The upmarket ski chalet company Descent International has gone into
liquidation, with high-profile guests - including the Duke of York - facing
the loss of deposits of nearly £500,000 for the coming winter.
The chalet company was renowned for offering the most luxurious chalets for
rent in the Alps in top-notch prestigious resorts such as Courchevel,
Verbier, Zermatt and St Moritz. The most expensive chalet - the Tivoli Lodge
in Klosters - cost £58,000 a week to rent over the New Year.
These high prices came with service to match. Descent hired internationally
renowned chefs, such as Tom Aikens, as consultants and employed highly
qualified staff on salaries well above the usual package of a bed, pocket
money and a ski pass offered by most other ski tour operators.
Descent’s guests could expect to drink endless Perrier Jouet champagne, be
pampered with Jo Malone toiletries and be ferried around in expensive 4x4s
in resort. The company also hired Norland Nannies to look after the children
of well-heeled guests.
The company was set up in 1997 by the advertising agency boss Peter Scott, a
friend of the Prince of Wales and now chairman of the Engine Group, and Kit
Harrison, the UBS banker and round-the-world yachtsman.
Harrison acted as CEO of the company for a number of years before moving to
head up a sister company called Botiga, a sort of fractional ownership
scheme for upmarket properties around the world. Harrison returned to take
the helm of Descent earlier this year after the departure of then CEO Stuart
Pinnell.
Before the collapse, Descent International was intensely secretive about its
famous guests, but two who could not escape publicity were David and
Victoria Beckham who stayed at the companys Courchevel chalet at the time of
the Rebecca Loos revelations.
Hundreds of photographers camped outside the chalet in a bid to catch photos
of the couple. But the Beckhams were not Descent's only high-profile guests.
As well as various rich Russians, the ski website welove2ski.com
revealed today that the Duke of York was among the company’s creditors. Sean
Newsom, the site’s editor, said: “The booking was in the name of Inverness —
one of the Duke’s titles is Earl of Inverness — and a deposit of more than
£30,000 was paid to Descent.”
The Duke had stayed in Descent's Chalet Eugenia in Klosters last January at
the time of the World Economic Forum in Davos. While there, he hosted a
drinks party for guests who included Business Secretary Peter Mandelson and
Shadow Chancellor George Osborne.
Added Newsom: "The Duke enjoyed his stay so much that he booked his party
in again for the same week next year - January 24 to 31 - which again
coincides with the forum. It is not known what he actually agreed to pay for
the property, but the brochure price was £5,833 per person, travel not
included.
"The booking was in the name of Inverness - one of the duke's titles is
Earl of Inverness - and a deposit of more than £30,000 was paid to Descent."
He adds that there are 42 groups who have already paid deposits on holidays
for the amounting to around £450,000.
The company held an ATOL licence but this only covered package holidays where
flights were bought as part of a package. The company's website, which
advises creditors to contact liquidators David Rubin and Partners, says: "In
the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA will ensure that you are not
stranded."
However, the type of guests who booked with Descent are likely to have made
their own arrangements and so look likely to lose their deposits.
Kit Harrison blamed the recession for the demise of the company. “Last winter,
the top end of the ski market was affected more than the wider market by the
recession. [The crisis] happened at the peak booking period and it left the
company in a less strong position than we would have liked. We had very
realistic plans in place for this year but sadly these have not been
possible to achieve.”
He said that rival luxury ski company Scott Dunn was helping out to try to
honour some of Descent’s obligations and offer alternative accomodation. “We
have set out to make sure everyone is looked after and we are doing all we
possibly can to do that,” he added.
Your Comments
Order By: