From Park Lane to Palm Beach: London club owner eyes Florida rival to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago | UK news
A London private members’ club owner is nearing a deal for a venue in Palm Beach, hoping to create a rival to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago and capitalize on the flocking of wealthy Brits to the Florida area.
Robin Birley is understood to be close to securing a property for his latest club, which is being part-financed by the billionaire Reuben brothers, named Britain’s third richest family in 2024 by the Sunday Times Rich List.
London clubs Oswald’s and 5 Hertford Street have hosted the likes of Prince William, Leonardo Di Caprio and Hugh Grant. But they are best known as the unofficial headquarters of some less glamorous companies. Figures on the right of British politics, including Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, who until recently was a regular at 5 Hertford Street, became persona non grata, prowling the premises to recruit members for her rival club.
The Palm Beach property will be its most luxurious yet, with plans for an outdoor swimming pool, and sources said it is in the process of looking at art and consulting top interior designers to create a more opulent American feel.
The plans come as right-wingers around the world acknowledge that the political center of gravity is shifting heavily towards the Florida island, the home address of President Donald Trump, whose Mar-a-Lago club has a makeshift war room and frequently mingles with guests as they sip beachside cocktails or stroll through gilded ballrooms.
Birley hopes to compete with Trump’s club and offer wealthy people a more modest but still ostentatious venue where they can relax into the early hours of the morning after playing a round of golf and partying poolside. While 5 Hertford Street is an enclave of warm, fire-lit rooms where secrets will be whispered and deals made, the Palm Beach location will be more ostentatious, part of a chain that gives members of Birley’s London clubs access to venues across the US. Birley opened a club called Maxime’s on New York’s Madison Avenue last year.
Right-wing figures in the UK have found themselves drawn to Palm Beach in the hope of getting into Donald Trump’s orbit. Former British prime minister Liz Truss, who was shunned even by Reform UK after her disastrous mini-budget crashed the economy and disrupted her premiership in 2022, recently traveled to Mar-a-Lago to meet Trump.
He said Palm Beach was the “epicenter of the counter-elite” fighting against the liberal establishment based in New York and Los Angeles, which he believed was “destroying the west.”
“There are many British people who have escaped the weather and the even worse political climate by unremitting vigilance,” Truss said.
Nigel Farage seems to agree and has spent a lot of time in the region, traveling there last week in the hope of meeting Trump. He also attended a gala at Mar-a-Lago earlier this year with British socialite Lady Victoria Hervey, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s ex-girlfriend and a Palm Beach regular. Reform donor Nick Candy also visited Trump’s club and was photographed with Farage and Elon Musk in front of an oil painting of the president.
As well as political figures, many wealthy Britons and celebrities have also relocated. Rod Stewart has swapped London’s drizzle for Palm Beach sunshine, and David Beckham splits his time between London and the UK.
Not all Floridians were pleased with the influx of wealthy expats like Stewart. Residents there have had to grapple with extreme weather, hurricanes, floods and rising property prices as foreign buyers bid on second homes.
Still, Senada Adzem, one of Douglas Elliman real estate brokers, said that at least 20 large house sales have been made to British buyers since December 2025.
“I personally deal with many British customers who shop in Palm Beach,” he told the Guardian. “I have seen an increase in the number of very wealthy Brits not only buying holiday homes but also relocating. Many feel that protecting their assets is a good reason to have a primary residence in the area.”
Due to the influx of wealthy international buyers, “there’s demand for lots of exclusive restaurants and private members’ clubs, there’s a whole range of activities where all these people from all over the world, including the British, are choosing to settle here. They’re choosing it over Miami, which is very busy, with lots of skyscrapers, but they still want to have good nightlife and cultural experiences on their doorstep.”
He added that while people once traveled to the area during the “season” of December to May, “it’s now a year-round accommodation and it’s no longer sleepy.”
Alistair Brown, managing director of West Palm Beach Properties, said business from Brits was booming.
He added: “We have been here for over 25 years and yes, we are seeing significant growth in demand from the UK. I travel regularly between Florida and London and meet families who are considering both relocating and spending the winters here. “The entry of a traditional UK club into this market will work beautifully in this highly socially connected city.
“The ‘membership’ model is alive and well here; typical golf clubs in this area, the private club on Palm Beach Island will be a great addition and I think will do well.”
