than the club’s book value at the time: He sold Wentworth in 2014 for £135m to Reignwood Investments, a Chinese holding company associated with billionaire Yan Bin. In the meantime, Caring also purchased the former American Navy Building in London's Grosvenor Square in 2009. Restaurants and private members' clubs After buying Wentworth, Caring realised he needed to raise the standard of food. He approached his favourite restaurant Le Caprice in summer 2005, but as discussions deteriorated Caring joked it was costing him so much he might as well buy the whole Caprice Holdings group; it emerged that the management was looking for a buyer. Six weeks later, after selling designer evening wear label Amanda Wakeley, Caring secured a £31.5m deal to take over Caprice Holdings, owner of The Ivy, Le Caprice and J Sheekey, as well as Italian restaurant Daphne's and Vietnamese restaurant Bam-Bou. Caring began to reshape the group, which created much media coverage for someone who previously preferred to stay out of the limelight. In 2005 he added fish restaurant Scott’s and catering firm Urban Productions, but sold Pasha to Algerian restaurateur Tony Kitous. He also bought Signature Restaurants from Luke Johnson for £57m, owner of mid-market Strada and Belgo chains. In 2006 he bought Rivington, a two-restaurant group independently set up by Caprice Holding’s chef director Mark Hix. He sold Strada in 2007 for £140m. In 2007 he purchased the Birley Group (Annabel's, Harry's Bar, Mark's Club) for £95m including the vast art collection, concluded just a few months before Mark Birley's death. In 2008 he agreed a leveraged buyout of 28 small investors in private members' club Soho House, taking 80% for £105m, with the remainder held by Nick Jones who remains CEO, also his partner in Cecconi’s. Caring also owns stakes in Cote (formed by the former management team of Strada), and Alternative Investment Market listed chain Carluccio's. Caprice Holdings also owns Sexy Fish. The speed with which Caring has built his restaurant chain has resulted in many questioning his reasoning, on both a strategic level as well as the high purchase prices paid. He has been dubbed by some as "the Lex Luthor of Mayfair" for his apparent supermarket-sweep approach to buying companies. Other critics say he is brandishing a credit card, playing a high-stakes game of Monopoly, buying every square he lands on. But Caring insists he has a masterplan: Caring's strategy is