The ‘favourite home’ of American businesswoman Estée Lauder has gone on sale in the south of France for a whopping $9.4mn. Bought in 1963, the Belle Époque-style villa in Cannes was described by the co-founder of her cosmetics company as her favourite vacation home.
It is also claimed she may have created Beautiful, one of her most popular fragrances, while staying there.
The five-bedroom house is in the fashionable La Californie neighbourhood, which is known as ‘billionaires’ hill’ and was once home to artist Picasso.
It has a large swimming pool, several outdoor seating and dining areas and dramatic views over the Cote D’Azur.
The new owner of the house will be able to enjoy scenic views of the sunny French Riviera from a shaded terrace, or take a dip in the heated pool.
For more intimate summer days, the flat terrace also features a top spec barbecue, perfect for entertaining a group of friends, overlooking the sea.
And when Cannes hits its annual low of 46F in January, they can migrate to the fully-equipped kitchen and dining room.
And air conditioning is on standby for when the city reaches its average yearly highs of 80.6F.
The home also has two living rooms – if needed.
If guests want to stay longer, there is plenty of space for all, with four guest suites and a separate guest toilet dotted throughout the building.
Of course, the house also has a master suite complete with a dressing room.
And if Monday feels too close, digital nomads only have a short commute to the home office.
After work, the house’s owner can enjoy several other terraces leading out from the house to the garden. They can also perch on one of the lawn’s sun-loungers near the pool and enjoy the border of beautiful white flowers. The house is just a short way inland from the Pointe Croisette, home to the stunning Bijou Plage beach as well as a number of yacht clubs and upscale apartments. When it was rented out earlier this year, rates surpassed $6,500 per night. Estee Lauder died aged 95 in 2004 after an illustrious career at the top of the cosmetics industry. She started her beauty empire in the 1940s with a small range of skincare products. After years of selling products on her own she formed the eponymous company in 1946 with her husband, Joseph Lauter, a businessman in the garment industry.
Lauder became one of the richest self-made women in history, enjoying broad social circles worldwide.
She stepped down as president from her company in 1973, at which point her eldest son took over the day to day operations. Lauder’s company went public in 1995, then valued at around $2 billion. She died in New York City in 2004, the company still run by the family.