When AmEx Black Just Won’t Do: A Gem-Crusted Card for the .001%
Next year in the U.S., some of the .001% will be invited to own a customized card inlaid with diamonds and pearls.
(Bloomberg) -- Metal credit cards are so 2019.
Next year in the U.S., some of the .001% will be invited to own a customized card inlaid with diamonds, pearls and other precious gems.
At least one very rich Yankees fan got in on the action early.
Their diamond and sapphire-studded card, which borrows from the design of one of the team’s championship rings, was on display last month along with other gem-encrusted examples during a private event at New York’s Jewelry Week.
The gathering, showcasing the works of Clarissa Bronfman, was sponsored by Insignia Group, a London-based luxury lifestyle management and travel company that’s partnering with private equity firm Certares to launch the “Jewelry Card Collection” early next year.
Swiss artisans craft the cards by hand using “especially high-strength gold plates,” Insignia said in its marketing materials. Those approved for the card can meet with a designer to create one customized “for every personality and taste that could include family crests, images of beloved pets, sports logo and more.”
The cost to do that can be about $200,000.
Insignia said it has created fewer than 100 jeweled cards for clients across the U.K., Middle East, Monaco, Russia and now the U.S. Cardholders, who pay a $10,000 annual fee, charge more than $1 million a year, most of it on travel, said Richard Lewis, Insignia’s president for the U.S. Most clients insure the cards, which are chip-enabled.
The less visible side of Insignia’s business is its luxury lifestyle and travel service, which debuted in the U.S. about six months ago. In Europe, Insignia said it works with about 800 clients. In the U.S., it has about 50 clients and aims for a maximum of 300 to 500. At least 20% to 25% of its U.S. customers are billionaires, according to Lewis.
They get a dedicated personal assistant who’s available 24/7. The assistants know details as specific as which side of the bed clients sleep on, so they can tell hotels which side to turn down, and may do things like send a client’s personalized toiletry kit to hotels in advance.
“The people we are dealing with, the vast majority are very well-connected in their own right,” Lewis said. “But they don’t like to ask friends for favors all the time.”
Lewis said American Express Co.’s Centurion product -- the black card -- is Insignia’s closest competitor. Among the rising number of “lifestyle management” companies today, another rival is London-based Quintessentially, the luxury concierge service where Lewis worked before joining Insignia.
Insignia expects to sign with a bank partner in the U.S. in the first quarter, so clients who want one sooner would have to use a European bank.
Lewis said half of the U.S. business is owned by New York-based Certares, which specializes in travel and hospitality. The private equity firm is part of an investor group that owns a 50% stake in AmEx’s business-travel division.
--With assistance from Jenny Surane.
To contact the reporter on this story: Suzanne Woolley in New York at swoolley2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Pierre Paulden at ppaulden@bloomberg.net, Peter Eichenbaum, Steven Crabill
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