The owner of a private London club is closing a deal for a venue in Palm Beach, hoping to create a rival to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago and take advantage of the influx of wealthy Britons to the Florida region.
Robin Birley is understood to be close to securing a property for his latest club, partly financed by the billionaire Reuben brothers, who in 2024 were named the third richest family in the UK by the Sunday Times rich list.
Its 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 for being the unofficial headquarters of some less glamorous ones. figures on the right of British politics, including Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson and, until recently, Liz Truss, who was a regular at 5 Hertford Street until she became persona non grata for lurking around the premises to recruit members for her own rival club.
The Palm Beach property will be his most luxurious venue yet, with plans for an outdoor pool, and sources said he is in the process of studying art and consulting top interior designers to create a more eye-catching American feel.
The plans come as the world’s right accepts that the center of political gravity has largely shifted to the island of Florida, which is the home of President Donald Trump, who has a makeshift war room at his Mar-a-Lago club and often mingles with guests as they sip cocktails on the beach or circulate through its gilded ballrooms.
Birley hopes to compete with Trump’s club and offer a more low-key, but still opulent, place for wealthy people to relax after a round of golf and party poolside into the wee hours of the morning. While 5 Hertford Street is a warren of cozy, fireplace-lit rooms in which to whisper secrets and close deals, the Palm Beach location will be more extravagant, part of a chain that gives members of London’s Birley clubs access to venues in the United States. Birley opened a club, Maxime’s, on New York’s Madison Avenue last year.
Right-wing figures in the UK have been drawn to Palm Beach, hoping to enter Donald Trump’s orbit. Former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has been rejected even by Reform UK after her disastrous mini-Budget crashed the economy and torpedoed her tenure as Prime Minister in 2022, recently traveled to Mar-a-Lago to meet Trump.
He said Palm Beach was the “epicenter of the counter-elite” that is taking on the liberal establishment based in New York and Los Angeles that he believes is “destroying the West.”
“There are many Britons fleeing the climate and the even worse political climate, with continuous work,” Truss declared.
Nigel Farage seems to agree and has spent a lot of time there and traveled there last week in the hope of meeting Trump. Also earlier this year he attended a gala at Mar-a-Lago with British socialite Lady Victoria Hervey, ex-girlfriend of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor 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.
Aside from political figures, many wealthy Britons and celebrities have moved. Rod Stewart has swapped the drizzle of London for the sunshine of Palm Beach, and David Beckham divides his time between there and the UK.
Not all Floridians have been pleased with the influx of wealthy expats like Stewart. Those who live there have had to deal with extreme weather conditions, hurricanes, flooding and now property prices, which are soaring as foreign buyers bid for second homes.
Still, Senada Adzem, of property brokers Douglas Elliman, said there have been at least 20 major home sales to British buyers since December 2025.
“I personally deal with a lot of British customers who shop in Palm Beach,” he told The Guardian. “I have seen an increase in the number of very wealthy Britons who are not only buying holiday homes, but moving. Many of them feel that wealth preservation is a good reason to have a main residence in the area.”
Due to the influx of wealthy international buyers, “there is a demand for many exclusive restaurants and private clubs, there is a confluence of events where all these people from all over the world, including the British, have chosen to settle here. They prefer this city to Miami, which is too busy and with too many skyscrapers, but they still want a good nightlife and to have cultural experiences on their doorstep.”
He added that while people previously traveled to the area during the December-May “season,” “now it’s a year-round residence. There’s no sleep anymore.”
Alistair Brown, chief executive of West Palm Beach Properties, said British business is booming.
He added: “We have been based here for over 25 years, and yes, we have seen notable growth in demand from the UK. I regularly travel between Florida and London to meet families who are considering moving or spending winters here. “The arrival of a traditional UK club in this market will work very well in a very socially connected city.
“The ‘membership’ model is alive and well here, typically golf clubs in this area, the private club on Palm Beach Island will be a great addition and will do well in my opinion.”
