this?
3:34 We’re not advertising or doing any PR. It’s been very niche. We have a different investment opportunity, which no one is really offering. We look at data and analytical studies, and we pick the right investment, and then we invest in that property, we purchase it. We have a full-fledged team when it comes to contractors, interior designers, everything from A to Z. We remodel it, and then we put it back onto the market.
3:59 And it’s not something that we’re just trying out for the first time. It’s been tried and tested. We have had eight ongoing projects which we’ve delivered, and we’ve made good returns for investors as well, anywhere from 30 to 40%.
4:12 Which you’re not going to get…
4:14 I mean, and it’s a quick exit as well. And for the people who do want a quick exit and return within anywhere from 18 to 24 months, then this is for you.
4:25 Well, I’m going to go look at these properties. I’m going to learn more about this niche. Thank you for the opportunity.
4:29 Oh, it’s my pleasure. Let me know what you think of the properties.
4:32 I will, man. I will. To be continued. Thanks, Ben.
4:38 Ben sent me to Palm Jumeirah, to a street called Billionaires’ Row, one of the most exclusive addresses on Earth. But I wasn’t there for the luxury. I wanted to understand the buyer: who they were, why they were moving here, and what was motivating the purchase. Because that’s where the real signal lives, not in the properties, but in the psychology of the people buying them.
5:14 Now, this is my kind of place.
5:43 Damn. Now, this is the next level.
5:54 What does this thing go for? What’s it worth?
5:57 Just over 200 million dirhams.
5:58 200 million dirhams? So, it’s about 55 million dollars. This is the ultra luxury. This is next level.
6:08 There’s probably been like 30 houses ever built to this level.
6:10 Okay. Ever?
6:11 Ever.
6:12 And how many of them will be on the market at any one time?
6:16 If you’re lucky, there’ll be three at the same time. There’s demand, but no supply.
6:22 It’s crazy. What a problem to have, right?
6:25 Welcome to Dubai.
6:26 Okay, man. All right, show me, man. Show me.
6:33 You have all the furniture, either Minotti, Poliform, Promemoria. And then this kitchen is an example of a branded kitchen. So, this is all Poliform from Italy. All Gaggenau, which is sort of standard when you’re doing this level of kitchen. That’s an espresso machine, microwave, oven.
6:58 This is crazy next level, is what this is.
7:00 Yeah, that’s what we deliver. Crazy next level. The basement is a car gallery and a cinema room.
7:12 Air conditioning in the car showroom, because people who have Bugattis and Rolls-Royces and one-of-ones, the car needs to breathe, and it has a little air conditioning.
7:24 Also, you don’t want to go from a cool house to a hot garage.
7:27 All right. You want the garage to be nice as well. And this is just a dope lighting effect to make the whole place not feel like a garage.
7:33 Exactly. And it’s a showroom.
7:35 It is. Because you want to see your beautiful cars. It’s a gallery. That’s an ultra-luxury trend, the car gallery.
7:52 People measure a house by how old their olive tree is. And this one is almost a thousand years old.
7:58 A thousand-year-old olive tree.
7:58 To prove the age of it, it comes with a passport. It’s shipped in from Italy. I can go on about the details. It’s ridiculous.
8:21 And then you’ve got this detail coming across. And this is an Antonio Lupi bathtub. The architect is very sophisticated. He put this little slotting inside the facade, so from here you get the view of the lattice. That’s intentional.
8:42 Geez, that’s sweet. I’ve been around. I’ve been in nice places, I’ve been in nice hotels, but this is the next level.
8:53 Chris had arranged a meeting with someone very special, Kareem Garbi. In Dubai, everyone knows that name. He’s built a reputation anticipating what the ultra-wealthy want before they ever ask for it, curating experiences for the 1% of the 1%.
9:16 This is the level where the ultra-rich operate, where attention to detail isn’t optional. Because at that level, perfection isn’t expected, it’s required. Here, there is simply no margin for error.
9:37 I brought Brian.
9:38 Yes. Brian, how are you? Great to meet you, Brian.
9:39 Great to meet you too. How do you do? I’m doing good.
9:45 Don’t call this a house, dude. What do you call this? A mega mansion?
9:47 Not a mansion. It’s another level. It is heaven.
9:51 You know, when you come to Dubai, there’s a lot of hidden gems, right? Stuff that people don’t know about. So, that’s where Kareem comes in.
9:57 Fascinating. Most people don’t even know that this service exists, or that people would need this service.
10:02 Service is a great example, because if you buy a Toyota and you take it to a service, you know, there’s a type of service. When you buy a hypercar, there’s a different type of service. So, basically, the quickest example I can give you: when you’re checking into a hotel and you want to make a normal restaurant booking, you call the concierge at the hotel. We are exactly the same principle, but for mega mansions like this. When they call us, they don’t want to make the restaurant booking. They want the head chef from Nobu to come from Japan and cook for them at their house, in those types of kitchens. So, the demands are often not normal.
