Throughout the past two decades the name Michael Capponi has become synonymous with cutting-edge nightlife, luxury living and quality entertaining. In the process he has earned a reputation as one of Miami’s most respected and well-known entrepreneurs.
Michael’s internationally acclaimed nightlife ventures helped establish South Beach as a luxe destination for the international jet-set. His development projects, including the 50-story high-rise Ten Museum Park, a vital piece of downtown Miami’s renaissance, and the boutique Anglers Resort, designed by famed Gianni Versace architect Wallace Tutt, have garnered critical praise the world over. Meanwhile, a full-service luxury home construction and renovation company under Michael’s command is tastefully and efficiently turning million dollar homes into multi-million dollar homes throughout South Florida. With the launch this year of Capponi Casa, Michael has boldly expanded into the world of interior design and home furnishings, offering a line of high-end sofas, chairs, dining tables, bedroom sets, as well as custom furniture to meet the need of any client.
These diverse projects are all simply the realization of Michael’s lifestyle, a lifestyle he can now share with you. The Capponi Group has created this website for connoisseurs of the scene. It’s an inside glance at Michael Capponi’s world of nightclubs, elite parties, blue-chip developments, and fashionable events.
The Portfolio page includes over 400 interviews with and letters about Capponi spanning almost two decades. Click on Nightlife-Venues to read about the latest clubs, hotels and hotspots Michael is representing. Event-Flashes showcase more than 1000 pages of the hottest faces seen at his soirees. If you are not already on Michael’s mailing list, please take the time to register. It is completely confidential and will never be shared or sold to other entities.
We invite you to experience all that the Capponi Group has to offer. Each of our parties is photographed and the photos are updated weekly on this website, and then stored for years to come. Click on Event-Flashes, select the event and see who was there. So if you spot Michael or one of his photographers with a camera, smile! You could end up in Event-Flashes next week. Enjoy!
History
Since entering the nightclub business 18 years ago, Michael has been recognized as one of the driving creative forces behind South Beach’s emergence as an international destination. From his enfant terrible days of the late ‘80s to being given the key to the city by former Mayor Niesin Kasdin, Michael’s rise is inextricably linked to the growth and prominence of South Beach itself. But his influence is not limited to South Florida. New York Congressman Tom Reynolds named Michael Businessman of the year, and he has hosted exclusive, star-studded hotel and restaurant launches, nightclub debuts, charity functions and private house parties around the world.
Michael’s talent may very well be genetic. His family has been involved in the entertainment and fashion worlds for almost a century, stretching back to the era of Josephine Baker, Gunther Sachs, Brigitte Bardot and Regine: Michael’s father and grandfather owned nightclubs throughout Europe and the French Riviera from the 20’s to the 80’s, including The Scotch Club, The Golden Gate, and the celebrated Le Boeuf sur le Toit in Cannes, France.
Born in Belgium with a Florentine heritage, Michael grew up in Miami where his family owned several restaurants. A veteran waiter by age 15, Michael sensed that amidst the crumbling Art Deco buildings that made up South Beach in those days, something was happening that he had to be a part of. Taking a job first as busboy at the Palace restaurant on Ocean Drive and then the soon-to-be-legendary hotspot Club Nu, Michael became a part of the community of models, photographers, fashion designers and club kids who were revitalizing the Beach. Waiting tables gave way to promoting and quickly Michael Capponi Events appeared in magazines from New York to Europe as the most creative and eclectic on South Beach.
Michael’s flair for throwing great parties soon attracted a long line of nightclub owners seeking help rejuvenating their businesses. Over the next ten years he worked with most major nightclubs, restaurants and hotels on South Beach, promoting opening-night parties and hosting weekly soirees. The names of these establishments read like a history of Miami Beach nightlife: Avenue A parties, Warsaw and The Spot (with Gary James), Boomerang, Cassis, Stars, Les Bains, The Strand, Amnesia, Lua, Bang, Dune, The Cave, Mickey’s, Risk, 1235, Paragon, Glam Slam, Penrod’s, Liquid, Bar Room, The Forge, Liquid Palm Beach, 320, Flute and Grass.
Six years ago, Capponi began promoting a Wednesday night party on South Beach at B.E.D., a supper club-cum-lounge that quickly became South Beach’s hottest event. In 2002, he launched Privé, an exclusive lounge within the Opium Garden complex, followed by Mansion in early 2004. In 2005 The Hotel Victor, 2006 Glass and now for 2007 Set.
Today, Capponi commands a guest-list that spans Hollywood celebrities, rock and rap stars, supermodels, international jetsetters and the cream of Miami’s society. Superstars passing through South Beach feel compelled to attend a Capponi soiree. Click on Celebrity Guests to view some of these famous faces.
