Looking for a new investment opportunity? Got about RM100 million to spare? At the upcoming STYLO Fashion Grand Prix which kicks off this March 31, you might just find what you’re looking for. A week-long fringe event supporting the Formula One Grand Prix, STYLO is working with local designer Faisol Abdullah of Jendela KL and Swiss-based jeweller House of Mouawad to create a one-off, diamond-studded dress worth slightly more than RM100 million. The dress has been christened Nightingale of KL because Faisol, who designed the dress, was inspired by a poem entitled Rose and the Nightingale by celebrated Persian poet Hafez of Shiraz.
Sketches of the yet-to-be-completed dress and the 70-carat diamond that will be its pièce de résistance were revealed at a media conference yesterday by Faisol and Antoine Bakache, manager for Asia-Pacific at the House of Mouawad. They were joined by STYLO president and CEO Datuk Nancy Yeoh, Mercedes-Benz sales and marketing vice-president Florian Mueller and The Edge managing director and editor-in-chief Ho Kay Tat. The Edge is a media partner of STYLO.
The 14m maroon taffeta silk for the dress is being custom-made by Faisol, and due to a problem with its dyeing, it could not be presented yesterday. Although little can be gleaned from Faisol’s beautiful sketches, he revealed that the design will include a majestic 6m train. It will also incorporate an Islamic motif. The same fabric will be used in the shoes made by celebrity shoemaker Datuk Jimmy Choo.
The House of Mouawad will be providing the final touch in the form of 750 diamonds, of one to three carats each, that will be stitched onto the train of the dress. The centrepiece of the dress will be the almost flawless, pear-shaped, 70-carat diamond that will feature on the bodice.
The Nightingale of KL will be unveiled at the Mercedes-Benz STYLO Fashion Awards Gala on April 3. The gala will be co-hosted by The Edge.
The main event that evening will be the presentation of the dress — a specially choreographed showcase featuring Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina as Puteri Gunung Ledang reciting Rose and the Nightingale while former actress and beauty queen Kavita Kaur will parade the dress on the 75ft runway.
After the big reveal, Nightingale of KL will be on display at the House of Mouawad boutique at Starhill Gallery for the rest of the F1 weekend. It will then go on tour and be put up for sale. According to Faisol, the dress has been designed so it can be easily resized for its future owner. Should the owner not want to use the train, it can also be removed and used as a wrap or an abaya — what Middle Eastern women use to cover their faces. This, of course, is based on the fact that the Middle East is quickly becoming a huge market for luxury goods, especially unusual expensive, one-off pieces.
Whoever the buyer may be, Yeoh and Antoine are sure that he or she exists; and to that end, they have pledged 5% of the proceeds to the victims of the Gaza War — a cause STYLO is already supporting in other areas. In the jewellery business, where profit margins are often no more than 3%, the amount being donated is very generous indeed.
In tough times like these, when valuable metals and precious stones are seen to be more reliable assets to own than stocks and bonds, this dress could be considered an investment and not decadent luxury. The value of the diamonds alone is noteworthy and sure to appreciate. According to Bakache, the value of the diamonds is much higher than what the dress’ price tag reflects.
“If you were to purchase the diamonds individually — and bear in mind these are really high quality stones — the price would be much higher than this,” he says. “Because we are working directly with the designer, it is almost like the diamonds are at wholesale value.”
House of Mouawad also designs objects d’art that make it into second-hand auction markets to reap more than its original value. Is the dress created in that vein? Is Nightingale of KL a work of art, a precious piece of haute couture?
“It is an art piece, definitely, although it isn’t like putting down RM100 million for a Van Gogh… at the same time, while it is haute couture, it is not a dress you buy simply because it’s a dress and resell it later on. It is in a big way about the jewels on the dress because the value lies in putting so many beautiful diamonds on a single piece,” Bakache explains.
The fact that the collection of diamonds exists in such a unique presentation will make it highly appealing to a jewellery collector looking for an unusual investment. Bakashe agrees. “I can see a diamond or jewellery collector going for this because of the type and sheer number of stones used. The market for this dress is actually quite wide because the dress opens itself up to so many interpretations. I really feel that this dress will be an amazing investment for whoever that buys it, regardless of the reason.”