MORE MONEY THAN SENSE
If the world didn’t have fast cars, superyachts, second wives and spoiled sons, how would billionaires blow their cash? Montreal native Lawrence Stroll, 66, who built up his family’s fashion business into a multi-billion-dollar global company by investing in masstige brands like Michael Kors and Tommy Hilfiger, checks all of those boxes. Besides possessing one the world’s most valuable collections of vintage Ferraris (said to be worth more than $150 million) and a $200 million superyacht, Stroll also owns a third of British luxury-car manufacturer Aston Martin and recently became executive chairman of Aston Martin’s Aramco Formula One Team, his pride and joy. Its cars resplendent in British racing green, this U.K.-based F1 team features two drivers: legendary Spanish champion Fernando Alonso and Stroll’s not-so-legendary 26-year-old son, Lance.
Alonso is a revered star who has captured two F1 world championships and won 32 races over his long and illustrious racing career. Lance, on the other hand, hasn’t won anything at all during his ill-starred F1 stint. In fact, his miserable 2025 racing season mirrors his entire four-years at Aston Martin racing, which has been marked by inexplicable crashes, erratic decision-making and poor results, capped off by a last-place finish at this year’s Canadian Grand Prix in June in Montreal. The dismal showing was bad enough but the fact that it came on the family’s hometown circuit only added to the embarrassment.
Lance’s quick temper and clueless comments about fellow drivers haven’t helped his image, instead making him an easy target for taunting fans who regard him as a nepo brat who only has a ride because daddy’s the boss.
Stroll Sr. brushes off these jibes as “jealous people” saying “silly things.” But with his car company stuck in reverse (posting losses of more than $300 million in 2024) and his son’s racing career stalled, mainstream and social media isn’t holding back its criticism.
But when you’re a billionaire who is able to burn money like his son burns rubber, it’s not hard to escape the negative noise. Stroll and his second wife, Raquel Diniz, a 38-year-old Brazilian model-turned-fashion designer, can always set sail aboard their brand-new $200 million, 80-metre (262-foot) superyacht, which is somehow a downgrade from its predecessor, a 97-meter (317-ft) five-deck giga yacht, which featured a glass-bottomed swimming pool, theatre and beach club.
And while he’s getting away from it all aboard his latest ocean-going behemoth, Stroll can decide if Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth had it right when he said: “Money can’t buy you happiness, but it can buy you a yacht big enough to pull up right alongside it.”
CHASING THE BAG
The original Hermès Birkin bag, designed for actress Jane Birkin and originally priced at $2,000 in 1984, fetched a staggering $11.2 million at a Sotheby’s auction in Paris in July, making it the most valuable handbag ever sold on the European secondary market.
The winning bidder was Shinsuke Sakimoto, the 43-year-old Japanese CEO of Valuence Holdings Inc., which buys and sells pre-owned luxury fashion goods, antiques and art. Sakimoto posted on social media that he plans to put the legendary Birkin bag on display at his company’s headquarters in order “to preserve global cultural heritage and make it accessible to the public.” Accessibility is not a concept that’s often used in connection with Hermès. The French luxury-goods company creates demand for its coveted bags – which start at about US$12,000 – by severely limiting their availability. Unless you’re on the company’s Very Important Customers (VICs) list – which includes well-heeled celebs like the Kardashians, Victoria Beckham, J-Lo, Beyoncé, etc. – you are not walking into a store and buying one. Plebs, even obscure one-percenters, must first purchase a queen’s ransom of Hermès objets and fashion before even being invited to be waitlisted for their bags, the ne plus ultra of style. This artificially-created scarcity means that those who are shut out at retail are now paying vast sums for them on the resale market, causing the value of Birkin bags to go through the roof. Suddenly, spending big money on a luxury fashion item has become a sensible financial investment.
$200 BILLION: The amount by which Canada’s GDP could increase each year by removing interprovincial trade barriers, according to an RBC study. In July, the Liberal government passed legislation that will start us on the path toward internal free trade.
WHAT A RACKET
It’s hard to explain how pickleball has gone from being a much-mocked “oldies” sport on the level of shuffleboard into a worldwide craze enjoyed by players of all ages. According to Pickleball Canada, 1.5 million of us play this curious mash-up of tennis, racketball, ping-pong and badminton, a 57 percent jump from 2020.
The sport originated in the U.S. back in the 1960s as a simple summer backyard game, then gradually spread to community centres and retirement residences before taking the world by storm, even spawning a professional tour, with some events offering more than a million dollars in prizes.
Its surging popularity means that the costs of playing this once reasonably priced sport are skyrocketing, with everything from rackets, balls, shoes and apparel now running up costly tabs. And while many community centres or local playgrounds still offer affordable or free courts, these tend to get snapped up quickly, especially in larger cities.
So, to appease our insatiable need to play, private clubs are popping across the country, many charging membership fees and hourly court-rental rates that make OG pickleball players blanch. Let’s take a look at how the costs of the sport have spiked:
- Racket: CRBN TF Genesis (elongated paddle) – made from carbon fibre and reinforced foam, $399.95, pickleballdepot.ca
- Shoes: Asics Men’s Gel-Resolution X – built with technology for softer and more stable landings, $199.95, pickleballdepot.ca
- Dress: Sleeveless Pickleball Mini Dress by Norma Kamali – wear it on the court and then out to lunch apres pickleball, $250, Revolve.com
- Private Club: Mega Courts in Calgary – $790/year membership + court fees
- Hourly Court Rentals: Club PKL in Montreal – $72/hr prime-time bookings
SOFT SAVING: A trend among Gen Z workers who forgo putting every extra penny in their retirement coffers (like their “hard saving” parent’s generation did) and instead spend any money they have accumulated on enjoying life now.
ANATOMY OF A JOB SCAM
Bottom Line: Do not follow up by clicking the link. This is a fake job scam. Steer clear of unsolicited offers like these that come over free social messaging apps. Delete the post or report it to the company.
THE PUBLIC PULSE: What would you do if you needed extra income in retirement?
- 38% I would sell my home and downsize
- 24% I would consider going back to work full or part time
- 14% I would use a reverse mortgage to stay in my home
- 6% I would rely on family support
- 16% Other/Don’t Know
