How Charlotte’s richest and most powerful people roll, and how the connections they make might lead to making a difference.
A CELEBRITY CHEF, an event planner, a professional football player, a former CIO, and two car dealership owners named Ryan walk into an airplane hangar.
Private jets are staged the same way cars are in a showroom, with the floor buffed to a mirror-like sheen so that each plane appears to have an identical mate below it. In front of the planes is a row of super cars, from Ferrari to Rolls Royce, in matte black and bright orange, lined up like a sushi appetizer. It all looks and feels as if this is a Bond movie, but it’s actually happening on this Friday in April not far from Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
Twenty-seven men and women listen in on a conversation about a craft beer delivery service, and which beers are right for which person. The attendees are invited to sample the offerings, most of them IPAs, and to mingle. Some opt to take photos inside the cars, while others get a private showing of the jets.
Almost all of the people here, whether they’re in suits with matching pocket squares, dresses, sweaters, or fleece pullovers, have the same wide-eyed expression. This is the life some of them have already, and this is the life others in the room are still aspiring to—but, yes, it’s still jarring to hear someone say, “That’s actually pretty affordable” when presented with the option to rent a private plane to Las Vegas for five figures.
It’s lavish and a little surreal. But it’s part of Charlotte. And at the center of it all is a sharply dressed Brit who moved to the city from Atlanta in February 2015.
This story is from the February 2017 edition of Charlotte Magazine.
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This story is from the February 2017 edition of Charlotte Magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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