Out of Africa to Cap d’Antibes
Jean-Pierre and his wife Maud have been Cap d’Antibes residents for over 30 years and have spent most of that time selling houses between Cap Ferrat and St Tropez. Introduced by a mutual friend I was invited to their home recently by Jean-Pierre who kindly agreed to be interviewed for the blog.
I began by asking Jean-Pierre to tell me a little bit about himself and how he came to be here on the Cap.
So I am a typical Cap d’Antibes immigrant case. My parents came here from Paris after the second world war for health reasons. After four years of living here we went back to Paris but every holiday we used to come here. We didn’t own a house on the Cap at that time, instead we first rented a house in Chemin des Sables which has since been destroyed. Now there is a little apartment building where that house was.
When we lived there there were just a few houses which were surrounded by fields with flowers. I remember there was a large Well where we used to get our drinking water from because in those days the water in Antibes wasn’t very good. Back then there were maybe only 10,000 people living in Antibes but I am guessing.
My father, Edouard, was an artist, in fact the painting behind us is a portrait of me painted by my father. He was a very talented artist receiving the grand prix du Rome in 1932 when he was just 26 years old. It was a highly prestigious French scholarship established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. The scholarship was later abolished in the 60’s. Here on the Cap he painted latérale Chapelle de la Vierge inside Chapelle de La Garoupe.
Are his paintings still there today?
Yes they are. You must go and see them. Unfortunately, over the years,they were spoiled by humidity but they have since been restored by the Mairie. In 2016 and 2017 renovation works throughout the Chapel were carried out to get rid of these water and condensation problems.
Actually I remember one time, while he was painting the chapel, I was wounded by a German bullet which I found lying around up there. It happened while they were re-building the lighthouse. It had been destroyed by the Germans when the war ended. The damaged wasn’t caused by the bombing but intentionally by the Germans when they left.
During the re-building, at lunch time, the workers would make a little fire to sit around while eating. Well I saw the fire and I thought to myself I wonder what will happen if I put a bullet on it. In those days there were many bullets lying around so it was very easy for children to find them. On this particular day I had found a big one and so I decided to throw it into the fire.
Boom! The bullet exploded. It was a stupid thing to do, but children are stupid you know. Part of the bullet hit me in the ankle so I learned my lesson after that. I guess I was very lucky not to have been more severely injured. I was nursed by Mrs Dozol who was the then inn and chapel keeper.
Back then around the chapel there were also several bunkers most of which were destroyed and filled in during the rebuilding. I can remember hearing the massive booms of them blowing them up from my classroom. I went to school in St Philippe in Juan Les Pins but you could hear it very clearly from there. One bunker still remains but most people don’t know about it. When you arrive to the chapel by car, on your right you have a big flat area. There, underneath, is the one remaining bunker.
While my father painted the chapel my sister and I would play up by the lighthouse and in the surrounding woods as did many children. Back then it was very safe here. There were always people around, good people and everyone knew each other. It was a very secure place for children to be, unless like me you took it upon yourself to do something stupid.
Where did you stay when you came here for holidays? Did you parents already have a house on the Cap at that time?
No. Initially we used to stay in an apartment above a dry cleaners in Antibes. My mother had a friend who had been her piano teacher in Paris and she came across her here in Antibes working as a dry cleaner. After the war everybody had to do several jobs to make a living so if you needed to repair your watch you took it to the butcher, the lady who worked in the Chacuterie, she was a singer, and my mothers’ piano teacher was working as a dry cleaner. People had to do different things to make ends meet.
So the piano teacher rented us the little flat above her shop whenever we came down.
What did you get up to as a child on the Cap?
I don’t remember doing that much when we were here. We played Tennis, went swimming and of course we went to the beach, the usual things you do on holiday.
So what brought you here full time?
Up until 30 years ago the Cap was my secondary home only. My parents bought this house in 1955 and in 1967 they came here to live full time. They came to retire. My father did carry on teaching for several years down here but eventually he retired too.
At that time I was living in Africa which is where I met Maud, my wife. I went there initially for my military service but after, because I liked it very much there, I went back to work. I stayed there for a few years before returning to France. Back then if you stayed in Africa for too long then you had to stay there until you retired. Few were able to find work in France after working in Africa for a long time.
There was a saying that you don’t know how to work if you have worked for too long in Africa.
Where in Africa were you working?
I was in West Africa working as the marketing manager for 33 export, the beer. The original 33 export was produced in Vietnam but it was also produced in West Africa. When that job ended they actually offered me a position in Vietnam but I said “No thank you very much”. One year after there were people hanging off helicopters to leave the place so I made a good decision.