Michael does not take his success lightly. He is grateful for the support of the community and determined to give back in a meaningful way. As a result fundraising has become a significant focus of the Capponi Group.
Michael is on the committee for a number of charitable events, including Miami’s Starlight Gala (benefiting Bay Point schools) and the inaugural Red Cross Dance Ball (at which he was the recipient of the Trailblazer Award and given the key to the city by then-mayor Niesen Kasdin for his efforts after the September 11 tragedy), The Fashion Art Ball (benefiting The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) and the Bvlgari Ball (benefiting the Jackson Memorial Foundation). He is a vice chair for the New Yorkers for Children Gala and co-chairs the Best Buddies Jobs Gala with Anthony Kennedy Shriver. He is also on the committee for the Bare Foot on the Beach Gala supporting the Boys and Girls Club of Palm Beach. Michael currently works with various drug rehabilitation facilities to aid young people suffering drug addiction. In 1999 he also launched a city-wide food drive for victims of the war in Kosovo, which raised over $500,000 and 15,000 pounds of donated food and clothing, which was distributed throughout the region. Most recently Michael and the Red Cross of Miami have worked on fund raisers for every major hurricane that has recently struck our nation. On Thanksgiving 2006 Michael along with Miami Rescue Mission fed over 1,500 homeless people in the Miami area.
With the launch of the Capponi Group, Michael hopes to continue to contribute to the community around him.
Companies
Michael Capponi’s passion for excellence has taken him inside the world’s most exclusive venues and events, from Fashion Week in Paris to the Grand Prix in Monaco. He is a regular in St. Barths, Ibiza, and the Cannes Film Festival. This lifetime of travel has informed his tastes and cultivated an eye for design. Michael’s success helping define Miami’s nightlife is a direct result of this experience. Now it serves as the inspiration for his latest venture, the creation of the Capponi Group of companies, which together market a complete luxury lifestyle.
Capponi Properties, Michael’s development arm, seeks out high-end commercial projects. It launched in 2002 when he partnered with Gregg Covin, Chad Oppenheim and Armin Mattli to create Ten Museum Park, a grand high-rise of shimmering glass overlooking Biscayne Bay in the heart of Downtown Miami. Ten Museum Park is being hailed by civic leaders as an integral part of the resurgence of downtown Miami. Capponi again partnered with Covin to create the boutique Anglers Resort in South Beach, in conjunction with internationally-renowned designer Wallace Tutt, the architect behind Gianni Versace’s Casa Casuarina* The exclusive Anglers Resort will feature condos and a hotel, as well as a restaurant, all set amid the privacy of the resort’s intimate grounds.
Over the course of several years Michael purchased a series of homes for himself that he then renovated until they met his standards for elegance. He quickly realized that if he streamlined the projects so that all aspects of construction were under central control, the jobs were completed much faster. Thus was born the Capponi Building Company, which specializes in building and renovating luxury homes. To date Capponi Building has remodeled some of the finest homes in South Florida, in each case doubling the home’s value. The money invested in a Capponi Building Company renovation is returned several times over upon sale. This is exactly the strategy financial experts are advising as the real-estate market goes from bull to bear – invest in upgrades while riding out a period of slow or stagnant growth.
Michael’s international connections only benefit Capponi Building Company’s clients. He has exclusive arrangements with exotic wood suppliers in South America and sculpture-grade fine-stone quarries in Turkey. His team of craftsmen includes classically trained finish carpenters and stone masons. A Capponi built home is a virtually headache-free experience because every aspect, from the first permit pulled to the installation of home entertainment systems, is handled by the company.
In fact, with the launch this year of Capponi Casa, a Capponi built home can be completed right down to the interior furnishings. Partnering with the renowned custom furniture maker and refinisher Johanni Noesi, Michael is launching a line of contemporary sofas, sectionals, tables, along with dining and bedroom sets. Capponi Casa specializes in furniture custom-made from a variety of hardwoods and hand-upholstered in opulent silks, leathers, and velvets, to the homeowner’s specifications. Johanni has combed the mills of Europe to find the best linens, supplest leathers, and most spectacular designs to truly heighten a home’s beauty. Capponi Casa also prides itself on its custom commercial work. Noesi’s team of experts has created the look inside South Beach’s hottest clubs and restaurants. The company is equipped to rapidly create any quantity of custom banquettes, tables and lounge areas for restaurants and nightclubs using the most innovative and contemporary fabrics.
Michael started the Capponi Group because he wanted to share his world, a world of exclusivity, elegance, and comfort, and make glamour accessible to those with the discerning eye.
