This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
SUCCESSFUL fashion designer Nicky Zimmermann – who founded the eponymous clothing label more than 30 years ago with her sister Simone – has picked up a Vaucluse waterfront mansion that was listed with expectations of $60 million, in what is the third-biggest Sydney house sale of 2022.
It comes in behind only John Landerer selling another Vaucluse mansion early in the year for $62.75 million, and medical entrepreneur Dr Glenn Haifer’s $60 million purchaser of a Darling Point residence.
Agribusinessman and investment banker Garrick Hawkins and his wife Evelyn listed the Coolong Road residence with hopes of $60 million before online listings were withdrawn earlier in the year. However, Domain has reported that a title search shows it is now owned by Zimmermann and her husband Chris Olliver. He is the chief executive of the global fashion label that started out at a stall at the Paddington Markets in 1991 and now has dozens of stores worldwide. Milan-based investment fund Style Capital acquired 70% of the business two years ago for an estimated $446 million.
The three-storey residence is on nearly 1,700 sqm of waterfront land, and has interiors by Thomas Hamel. It features six bedrooms, nine bathrooms, formal and informal living and dining rooms, a rumpus and billiard room, home office, cellar, darkroom, and garaging for four cars.
There is also a gymnasium, health retreat, and sauna, while a harbourfront pool is next to boat shed, jetty and slipway.
Hawkins bought the property in 1987, when he a managing partner at stockbroker Bain & Co, from the estate of the late industrialist Sir James Kirby for $3.55 million. He then demolished the existing house for the current Andre Porebski-designed residence.
Zimmermann and Olliver already own in the suburb, having paid $4.2 million in 2014 for a Hopetoun Avenue residence.
Elsewhere in Vaucluse, Lola Li Wang, the wife of businessman and high roller Li Liang, has just offloaded her home to “Tony” Tao Shi of Mosman in a $30 million-plus deal, while the home of late Palsonic founder Bahari Gupta sold after 60 years of family ownership, having been offered with a price tag of $18 million to $20 million.
Vaucluse, alongside Bellevue Hill, traditionally sees the highest volume of prestige house sales in the eastern suburbs. PriceFinder data shows that for the period from the start of this year to early October, Vaucluse saw the number of $5 million-plus transactions decrease from 90 to 39 compared to the same period in 2021, with the number of $10 million plus transactions decreasing from 29 to 20.
