His suits were Boss or Armani (little else would do unless it is custom made, but only in London and not by the tailors in Hong Kong as everyone knew that they aren’t up to par). Shoes were Prada. Rolex was passé unless it was the Daytona. IWC was always acceptable, Hublot - too in one’ face, Cartier worked and Panerai said “I have class, have money and I am aware of the latest trends”. Ties had to be skinny, unless one was not. Louis Vuitton luggage was “showy” unless plain black. Tumi roll-on, in black, with the briefcase that slides over the handle was a prerequisite. Check-in baggage was embarrassing and very uncool even though one had more weight allowance than God.
But then this ‘King of Chrome’ gets attacked. And attacked again. Then he gets sick. His business folds. And his carry-on baggage simply gets too heavy to hold.
As Feldman unpacks his bags – both literal and metaphorical – he unravels all the ‘perfect’ banners he has raised to the world, his family, his community and himself. He measures their value against a new benchmark of success, and reconsiders his life’s travels from Zug to Zimbabwe, New York to Tel Aviv. Returning home to South Africa, he discovers not just the meaning of home, family and friendship, but also himself.
Feldman is a businessman, philanthropist and social commentator who lives in Johannesburg. He is also a commodity trader with a (not-so-secret) passion for writing and literature. He holds the position as chairperson of the Board of the South African Jewish Report, the only weekly Jewish focused newspaper in South Africa.
Visit his blog on
www.thewriteoutlook.com.