Fashion mogul Nicky Zimmermann buys $60 million Vaucluse trophy home

Sydney’s most expensive homes don’t come cheap, given a $60 million bottom line just to make the top 10 list, so it is somewhat refreshing to see local fashion designer-made-good Nicky Zimmermann join the ranks of our top trophy home buyers.

The Vaucluse waterfront residence of agribusinessman and investment banker Garrick Hawkins and his wife Evelyn was previously for sale for $60 million until it was quietly withdrawn from property websites earlier this year.

The residence, designed by architect Andre Porebski, was originally listed for $60 million before it sold.Credit: Domain

The Coolong Road property never traded at the time, but a title search this week revealed it exchanged on October 31, and interests lodged by HWL Ebsworth Lawyers reveal the buyer as Zimmermann and her husband Chris Olliver, the chief executive of the Zimmermann global fashion empire.

The sale price remains undisclosed, but Hawkins was understood to have maintained $60 million hopes through the agent selling it, Ken Jacobs, who sources say had frequented the property in recent months with buyer’s agent Simon Cohen.

The fashion designer’s purchase underscores the success of her eponymous label since she started out selling her designs at a stall at Paddington Markets in 1991, and co-founded the fashion label soon after with her North Bondi-based big sister Simone.

Nicky Zimmermann (right) and her sister Simone founded the label in 1991.Credit: Antoine Doyen

As many Australian labels were being hit by the retail recession in 2019 and pandemic constraints of more recent years, Zimmermann has proved to be one of the industry’s success stories with dozens of stores worldwide and the Milan-based investment fund Style Capital acquiring 70 per cent of the label in 2020 for an estimated $446 million.

Zimmermann’s new house is a three-storey residence on almost 1700 square metres of waterfront, with Thomas Hamel interiors. The floor plan includes formal and informal living and dining rooms, a rumpus and billiard room, darkroom, home office, cellar, six bedrooms, nine bathrooms and garaging for four cars.

The harbourfront pool is adjoined by a boat shed, jetty and slipway, as well as a gymnasium, health retreat, and sauna.

Hawkins was managing partner at stockbroker Bain & Co in 1987 when he bought the property from the estate of the late industrialist Sir James Kirby for $3.55 million, promptly lodging a DA to demolish the house to make way for his own architect Andre Porebski-designed residence.

Garrick and Evelyn Hawkins commissioned the designer house in 1987.Credit: Domain

The Zimmermann-Olliver family are already Vaucluse locals, according to property records. Their current home on Hopetoun Avenue is a four-bedroom house with a swimming pool they bought in 2014 for $4.2 million.

Their soon-to-be new address on Coolong Road is billed one of Sydney’s best streets, despite lacking the views to the Harbour Bridge that lure buyers to nearby Carrara Road and Point Piper’s Wolseley Road.

Her new neighbours are a roll call of identities from the rich list and financial circles, like David Lowy of the Westfield family, Menulog co-founder Leon Kamenev, the Transfield family’s Marco Belgiorno-Zegna, industrialist Barry Smorgon, banker Ron Malek, developer Phillip Wolanski and currency trader Ivan Ritossa next door.

Coolong Road’s waterfront homes are owned by the likes of Ivan Ritossa, David Lowy and Leon Kamenev.

It is expected to be the third-highest house sale in Sydney this year, topped by the $62.75 million that lawyer John Landerer sold his Vaucluse mansion for in February and the $60 million purchase in Darling Point by medical entrepreneur Dr Glenn Haifer.