The buyer of the cut-price Bel Air mega-mansion, once dubbed America’s most expensive home, has been revealed as fast-fashion tycoon, Richard Saghian, the CEO of Fashion Nova.
Saghian, 40, snapped up the huge property for a bargain $126 million at a bankruptcy auction on Thursday. Even though it sold for a fraction of its original record-setting $500 million listing, the property – which took eight years to build and boasts 21 bedrooms, 42 bathrooms, five swimming pools, a 30-car garage, a bowling alley and more – set the record for costliest house sold in auction at $126 million, with an additional $15 million auction fee
Saghian, whose fast-fashion company inked high-profile partnerships with celebrities and influencers such as rapper Cardi B, Kylie Jenner and pop superstar Lil Nas X, fended off competition from four other bidders for the 105,000-square-foot house, which is known as ‘The One.’
Saghian started Fashion Nova in 2006 in the industrial southern L.A. suburb of Vernon and continues to serve as its CEO and owns the business outright. The company’s annual sales are said to top $1billion a year. ‘The One’ is the latest in his luxury property portfolio. Saghian owns two other homes in the City of Angels, including a beach house in Malibu that he bought from Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos in 2021 for $14.7 million. He retains another home in the Bird Streets area of Hollywood Hills that he purchased for $17.5 million back in 2018.
‘The One Bel-Air is a once-in-a-lifetime property that can never be duplicated. There is nothing else like it, Saghian said in an email statement on Sunday. ‘As a lifelong Angeleno and avid collector of real estate, I recognized this as a rare opportunity that also lets me own a unique property that is destined to be a part of Los Angeles history.’
The Bel Air mansion known as ‘The One’ was sold to Saghian for just $126 million at a bankruptcy auction on Thursday, less than half of the $295 million asking price – which was already cut down from its original price tag of $500 million
Fashion Nova CEO Richard Saghian, 43, on the red carpet of the company’s events. His net worth is $1.3billion, as of 2024
In July 2024, Fashion Nova had online sales revenue of $42,612,207. Pictured: Saghian in front of the company’s headquarters
The privately-held retail company has 51-200 employees and has an estimated web sales range of $1 billion-to-$5 billion, according to ecommerce website Pipecandy.com. It now has five brick-and-mortar stores in LA after finding much of its early success online – mainly through its website and social media, where many Instagram influencers and high-profile artists can be seen posing with the brand’s apparel.
Saghian’s entourage were victims of an armed robbery in June after they were followed to the businessman’s Hollywood Hills home in a Rolls Royce.
The suspects demanded they surrender jewelry and other valuables – though Saghian, who had already gone inside, was not aware of the incident and was unharmed.
All the suspects were eventually arrested and one was killed by an armed guard.
The One cost Saghian almost six-to-seven times more than his other properties, but his winning bid was at a steep discount off the extravagant home’s original $295-million listing price.
‘It’s an incredible deal,’ Branden Williams told the Los Angeles Times. He listed the home with his associate and wife, Rayni Williams, as well as Aaron Kirman – a local Compass agent.
‘No one understands until they get up there. A house like this will never be built again. Whenever it sells again, it will be for even more,’ he added.
The 105,000-square-foot mega-mansion is still not entirely complete and needs to be granted permits by the city before being inhabited
The sale set the record for costliest house sold in auction at $126 million, with an additional $15 million auction fee
The mansion even possesses its own beauty salon, which boasts bright red walls and opaque shampoo stations
Other features of the home include a movie theatre, ‘philanthropy wing’ for charity galas, a nightclub, an outdoor running track, and a 4,000 square foot guest house
Circular seating within a grubby-looking moat offers panoramic views of the mountains and hills of Los Angeles
Insiders familiar with the court proceedings say it will have to sell for at least $200 million just to cover the costs
Estate agents suggested the conflict in Ukraine had deterred possible Russian billionaire buyers for the mega-mansion while others called it a warning of the instability of the mega-mansion market
An indoor bowling alley is yet another feature of the home, complete with digital scoreboards and lounge areas
The sprawling complex houses 21 bedrooms, a bowling alley, private theater, a night club, multiple pools, a jacuzzi, a salon, a gym and an underground garage with two vehicle turntables
A colorful glass sculpture stands erected outside the home, which took eight years to build
The home was built by Hollywood producer-turned-developer Nile Niami, 53 in 2012 with the help of 600 contracted workers
Working from home won’t be a problem at The One, where office space is plentiful
The ex-Hollywood exec reportedly was convinced he could secure an asking price of $500 million for the impressive estate
While most people would be happy with one pool, the Bel Air estate boasts several swimming pools
Williams & Williams Estates Group, along with Stuart Vetterick of Hilton & Hyland, were Saghian’s representatives in the bargain deal. They also represented him in the purchase of the Malibu home, too. Nondisclosure agreements refrained all parties from disclosing the buyer, and other bidders involved in the auction. In the days leading to the sale, multiple sources rumored that Saghian was the winner.
‘The One’ would not only extend the businessman’s portfolio of lavish homes in the area but it could also turn into a social-media marketing tool for online influencers modeling the brand, as the home could be used as a familiar setting to show off the company’s affordable and trendy designs.
However, two years ago, Versace accused Fashion Nova of breaching copyright rules by knocking off two iconic designs and a famous split-below-the-navel Jungre dress that Jennifer Lopez rocked to super-stardom when she wore it at the Grammys that year. In 2021, both parties agreed to a non-disclosed settlement, according to court records.
The lawsuit claimed Fashion Nova deliberately copied the dresses ‘in conscious disregard of Versace’s superior rights’ and that it also copies other designers, such as Adidas, to sell low-price clubwear following fashion whims.
‘Fashion Nova’s ability to churn out new clothing so quickly is due in large part to its willingness to copy the copyrighted designs, trademarks and trade dress elements of well-known designers like Versace, and trade on their creative efforts in order to bolster Fashion Nova’s bottom line,’ the suit claimed.
‘To that end, in blatant disregard of Versace’s rights, Fashion Nova is designing, manufacturing, producing, marketing, distributing, promoting, offering for sale and selling in interstate commerce apparel bearing designs that are the same or substantially similar to the Versace copyrights.’
More so, Versace claims Fashion Nova uses other tactics to confuse fashionistas, even using trademarks that are ‘confusingly similar.’
‘Moreover, Fashion Nova uses other unauthorized search engine optimization tactics and/or social media spamming so that Fashion Nova webpages show up at or near the top of relevant search results and misdirect consumers searching for Versace Apparel,’ it adds.