So while working in Africa I met Maud and we fell in love. She was a student living there with her Parents when we met. After that the story gets very complicated and I don’t want to go into that.
Maud and I got married and moved into my parents’ house here on the Cap. That was about 30 years ago. My parents had by that time moved somewhere else.
How did you both end up in the real estate business?
Well, basically for me it was a problem to find work as a marketing manager in Antibes. In fact it was impossible so we had to find something else to do. Maud found a job working for an estate agent and she seemed to advance very quickly in that company so I decided to create my own immobillier. It seemed a good line of work to be in down here.
Eventually I opened my own agency. We were selling properties all over the Cote d’Azur not just in Cap d’Antibes. In fact I had two agencies at that time one of which was in Antibes. Maud was working everywhere from St Tropez to St Jean Cap Ferrat and beyond.
Can you remember the first house you sold in Cap d’Antibes?
Maud: Yes I remember the first house that I sold very well. It’s an incredible story. It was when I had just started working as an immobilier. I was in my 20’s at the time. One day I was driving over the Cap and I saw an old lady walking with a lot of bags so I thought I would help her.
She was just a little old lady, there was nothing particular about her at all. So I stopped and offered her a lift and we went together to her house in Cap d’Antibes. During the drive we chatted and she asked me what I was doing so I explained my work to her. Then maybe 1 or 2 years later she called me. She said Maud I want you to be my sole, exclusive real estate agent. She had decided to sell her house.
I had recently met with Mr Kapnist, the owner of the oldest immobilier on the Cap to introduce myself as I was just starting out. I remember we drank a coffee together just across from his office. He seemed to like me and said that maybe we could work together. So when I was given this amazing property to sell he was the first person I called. He told me that he had some American people who were looking to buy a house in Cap d’Antibes so we showed them the house together. They absolutely loved it and they bought it. That was the first house I sold. I was maybe 22 years old.
Maud in 1974, around the time she sold her first house. by Jean-Pierres’ father Edouard Collin
So you drank some champagne to celebrate?
Maud: Laughs I never wait for such situations to drink champagne.
Jean-Pierre: In France we never drink Champagne to mark a sale because when you make the Compromis it’s never certain that you are going to make the sale. Then, when you have finally made the sale, the thing has taken such a long time to complete that the feeling of celebration has long passed.
What was the house like?
It was an amazing house built in the early 1900’s with a lot of charm. It was also in a fabulous location, it was all about it’s location. The house was in a very exclusive part of the Cap where now you have all the Russian people. The property also came with a lot of land.
It was actually very funny when the Americans moved in because they bought with them their own mattress. It was the first time in my life that I met people arriving in the south of France with a mattress, but it wasn’t just a mattress, the mattress was filled with water. Apparently waterbeds were very fashionable in the States at that time. I had never seen anything like it before. It was very funny for me.
I was so young when all this took place that I had no idea that things like this could happen. Never did I imagine someone would think of me after two years but she thought I was so nice and polite when she met me. Because of thet when she wanted to sell she decided that she wanted to work with me.
I was very lucky. You know very often life really is just a question of luck and also if you can catch that luck when it crosses your path.
Jean-Pierre what do you love about selling houses?
Nothing, for me it is just necessary, it’s not a passion at all and it’s difficult work.
Do you like to travel?
No I don’t like to travel but one of our sons live outside of France so for that reason we are obliged to travel.
Why do you not like travelling?
I just don’t like it. I don’t like to be a tourist. However I do like living in other countries and I loved living in Africa. When you live and work in a place you immerse yourself in the country and the culture but I hate being a tourist.
Where do your sons live?
One of our sons now lives near Chamonix with his wife. He works for an architect there and his wife is a director in a hospital. Our second son, Romain has lived in New York for the last 10 years. He is a professional pianist and composer. Initially he went to school in Manchester and after that he went to the school of music in Boston. Following that he went to LA after being was chosen by Herbie Hancock himself to study with him for 2 years there. During that time he travelled a lot but now he is based in New York full time composing and playing music.
Both of our sons obviously grew up on the Cap and they love it here very much. Actually they say that that is a problem for them. Cap d’Antibes is such an amazing place it makes you fall in love with it and never want to leave. Unfortunately it is very difficult to find work on the Cote d’Azur so they have had to leave for work reasons. Unless you work in IT or in real estate their aren’t many job options here especially in the creative industries.
Cap d’Antibes is so beautiful that people want to stay forever but at the same time you have to make many sacrifices if you want to live here, mainly professional ones.
I always say that here you pay twice for the sun. First from your salary, salaries are lower here. Secondly the price of property which is so much higher here than anywhere else, especially now.
