Campari will make €80m from selling luxury mansion Villa Les Cèdres

Campari will earn €80 million (£73 million) from the sale of its historic mansion estate Villa Les Crèdres, the drinks giant has revealed.

Campari acquired the villa, a 187-year-old mansion now for sale along the coast of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, in 2016 as part of its purchase of Société des Produits Marnier-Lapostolle (SPML), which produces Grand Marnier, but immediately put the estate up for sale.

The group, which produces Aperol and Skyy vodka, has reached an agreement with French drinks giant and Marnier Lapostolle, that will earn Campari €80 million when the property is sold.

It is thought to be the world’s most expensive property, boasting 10 bedrooms, a ballroom, concierge, a chapel, 50-meter swimming pool dug into the rocks, a winter garden and stables for 30 horses. It was originally placed on the market with an asking price of €350 million,

The Italian firm decided the property was a “non-strategic” asset,

The sale price of the villa is €200 million, of which Campari Group will retain €80 million, according to a statement from Campari. The Italian firm will pay any sum above €80 million to the shareholders of Grand Marnier’s former owner, Société des Produits Marnier-Lapostolle.

The estate, which once belonged to the Belgian King Leopold II, was acquired by the Marnier-Lapostolle family in 1924. It was owned by Grand Marnier heiress Suzanne Marnier-Lapostolle until 2016, when Campari-Cinzano bought the company.

A steering committee of five family members from Marnier and Di Fede were tasked with selling the estate.

The Italian drinks group predicts the property’s sale will have a “neutral” affect on its financial results at the end of the year.

The transaction closing is expected by 31 October 2019.