The ultimate Easter Treat for Chocolate Lovers - A Luxury Easter Break in Bordeaux

Still looking for a luxury hotel break for Easter? Although the Belgians and the Swiss are traditionally feted for their chocolate, the French know a thing or two about high quality chocolat.

Chocolate heaven: The Grand Hotel de Bordeaux

  The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa is celebrating the 2012 Bordeaux en primeur week (from 2nd to 6th April) and Easter 2012 (from 6th to 9th April) with a chocolate partnership with La Maison Cadiot Badie. La Maison Cadiot Badie is Bordeaux’s original, traditional chocolatier, located in the city centre, which first opened its doors in 1826.

  A 1.10 metre handcrafted Easter Egg will be decorating L’Orangerie winter garden restaurant, between 31 March and 11 April 2012. Taking inspiration from the hotel’s setting in the heart of the world’s largest area of fine wine vineyards, this Easter Egg centrepiece will take 15 hours of hand craftsmanship to masterfully create, and will be beautifully adorned with finely-cut chocolate vine leaves carved underneath its dome, adding a layer of elegance and mystery. Guests of The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa will also be invited to enjoy a delicious hot chocolate in the exclusivity of L’Orangerie, created using an ancestral recipe of La Maison Cadiot Badie from the nineteenth century.

  The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa’s Easter package is valid between 1 and 30 April 2012, and starts from €280 including:

• Daily buffet breakfast in La Brasserie L’Europe restaurant
• Maison Cadiot Badie chocolate surprise
• Access to Les Bains de Léa, NUXE spa
• Complimentary room upgrade from superior category

  La Maison Cadiot Badie carefully select the finest cocoa beans from across the world; Asia, Africa and Central America. With varying flavours and tastes, each bean is carefully chosen according to the product. Revered for its magnificent style, Michelin-star gastronomy, impressive 18^th century architecture and exceptional service The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa offers an unparalleled level luxury and elegance in the city.

  Located in France’s South-West region, The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa, overseen by Yan Vacher, is situated in the centre of the city, in La Place de La Comédie square overlooking Le Grand Théâtre. The hotel offers its local and international clientele a gastronomic experience in the Michelin-starred ‘Le Pressoir d’Argent’ fine-dining restaurant headed by Pascal Nibaudeau; the ‘Brasserie L’Europe’ restaurant with outdoor terrace; and ‘L’Orangerie’, a buzzing space in the heart of the hotel.

  Les Bains de Léa spa, offers treatments by acclaimed French beauty brand NUXE. Bathed with natural light throughout, the spa leads out onto a terrace, offering exceptional views across the rooftops of Bordeaux. Originally designed by Victor Louis in the 18^th century, The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa re-opened at the end of 2007, after a full redesign overseen by internationally acclaimed interior designer Jacques Garcia. Bordeaux’s Palace hotel, The Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa, boasts an unparalleled level of luxury and elegance in the city, steeped in cultural heritage.

www.ghbordeaux.com/uk/index.php

Spencer Hart awarded Men’s Luxury Brand of The Year, 2012

Menswear tailor, Spencer Hart is delighted to receive Luxury Briefing’s, Men’s Luxury Brand of the Year Award, 2012.  The award was presented at a glamorous ceremony last night for 350 people at the Corinthia Hotel, London. 

Suit-able winner
Nick Hart left receives his award from Joe Doyle of HR Owen

  Nick Hart, founder of Spencer Hart collected the award from Joe Doyle of award sponsors HR Owen. “It’s a real honour to be considered alongside such well-established, international brands. Spencer Hart is still a very young brand and I’m proud of the tremendous success that we’ve had so far,” said Hart.  “There’s still much more to come.”

  Over the past year, the brand has seen remarkable success having moved their headquarters from Savile Row and opening a new flagship store on Brook Street. This success has not only been limited to the UK shores but includes a significant amount of activity in the US. For the Oscars and the Golden Globes, the brand relocated to the Chateau Marmont in LA to dress a number of major Hollywood stars.

  Following the relocation to the Chateau Marmont in the weeks leading up to the awards, P Diddy wore a Spencer Hart to collect his Oscar for Best Documentary. Other stars in Spencer Hart at Oscar parties included Benedict Cumberbatch, Maroon 5's Adam Levine, Ioan Gruffudd and JCChasez.

