Nicolas Berggruen, homeless billionaire.
If you ask my friends, they’d tell you about how I kind of romanticize hotels for their focus on extreme connivence, comfort, often luxury, all in an oddly transient context. I love the idea of being a bit of very comfortable…but productive transient. Which is pretty much exactly what Nicolas Berggruen is doing. I found out about him a while ago - some New York Times article or something, can’t remember. Super fascinating. He’s kind of the prototype of what I envision for the maybe overly eccentric creative entrepreneur is, no? Something I aspire to a bit myself.
Grew up in France, was super leftwing socialist, then as a teenager headed to London to explore capitalism and the “real world” as he describes it. That led to starting a hedge-fund with the son of a tycoon from Colombia (ha), sold it, followed by a zillion other successful investments, fell in love with privacy, ditched all his personal belongs including his homes and decided to live anywhere he wanted in the world via hotels and his private jet. He has since transitioned from a bit of a playboy to a political voice/theorist through his org that focuses on “new ideas of good governance”. This is the quick and very chopped version of his life - google him, pretty wild. The thinking man’s gypsy??? Interview at link below is a good one.
***This link too.