Down and Out in Rosedale
The money’s running out and they must choose: pull the kids out of private school or fire the gardener; pawn the silver or close the Pusateri’s account; cancel the club memberships or default on the cottage. An inside report on the secret sacrifices of the nouveau poor By Sonia Verma
Image credit: Kagan McLeod
On a bright and breezy Tuesday afternoon last April, the Toronto socialite Kelly Barnicke hosted an intimate lunch for some female friends in her Forest Hill home. At first, the event unfolded precisely as it should have.
Barnicke, a willowy blonde whose wealth derives predominantly from her father-in-law’s commercial real estate empire, wore a white off-the-runway Giambattista Valli. Suzanne Rogers and such fellow fashionistas as Lindsay Berry and Stacey Kimel showed up in Pucci, Oscar de la Renta and vintage couture. Forty guests sipped pink champagne as a chef prepared comfort food: mini-burgers, designer french fries with hollandaise sauce and caesar salad in tiny bread bowls.
The lunch was for a good cause. Barnicke was attempting to lure her friends and acquaintances on an exclusive trip to London to benefit the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, a youth charity she supports. The three-day jaunt would coincide with London fashion week, she explained, with an itinerary that promised to “create everlasting memories,” not to mention a possible spread in Hello. (“One should be prepared for the presence of the paparazzi upon entering or leaving the hotel, to add to the excitement,” the e-mail invitation read.) The schedule was lavish: a cocktail reception at Buckingham Palace; lunch at the country estate of Prince Edward and his wife, Sophie, the Countess of Wessex; private shopping at Top Shop with Kate Moss; and a private viewing of the crown jewels.
At £10,000, the tickets were pricey, but, as Barnicke hastened to add, a party hosted by Daniel Craig would top off the trip. The assembled women swooned appropriately, thanked Barnicke for a lovely lunch and left.
A few weeks later, I contacted some of the guests to find out if they’d bought tickets. Most considered the charity a worthy cause and Barnicke a personal friend. But they expressed unease with the tone of the luncheon and especially the trip, which was repeatedly described as over the top. “I was sick and appalled,” said one woman, whose family lost a sizable percentage of its holdings in the stock market crash. “I can’t afford to give away that kind of money anymore,” another woman said. “Even if I could, I wouldn’t want my friends reading about it in Hello.”
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boo-frickin-hoo
June 30, 2009 | by ilanascAre these people for real?! I'm sorry, but I just can't relate to Zsa Zsa Gabor/Paris Hilton wannabe's, let alone feel any empathy or sympathy for them. Maybe they'd feel the pinch less if they simply didn't *have* to have 5-figure vacations every year, more servants than family members, gas-guzzling luxury cars, and designer wardrobes every season. The smug hypocrisy is nauseating. Gimme a break... If you want to see people with real problems, try watching the international news some night.
July 2, 2009 | by BelPeople who aren't as rich as they once who are terrified that their still-rich friends will disown them if they found out they weren't so rich any more: you are losers.
Rich people who actually would disown friends because they have lost a significant portion of their wealth: you are losers.
Funny how this article elicits absolutely zero sympathy from anybody I know who has read it.
July 2, 2009 | by P88My sympathies go to the nannies, housekeepers, tutors, and others that the nouveau poor have been forced to let go. On the upside, those workers are no doubt much better equipped to deal with living frugally (and not worried about what the neighbours think).
As for their former employers?
July 2, 2009 | by bonfireI love the smell of schadenfreude in the morning...
I have little sympathy for those ubber-wealthy financiers who created this mess. How does one survive without a fresh French manicure every week? I do feel for those in the middle, those who live within their means and whose retirement savings have been decimated, for the pain won't trickle down, it will flow like Niagara as those with discretionary income put their money in their mattresses and put off major purchases. Now if only our federal, state/provincial and local governments on both sides of the border would cut out the fat and stop spending like the Dow was still at 14000.....The good news is maybe we'll finally see the end of those absolutely obnoxious over-the-top Sweet Sixteen parties.
July 10, 2009 | by CrewMom2265I have read this article 8 times in the past few months; each time, in a magazine or paper. It's like mad libs using the news publication's proximate private schools/upscale department store/well-known expensive neighborhood.
I wish we could see some real analysis of how Toronto's social strata are being affected and upended, as opposed to a bunch of awkwardly voyeuristic scenes.
July 15, 2009 | by kingstonboy