10:43 Sometimes art pieces that are valued at the same value as this house, which is over 200 million, they just want them to be shipped here for the day. And you just say yes and make it happen. We don’t judge. We just deliver.
10:55 Yeah, that’s exactly it.
11:00 If I’m someone who just bought this house and I come in, in the first 2 weeks, what are some of the requests that you might typically get?
11:08 First, they don’t want to drive a normal Ferrari. Usually, at this calibre, they would want a limited edition. Then after that comes the number plate. They won’t be driving a normal number plate. They will be number five; up to 99 will be good, 111.
11:29 And that’s what maybe the man wants. What does the woman want?
11:32 I can tell you the first thing is the Birkins. They want the collection of Birkins, because for that wardrobe there, you need about 50 Birkins to fill it up. To get one Birkin, it’s usually a waiting list of years. So, they call us and we’ll just make sure, before they move in, the entire wardrobe is full.
11:50 I thought you were going to say it was the kids’ school that was most important.
11:54 No, no, no. You are in Dubai, you know that.
12:02 You know, I was just down at Binghatti and they’ve got this brand new Mercedes complex, right? 11 buildings. They’ve got the Bugatti building. They just sold out this really expensive penthouse, and you’ve got all this other off-plan luxury. How is that buyer different, and that experience different, from something like this?
12:21 Can you not see the difference? You’re part of the complex, even if it’s the penthouse. You have no grounds. Here, you have a home. You have an institution. You have a legacy. That’s something you can keep. You can’t compare this to any penthouse, and I do personally love penthouses. But it’s for a certain calibre of people. This is old money. This is an institution. This is the legacy. These are the people you want to invite back to your home. This is a statement.
12:48 They had identified a very specific niche: ultra-high-net-worth individuals relocating permanently to Dubai. And they built something around that demand.
13:00 Everyone’s talking about the real estate boom and everything that’s being produced, but it’s all mass-produced commercial, which is the reason why we said, “Look, this is a huge niche in the market.”
13:10 Because this wasn’t a product just anyone could assemble. The calibre of luxury expertise required, well, it’s extremely rare in Dubai, or anywhere else for that matter.
13:19 Your home says everything about you. In Dubai, you need to stand out.
13:26 In Dubai, you have to stand out. I know a bunch of the crypto bros, and there’s a crypto billionaire I know who’s got a Bugatti. The other day he parked his Bugatti in the garage, and next to him there was a fleet of Bugattis. And he posted on Instagram, “In Dubai, there’s always someone with a bigger one.”
13:43 Yes. Yeah, that’s right.
13:49 My engineer’s mind started scanning for weaknesses, but there were very few cracks in the model. Because in Dubai, I had found something unusual: massive demand and very limited ultra-luxury supply.
14:06 Last question. You know, I live in London, I’ve lived in New York City and LA and places all over the world. How is Dubai different?
14:16 Without exaggerating, I think Dubai is the centre of the universe right now. It’s very simple. If you’re not in Dubai, there’s something wrong. Especially for the ultra-high-net-worth, if you don’t have your business here and you’re not spending at least half the year here…
14:31 Because this is where business is getting done.
14:33 This is where business is getting done, and this is the future. You put your money here, and boom, you invest, and 6 months later it’s increased by 35%. Where can you do that? New York used to be the Big Apple. The Big Apple is here right now. And let’s forget about London and LA. We find you a nice pad. We create a nice lifestyle for you. He finds you the nice villa, okay? And we’ll have you here with us.
14:54 That’s amazing. Thank you, Kareem. Appreciate it.
14:57 You have the style for someone that should be in Dubai.
15:01 Thank you. My pleasure. Good to see you, okay? To the next adventure. Thank you, man. Appreciate that. Appreciate it.
15:09 So, I understand things I never understood before, okay? And talking to someone like Kareem and seeing this place with you, I mean, man, I’m starting to think differently here. So, yeah, to be continued.
15:26 On Wall Street, we used to say, “A good deal is like a man or a woman. It’s either hot or it’s not. You don’t need a spreadsheet to tell you.” I had a good feeling about this opportunity, but I also had some major concerns. Unfortunately, time is running out. My investors wanted to deploy capital now. So, the pressure is on for me to deliver.
15:52 Next week on Dubai Real, I step inside Atlantis The Royal, one of the most iconic buildings in Dubai.
16:00 Look, I know we came to do business, but we need to take in this view, right?
16:05 The stakes are getting higher, but I keep pushing forward.
16:09 What I’ve found through 15 to 20 years of investing, it’s the structure that actually makes sure you get those incredible results for your investors.
16:19 And I begin breaking down the structure of the deal piece by piece, because if everything lines up, there is a lot of money to be made here.