  Other celebrities to be dressed by Spencer Hart in the Chateau Marmont included John Legend, William Dafoe, James Purefoy and Owaine Yeoman, as well as Kate Bosworth, who was fitted with a fully tailored women's suit. Brad Pitt also picked out asuit and items from the brand's 'Palm Spring's’ casual line.

  The ‘Palm Springs’ collection is a recently launched casual line – a first for Spencer Hart. The collection includes everything from fragrance to underwear.

Design in Motion - John Lobb and Aston Martin Joint Collection

Luxury collaborations continue apace with luxury cars particularly active – and taking pole position is Aston Martin. The classic British car marque’s latest partner is elegant shoe brand John Lobb.

Put your foot down: the John Lobb's
Winner Sport co-created by Aston Martin 

  The Winner Sport is described as the ultimate lightweight driver’s shoe. Co-designed by Aston Martin’s Director of Design Marek Reichman and John Lobb’s Creative Director Andrés Hernández, this sleek aerodynamic shoe, with its finely-tuned detailing, speaks to the world of the automobile yet sits comfortably within the John Lobb collection.

  Winner Sport embodies the style, craftsmanship and quality for which both brands are

celebrated the world over. Crafted around John Lobb’s 8695 last, Winner Sport is made from full-grain calfskin and lined with supple sheepskin. Soft padding has been added at the ankle for comfort, and metallic eyelets, punched with a wheel of fine holes, reflect the automotive design cues of Aston Martin.

  Unlike the more formal, welted John Lobb shoes, Winner Sport is created with a specially engineered bonded rubber sole that wraps beneath the shoe, giving a sleek line and a sporting feel.

  Winner Sport is available in an exciting range of colour combinations: Graphite Grey, Winter Wheat, Frost White and Saddle Tan are all made with the Sporty Stratos White rubber sole. Storm Black, Bitter Chocolate, Westminster Green and Aurora Blue are made with Racy Fire Red rubber soles. Coordinating red and white laces complete the Winner Sport look.

  Winner Sport will be previewed at the opening of the new Aston Martin W-One Store in

London’s Park Lane and at John Lobb Jermyn Street this March. As of May 2012 Winner Sport will be available at all John Lobb and Aston Martin stores worldwide.

Faberge launches online boutique

The luxury sector has found online retailing difficult. Creating a luxury experience is much easier in a store than it is on the Internet. Having expensive products delivered by post or courier is risky - and having customers wondering where their purchases are and complaining about hanging on for call centres is even riskier.

iPad therefore I want: Faberge goes online

  However, Net a Porter showed that it can be done and now more and more luxury retailers are following suit. The latest is Faberge.

  The iconic master jeweller brings its legacy into the 21st century with a new state-of-the-art online boutique, launching on 16th April 2012. Clients are invited to discover the world of Fabergé online, exploring its rich history and browsing the brand’s contemporary high and fine jewellery collections.

  To complement Fabergé’s existing network of retail stores, the online boutique has been given a new look with a signature blend of refined sophistication and modernity. Each of the collections – Les Saisons Russes, Les Fabuleuses, Les Fameux, Le Carnet de Bal, Solyanka and Les Favorites - is represented by a hand-painted vibrant illustration capturing the artistry, romance and legend of Fabergé.  The illustrations set an elaborate backdrop to the jewels and pictorially tell the story behind each collection.

   The site also features an interactive area where clients can engage further with the world of Fabergé, experiencing special projects such as the Mir Fabergé ar t initiative, available also as an iPad application.

Eggsellent: Oeuf Matelasse
Empereur Colore Or Blanc by Faberge

  The online boutique offers Fabergé clients a seamless shopping experience. By leveraging high-value transaction technology, the boutique enables clients to purchase selected items in multiple currencies complete with an international delivery service to more than 29 countries.  Clients can also share and store their favourite jewellery designs through multiple channels, making the most of their desired Fabergé portfolio.

Time Dressed in Over 800 Diamonds by Girard-Perregaux

The 1966 collection pays homage to a great era of terms of creativity, technical expertise and performance by luxury watch brand Girard-Perregaux.

