Flavio Briatore
By Yasmine Shihata

Flavio Briatore is one of the world’s roving enigmas. He has his own unique sense of style that permeates everything he does. Most people either know of him due to his amazingly entrepreneurial career, his involvement in Formula One or his celebrity model girlfriends (most notably Naomi Campbell and Heidi Klum). His tall, dark appearance complements his silver hair and intense eyes; which he usually hides under his signature sunglasses (even at night). Briatore has a way of capturing the attention and interest of everyone around him, and seems keenly aware of his power. It is this ‘Flavio fever’ that has taken him far (very far) his entire life. And it is this exact flair that keeps ensuring his success.

Part of his flair comes from unique and smart dress sense; never too formal, but always stylish. The man behind Briatore’s look is London based designer Angelo Galasso of Interno 8. In fact Briatore is dressed by Interno 8 from head to toe, as all his clothing and shoes are custom made for him there. As Briatore explains, “I love their designs as they are always classy and high quality, with a touch of originality”; reflecting Briatore himself in many ways.

Originally from Verzuolo Italy, Briatore is the son of two schoolteachers and had what he describes as “a very normal background”. His career started when he became a ski teacher in Cortina, but soon Briatore grew impatient with the routine and cold weather that went along with the profession. His next challenge was to enter the Milan stock exchange, where his combination of hard work, gut instincts and charisma earned him a lot of money and important new friends. During his years at the stock exchange he met Luciano Benetton, the head of Italy’s famous Benetton family. The two developed a friendship and a mutual respect for each other that became a key factor in Briatore’s future.

From his days at the stock exchange, Briatore realised that he had to work very hard to really succeed in life. As he recalls, “I used to work from 10am to 2am in the morning and was very serious about what I did. After all, if you concentrate and want to achieve something badly enough, you can make it happen. But I always believed that one should work hard and play hard, to balance the pressures of life.”

After seven years of working and playing hard, in 1977 Briatore was 28 and ready for a new challenge. He decided to move to New York with his new fortune and set up his own business there. “At that time going to America was every Italian’s dream.” Briatore recalls, “It was my first time to visit America and I was amazed by New York’s energy.”

Although he was in a completely new environment, Briatore quickly found his niche when Luciano Benetton convinced him to help him expand in the US and launch his first stores in New York. Yet creating awareness for an unknown brand with a limited international budget proved difficult for Benetton. The young Italian firm initially found it difficult to deal with America’s “shopping mall culture” and Benetton’s name seemed too long and difficult for people to remember. “People wouldn’t return our calls and were hesitant to give us meetings. We realised then that we needed to shock people, in order to have an impact. Since we didn’t have a large marketing budget we needed to make a bold move that would get us in the papers and get people talking about us”. The bold move was to open five stores on New York’s prestigious Fifth Avenue all on the same day. Nobody had caused such retail commotion before and suddenly the tables were turned. Benetton received overnight recognition and press coverage, most significantly in the NY Times. Briatore smiles saying, “After that if people wanted a meeting, they had to come and see us.”

The shock tactic worked and Benetton went on to open 750 stores in the US in just seven years. Yet Briatore believed Benetton had to continue shocking people to remain current and cutting edge. “We didn’t have the money to buy many pages in Vogue etc, so our message needed to have a strong impact. It had to be something controversial, that would get people talking and start a discussion about Benetton,” Briatore states. The company put out a series of controversial images to give the brand an even higher awareness level. Once again Briatore’s instincts were correct, and Benetton’s ad campaigns became some of the most talked about adverts in America.

After seven years of building Benetton, Briatore needed a change. “My enthusiasm was lost. I had worked very hard and needed a break.” At that time the Benetton name was strong in the US, so Briatore decided to sell his shops and made a considerable profit doing so. So much so that he was able to buy an island in the Virgin Islands (fulfilling another one of his dreams) and as he fondly recalls “live like a hippy for two years without ever leaving the island”. Of course Briatore had a steady flow of glamorous friends visiting him on the island, helping him enjoy his much-desired break from the hectic world of business.

Yet Luciano Benetton was not content to let his old friend get away that easily, and soon tried to get him to join forces with him once again. At that time Benetton had bought an English motor racing team (Toleman, competing in Formula I) and wanted Briatore to reorganise his team. Briatore didn’t know much about the sport so Benetton invited to him to the 1988 Formula One race in Melbourne, Australia to witness a F1 race. The excitement and thrill of the sport, along with the prospect of a new and rewarding challenge, captured Briatore’s interest and the fiery Italian accepted the offer.

Thus Briatore moved from to the Virgin Islands to a suite at Claridges in London, to reorganise the team in ‘89. The first thing he did was fire the team’s managing director and change the team’s name to ‘Benetton’; once again to create controversy. As Briatore explains, “I had no credibility in that field at the time. I was known as a playboy and a businessman, but not known in the Formula One circles. People called us the ‘T-shirt makers’ team’ so it made us the underdog.” Yet Briatore started to look at talented young drivers and in 1991 discovered Michael Schumacher (now Formula One’s most successful driver) in the process. This discovery put the Benetton team on the map, as Briatore lead the team to its first championship in ’94 with Schumacher in first place. The team won again in ’95 and ’96 and established itself as a force to be reckoned with.

