What would you do when you become a millionaire? Among the first things you buy might be a big house or a luxurious car, right? Well, something similar happened with Luca Netz. Not only did he become a self-made millionaire at the age of 18, he now claims to be having a net worth of more than $100 million at the age of just 25. But the millionaire recently revealed what his biggest financial regret is.
Luca Netz, the CEO of Web3 NFT community Pudgy Penguins, has fallen into the trap many financial experts warn against -?buying a new, fancy car. And he very much regrets it.?
Netz became a self-made millionaire at age 18 after selling his e-commerce faux-gold jewellery business. He went on to buy Pudgy Penguins for $2.5 million, recently overseeing the launch of the brand¡¯s plush toy offshoot at Walmart. Today the 25-year-old estimates he¡¯s worth over $100 million, as per Fortune.
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While the millionaire never went down a spending rabbit hole the way his wealthy peers have, he told in a recent interview that he admits to an uncharacteristically flashy purchase: a Rolls-Royce Cullinan. That¡¯s an SUV with leather seats and a retractable roof¡ªand a starting price of over $375,000 (approx Rs 3.12 crore) for the 2023 model.
There¡¯s ¡°no purchase that I regret more than my Rolls-Royce Cullinan, which is easily the worst car I¡¯ve ever owned,¡± Netz said. ¡°It¡¯s a great car on its face. But it¡¯s big and clunky¡ªI call it the oil rig. It has no gadgets and no functionality. Outside of the pretty orange interior I have, it serves no purpose.¡±
When asked if he has plans to sell it, he joked: ¡°It¡¯s gonna stay an oil rig in the front lawn of my home just in case we strike gold one of these days and I need to start pumping oil. Maybe that thing can do that.¡±
Perhaps Netz regrets the purchase so much because he¡¯s so hesitant to spend substantial money on any luxuries at all¡ªa mentality he developed while growing up homeless. He says those years of bouncing around impressed upon him the value of frugality, hard work, and avoiding needless purchases.?
¡°Growing up poor gave me an understanding of the value of a dollar; that¡¯s something that I¡¯ve never lost track of,¡± he said. ¡°I understand what it is to make $1, to spend $1. And I understand the difference between having $1,000 and not having it.¡±?
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Netz¡¯s first major purchase, at the age of 19, was a million-dollar home. He largely remained frugal otherwise, he said, finally beginning to spend when he began socialising with the flashy LA social set.?
¡°I was with some pretty prominent figures, and I felt really left out because I was wearing Dickies and a Gildan T-shirt,¡± he recalled. ¡°It wasn¡¯t until I felt like a wallflower that I decided to spend some of the money. But I never went down the rabbit hole that others did, where they blew all the money they made.¡±
He purchased a 2019 BMW M4, to be exact, which was his ¡°favourite car at the time.¡± Then he slowly eased into lifestyle creep, indulging in ¡°some sneakers, some watches, and some nice attire,¡± but he says he never went overboard. ¡°BMWs instead of Ferraris. And instead of Louis Vuitton, Theory.¡±
Netz doesn¡¯t even like to eat at restaurants. ¡°Expensive dinners are a waste of money, because once you eat it, it¡¯s gone, and there¡¯s nothing left to enjoy,¡± he said. ¡°I think good food is important, but I am not a firm believer in $1,000 steaks, or gold flakes on your steak.¡±?
No wonder he feels the Rolls-Royce was such a mistake, a rare financial misstep for the young workaholic.?
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