  This was a period that saw Girard-Perregaux watches honoured with numerous awards. Since 2006 the 1966 line has produced manufacture movements with automatic winding in ultra-thin cases produced entirely in the Girard-Perregaux workshops.

  Today the watch case of the Girard-Perregaux 1966 Jewellery watch bears witness to this luxurious creativity. Cut from white or pink gold, this 38 mm diameter remains faithful to the great classics of watchmaking. Its elegance is revealed both in the sparkle of the 807 diamonds that carpet the watch and in the harmony emitted by its silhouette.

  Haloed with a gem-set bezel, the slightly curved dial, entirely paved with “brilliant”- cut precious stones, required hours of meticulous gem-setting work. The twinkling diamonds are arranged in concentric fashion striking hypnotic effect. Keeping watch over time, the “leaf”-type hour and minute hands and four applied hour markers lend their elegance to the sophistication of the piece.

  The alligator-skin strap supplely encircles the wrist, closing with a delicately gem-set ardillon buckle. The purity of the piece is completed by the beauty of its mechanism. The

mechanical movement with automatic winding manufactured at Girard-Perregaux is equipped with a power reserve of over 46 hours. Visible through the sapphire-crystal case back, its gold oscillating weight is engraved with circular Côtes de Genève decoration. Renowned for its delicacy and reliability, the calibre 3300 is the worthy heir to 221 years of watchmaking expertise

Hackett revs up its collaborative marketing with Aston Martin

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines as the race is on for one lucky Hackett London customer to win an Aston Martin when they make a qualifying purchase from the new Hackett London Spring/Summer collection.  

Speed with style: Hackett and Aston Martin join forces

  Hackett is proud to offer its customers the chance to win one of the world’s most prestigious sports cars, the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Coupe. There are four levels of entry, allowing customers who spend £200 or over the chance to win Aston Martin Racing merchandise.    

  This is just another example of the current trend for luxury brands to create collaborations.  The opportunity to win Aston Martin and Aston Martin Racing experiences and merchandise, underlines the “Essentially British” credentials of Hackett London, believes the company.

  Hackett customers who spend £350 or over in store will be entered into the draw to win an Aston Martin Experience driving day and £450 or over could win two VIP tickets to Le Mans to cheer on the Aston Martin Racing team.  Every customer who spends £650 or over in a participating Hackett store, within the promotional period will be entered into the global prize draw where one person will win the ultimate prize, an Aston Martin. 

  This promotion celebrates the relationship between Hackett, Aston Martin and Aston Martin Racing, and allows Hackett customers the chance to win exclusive and rare rewards in return for making a purchase. The purchase linked promotion is running in over 70 Hackett stores and concessions in ten global markets, as follows: UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Kuwait and UAE.

  Hackett's Managing Director, Vicente Castellano, said, "This is our first global promotional campaign.  Aston Martin has never before allowed one of its cars to be given away by a partner in this way. The race is truly on for Hackett customers to win these amazing prizes."

  Hackett has appointed BSTREET London to run its first global retail promotional campaign. BSTREET's Creative Director, Kevin Exley added, “True British luxury and style have always been the inspiration behind Hackett London, so it seems fitting to offer customers a car built on the same defining qualities. Desired the world over, the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Coupe marries power, beauty and soul to produce a discerning example of modern automotive design.”

  In addition, customers have a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunity for a VIP trip to Le Mans, side by side with the Aston Martin Racing team as it takes on the 24 hour endurance classic. A pair of VIP tickets is offered for two lucky winners which includes travel to Le Mans, France and accommodation. Long considered a true test of a car’s durability, the Le Mans 24-Hour race is the ultimate destination for aficionados of world-class motor car racing.

  Other prizes include the chance for ten lucky winners to experience an exhilarating cross-country Aston Martin drive together with the rare opportunity to tour Aston Martin's state-of-the-art global headquarters and meet a senior member of the Aston Martin design team. In addition, 25 customers will win an Aston Martin Racing Kit bag by Hackett full of Aston Martin Racing merchandise prizes, the perfect prize for those with an appreciation for true style and motoring heritage.

  See www.hackettastonmartin.com for more details.