Valentino's Partner Lists Tuscany Estate

February 23, 2010 - Tuscany

By Juliet Chung from The Wall Street Journal Asia

Giancarlo Giammetti, the longtime companion of Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani, is asking €18 million (about $24.7 million) for his 27-acre Tuscan estate.

The 11-bedroom villa, in the hill town of Cetona about 110 miles north of Rome, was the vacation home for Mr. Giammetti and Mr. Garavani for nearly 25 years.

They oversaw the restoration of the five-story, 18th-century villa, which has a gym, sauna and pool house.

The gated property also has a 200-seat amphitheater and grottos with stalactites and stalagmites.

Olive groves and orchards dot the hilly, wooded estate. There are wine cellars that, if restored, could hold 13,000 bottles.

Mr. Giammetti was the longtime dealmaker for Mr. Garavani, negotiating distribution agreements for his fashions and licensing agreements for perfumes and other accessories.

Messrs. Garavani and Giammetti left Valentino Fashion Group in 2007 after the private-equity firm Permira bought the brand.

Mr. Giammetti is selling because the couple is spending most of their time in New York, London and Gstaad, Switzerland, says listing agent Ann-Marie Doyle, of Venice Sotheby's International Realty.

This article has been republished from Wall Street Journal

• Luxury Getaways for President Obama


• Ben Stiller lists Hollywood Hills estate at $12.5 million


• Whoopi Goldberg's Soho loft on the market


• On the Market: Former Home of Truman Capote


• Tommy Hilfiger’s luxury Connecticut estate sells for $20million