By 1997, Briatore had three teams to his name: Ligier, Benetton and Minardi, each with a valuable stock price that made their sale enticingly alluring to the Italian entrepreneur. “I kept hearing estimates about how much they were worth that I decided to try and sell them and see if they were true,” Briatore recalls. The estimates were true indeed and Briatore made himself yet another fortune by selling all three of his teams.

Once again Briatore wanted to relish his good fortune with a two-year break and bought a large yacht to “travel around the world”. Yet as he states, “I only made it from Porto Cervo to Porto Fino” and instead remained based in Sardinia during that time. Yet his business instincts soon lead him to buy an engine company (Supertec Sport), which he used to sell engines to Formula One teams. By then his expertise and connections ensured the company’s success and after two years he sold the business to Renault.

Briatore’s time in Sardinia also allowed him to play hard and make money from his increasingly international playboy image. In ‘97 Briatore teamed up with a Sardinian restaurateur to create his nightclub Billionaire in Sardinia. When asked how he came up with that name, Briatore answers slyly, “I wanted a name that would encompass everyone’s dream; a name that was arrogant yet alluring. People would want to go to the club for the association; a place where even if people weren’t billionaires they could spend like billionaires.” The club became a huge hit and is now the place to be in Sardinia. Briatore’s image and contacts obviously help maintain the venue’s glamour and status, but Briatore says, “I don’t like to be seen there too much so that people don’t expect me to be there all the time. Yet when I do go I always organise a big dinner with guests like Madonna and Leonardo Di Caprio. That way when I am there it really causes a stir and raises the anticipation level for the rest of the nights.”

Billionaire is now so successful that even when Sardinia is not heavily frequented, there are “Billionaire nights’ at other clubs around Italy. Yet Briatore’s main responsibility today is heading the Renault Formula One team in the UK and France; positions which he takes very seriously. As Briatore explains, “throughout my career I have put a lot of work into everything I do and until now, I work fourteen hours a day. The key to success is to strive to be the best in your job and be proud of your accomplishments.” Briatore is also proud of his reputation for encouraging young people all around him. “I strive to enjoy life, create new jobs and help young people grow and succeed.”

In fact young people play a big role in Briatore’s life and businesses. As Briatore explains, “Most of the people who visit my website are 24 or 25, and their most common question is ‘How can I be like Flavio Briatore?’” Young people are also drawn to his businesses and Briatore seems to feed off their energy and excitement. Briatore is also very proud of the fact that 60% of his staff are women. As he states, “my finance director is a woman, my marketing director is a woman and my office manager is a woman. I find that women are more focused. Women have more to prove so when you give them power they really perform.” And working for Briatore is no easy feat, “I am a workaholic” he explains, “and I delegate a lot of responsibilities and control. For that reason I don’t accept mistakes. People who make mistakes are out. At the same time, I like the people around me to grow and succeed and I really encourage them. I also want to provide them with new opportunities.”

As he stands in the lobby of the Ritz Carlton in Bahrain, it’s easy to see Briatore’s appeal in action. Young men gravitate towards him just to shake his hand or get his autograph. He speaks to me as he smiles at passers by and casually signs autographs. Later at a dinner invitation, Briatore commands the attention of the young women around him, charismatically discussing everything from politics to his ‘good friend Naomi’. Although he is in a foreign country Briatore is completely at ease; after all he spends most of his time jet setting around the world in his private plane. We get a glimpse of Briatore’s life when he casually remarks, “I’m going to attend a birthday in Milan tomorrow night, then I have a meeting in London the next morning. After the meeting I will head to my home in Kenya.” The way he talks about his itinerary makes it seem like it’s just another normal week in Briatore’s life.

When asked about his opinion on the Formula One race in Bahrain, Briatore states “Bahrain has done an incredible job. The Middle East has received so much negative press in recent years, so it’s great to have such a positive and important international event in the region. They had only 550 days to build their facilities and have done an amazing job. I would say they now have best Formula One facility in the world.”

With such a glowing endorsement, Bahrain should be proud. And will Briatore be returning to the Middle East next year? “As long as I am in Formula One, I will be happy to return to Bahrain. I also look forward to visiting my friends in the region soon.” Yet today Briatore is basking in the glow of his recent victory at the Monaco Grand Prix, as he explains, "The team was awesome in Monaco and the two Renault drivers did a great job. Jarno Trulli drove fantastically well and won his first Grand Prix at the most difficult circuit of all. But most importantly, we must thank everybody not just in the Renault Group. This result reflects the commitment, discipline and ability of everybody involved." In fact it seems Briatore is on a role these days, so watch out, ‘Flavio Fever’ may take over again soon…