Did you have to make sacrifices to stay here?
No, for us it was just a decision we had to make rather than a sacrifice. I was offered a job as a marketing manager in Africa which would have been very well paid but we decided that our life would be better here.
Where do you think your sons passion for music comes from?
I’m not sure actually as I don’t really have an artistic streak in me, however my wife does, she dances. Maybe that’s the reason why my son developed his passion for music. Both of our sons grew up around music and dancing.
So is this home now, will you always be here in Cap d’Antibes?
Yes I think so. Well we have been living here for 30 years now and we have no plans or desire to be anywhere else. All over the world you can look for a place like this but you won’t find it. There are so many good elements around us. We are close to the sea and close to the airpor, we have the mountains and the beautiful nature. We have everything here and also most of our lifelong friends are here.
How has the Cap changed since your parents bought this house in 1955?
When my parents came here this house was surrounded by land, there weren’t all the villas you see now. Instead there were just fields and flowers.
50 years ago there were of course rich people like today but they were old rich people. Families who had been wealthy for generations. At that time they came from the US, England and Germany. Now you see the culture is completely different. There are still rich people still but they are the new rich who have recently come into money.
I assume you have sold many properties in Cap d’Antibes. You must have met some interesting people over the years?
We have sold many and for me the people who buy are always interesting.
We sold one villa to an Englishman many years ago. He had made his money from the world wide web. I don’t know anything at all about this technology stuff but he once explained to me that there are four tubes to go to the internet in the UK and that he had one of them in his house. I don’t know if it’s true or not but that’s what he told me.
It was around 2000 when the internet was just booming. I remember before buying that house he used to come regularly looking for a property to buy. Every time he came down he would come with a bigger budget as he got richer and richer. Eventually we sold him a house. Then, four years later he called me and told me that he had to sell the house.
This man was very funny because the day he originally bought that house I was driving him to the airport in Nice. In fact we made made the compromis at the airport. While we were driving along the bord du mer we passed La Siesta (still there now) and I began telling him that it was a casino with lovely restaurants and so on. He said “Yes Yes I know La Siesta. Isn’t Pylone Camping just across the street? I used to stay there when I came to Antibes?” He then told me that he had often gone gambling at La Siesta while staying at the campsite.
I guess he noticed the surprise on my face as he said “You know Jean-Pierre, I haven’t always been rich. There was a time when I didn’t have money and during that time I would stay in that campsite”
As long as I had known him he had always stayed at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes. It was funny. In any case he ended up having to sell the house which was a shame.
How have the house buyers changed over the years?
It’s funny because you had very typical people coming in each decade. In the early days, before my time, when Cap d’Antibes was just becoming popular you had many Americans and also the English. After the second world war came the Swedish, then they disappeared just like the English before them. During the Margaret Thatcher era many of the English who had come back then sold again. We sold a lot of those properties for them when that happened. Later when the situation in the UK improved they returned again.
In the 70’s and 80’s it was very fashionable to visit Cap d’Antibes wasn’t it?
Yes, people came here from all over the world. The people who came here back then were very highly educated and also generally in creative industries, actors, writers, actresses and such like. Afterwards in around the 90’s when there was the big financial crisis all of that stopped and the people changed. Then we had many people from other parts of France and various other Countries who started coming here. For us it’s very interesting to see the evolution of this place. After the 90’s you had many Swedish again who came here with a lot of money. Taxes in Sweden at that time were very high so they wanted to take their money somewhere else and this is where they brought it. Then following that of course you now have the Russians.
For me the Russians are interesting.
They are new rich but one feels that they want to live like the old Russians of the past. They like to build big palatial homes on lots of land so they can live in the style of the old Russian nobles.
Immediately they re-instate and renovate the main grand villas and buy back land which was in the past part of the original domains. After that they buy up all the little houses which were built when there was no money here. At that time most of the domains were broken up and sold off by their owners. Then they destroy everything and renew the old domains as they were originally. Is it a good or bad thing? I don’t know but for me it’s interesting.
Can you tell me a few things about the Cap which people maybe don’t know?
I assume you must be aware of the Gould Family. One of the very famous American families who came to Cap d’Antibes between the two world wars. They would invite all their rich friends to come here during the summer time.
Mr Gould was the first person to build a big casino here on the Cote d’Azur. He built the first one in Nice then he built the casino in Juan Les Pins.
At the same time he was buying up all the land around here. You can’t actually imagine Cap d’Antibes as it is today without thinking of the Goulds. They were the family who owned the famous Provencale Hotel. Maud and I knew very well their grand-daughter who was actually our neighbour for a time. She was always travelling all over the world. It was very interesting for us because during this period, when we were still were very young, we were always invited to her home where we met lots of fabulous people from all over the world. Very interesting people.
