Of course, they also suggested that the suffering wealthy show more discretion with their Ferraris and Porsches as they summer in Capri, Porto Cervo, Portofino and other popular, exclusive resorts.

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"The market is already suffering from a lack of Indian coffee beans, so if more is consumed domestically, high-end coffee will suffer, " says Rachel Hamburger, chief executive of Portofino Coffee Ltd.

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She notes that the Zegnas and Giorgio Armani have been hugely supportive of FAI projects, including the restoration of Milan's famous modernist Villa Necchi, as well as the Abbey of San Fruttuoso, near Portofino.

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Once we arrived at the world of Universal, I discovered that the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel looked strikingly like Portofino, Italy, with its Necco-wafer-colored Italian-ish buildings jammed together in front of a piazza with hollowed out Vespa scooters bolted to the ground.

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