It was a really fun time for us and we were always at some party or other.
Actually as we are speaking of the Gould family there is actually still a large wooden moving crate in a house on Chemin des Nielles which once belonged to them. I know this because Maud sold that property and when the new owners moved in they found the box in the house. On the box was written Gould no2. The crate is still in the house today, the current owners kept it. It’s a real piece of history, it’s probably been there since the early 1900’s.
Then you have of course heard of the Villa America on Chemin des Mougins built by the Murphy’s.
The Murphys were very good friends of the Goulds. Both families were central to making Cap d’Antibes the go to destination for the rich and famous. It was the Murphys who asked the Hotel du Cap to stay open during the summer for the first time ever. Up until then the Hotel had only welcomed guests in the winter and closed during the summer months. However the Murphys persuaded the then owners to keep it open. They needed somewhere on the Cap to stay while Villa America was being built so that they could oversee the Villas’ construction.
Mr Murphy had bought 6000sqms of land in the centre of the Cap on which to build his Villa. On that land was also the La Ferme des Orangers which is actually now on Chemin des Nielles. At that time Chemin des Nielles didn’t exist. The road was built much later and cuts right through the middle of the original piece of land now separating the two houses.
Known for their hospitality, the Murphy family transformed La Ferme des Oranger into a guest house and made it available to many artists, including famous writers and painters. At the beginning of the twentieth Century Hemingway and his family stayed there several times as did the Fitzgeralds. F.Scott Fitzgerald writes about La Ferme (The Orange Farm) in his novel ‘Tender is the Night’.
Unfortunately Zelda Fitzgerald was eventually diagnosed with schizophrenia and she died completely crazy. I once heard that the Murphys, as a joke, used to call the farm La Ferme Dérangée after her.
Does the Murphy family still own the Villa?
No, Villa America is now owned by a Russian family and unfortunately it’s now surrounded by a high metal fence so you can’t really see it anymore.
Villa Mistinguett
Then there is another interesting villa, The Villa Mistinguett situated on rue du Crouton. This house was originally owned by a very famous French actress and singer called Mistinguett. She was, at one time, the highest-paid female entertainer in the world and was known for her flamboyance. At one point her legs were insured for 500,000 francs which was a lot of money back then.
Villa l’Olivette
There was also another house near to the Port de l’Olivette which was built by a famous comic French singer Dranem. Dranem was born in Paris in 1869. Initially he began working as an apprentice jeweller in a local shop before embarking on a successful career in entertainment. The two heads either side of the entrance are often mistaken for those of Laurel and Hardy but infact they depict Dranem. It’s a shame that they don’t have plaques on buildings here to aknowledge famous previous residents. Maybe I will mention it to the owner of the Villa.
Then you have another famous French Actress, Regina Camier who owned a beautiful house on Chemin des Nielles. Regina became famous for being the first ever actress to show her naked breast on screen.
I remember she had the most incredible art deco bathroom with beautiful art deco tiles. It was a magnificent house but unfortunately it isn’t there anymore. It also had the most incredible views but now all these little houses have been replaced by bigger and more modern ones.
What about the walls and structures in the sea on the Juan les Pins side of the Cap. Do you know anything about those?
Basically these were little private harbours where the owners of the villas dotted along the Cap coastline kept their boats. However they haven’t been used for over 50 years because at some point the Domaine Maritime, who own the coastline, decided to withdraw authorisation for them to be used privately. Since then they have been left to deteriorate naturally.
For example you have what was Port Mallet in front of the Domaine du Cap just before the Port de l’Olivette. This was a little private harbour created in 1910 by the Mallet family who owned the Domaine du Cap opposite. The Mallets , if you don’t know, were a very old French banking family.
Port Mallet
Originally the harbour was used by the owners of the Domaine du Cap but the domaine was eventually divided up and sold off into smaller plots by the family. Afterwards the private use of the harbour was removed by the Domaine Maritime. There are many little areas like this dotted all around the Sentier du Littoral which used to be just for private use.
Painting by Jean-Pierres father of the original Port Gallice.
And Port Gallice, has that always been there?
Port Gallice was the same. In front of port Gallice you now have the residences du Port Gallice a big block of private luxury flats. Before they were built there was a big beautiful house there and in front of that house was a tiny little port. That port was Port Gallice. It wasn’t how it is now at all and there certainly weren’t any big boats. Everything was much smaller and much more open back then.
There are so many other interesting houses and villas here but we would be here forever if we started talking about all of them so we will have to leave some for another time.
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