Welcome to The Group Chat with Lucy Manly, where Australia’s most trusted society insider shares the hottest gossip BEFORE it makes the news.
Bankrupt? Don’t sweat it
Bondi’s Slow House sauna is known for many things – sweaty influencers, people pretending they’re ‘doing a detox’ while checking their emails – but a 6.30am investment seminar hosted by a bankrupt pub baron was not on my bingo card.
Yet my source insists that’s precisely what happened on Monday, when disgraced hospitality tsar Jon Adgemis was overheard holding court in the bath house, eagerly pitching a fresh business opportunity to a group of ‘fit young men’.
Be careful, lads. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
According to my spy, the impromptu mentoring session then moved to Bondi’s most offensively priced café, Common Supply, where Adgemis was seen ‘shouting 25 rounds of avocado toast’.
Jon Adgemis (above, with ex-fiancée Megan MacKenzie) was overheard sharing a business investment opportunity with a group of ‘fit young men’ in Bondi’s Slow House sauna this week
Once considered the next Justin Hemmes, Adgemis (above, with ex Cheyenne Tozzi in 2016) was bankrupted two months ago after accumulating an eye-watering $1.8billion debt pile
Per a bankruptcy report by Andrew Yeo of Pitcher Partners, the Cranbrook old boy and former KPMG consultant says he expects to earn $490,000 a year from a mysterious new employer
It comes just two months after Adgemis was bankrupted when the ATO swooped in and took over his attempted DIY insolvency, installing their own trustee – which is sort of like trying to fire yourself and ending up with a new boss instead.
Reports into his finances painted a picture worthy of a Netflix drama: a lavish lifestyle funded by credit cards, a collapsed pub empire, an eye-watering $1.8billion debt pile – the largest personal bankruptcy in Australia’s history – and a migraine-inducing web of companies and luxury cars.
At his peak, Adgemis controlled 22 pubs and hotels and was gunning to rival Merivale CEO Justin Hemmes.
Now, according to a bankruptcy report by Andrew Yeo of Pitcher Partners, the Cranbrook old boy has disclosed he expects to earn $490,000 a year from a mysterious new employer. Hopefully the new gig comes with a sauna stipend.
But if this week’s Bondi bonding session is anything to go by, the erstwhile KPMG consultant – whose former girlfriends include models Cheyenne Tozzi and Megan MacKenzie – hasn’t lost his flair for a comeback.
Saunas. Finance bros. Smashed avo. The phoenix rises – and he rises early.
‘We were on a break’Â
Fox Sports ‘golden boy’ Jake Duke has kept his head down since his fiery split from Seven presenter Grace Fitzgibbon almost two years ago – a break-up that lit up newsroom group chats for weeks.
I broke the story of Tiffany Salmond’s (left) late-night call to her Fox Sports colleague Jake Duke (right) that led to his three-year relationship with Seven’s Grace Fitzgibbon imploding
I’ve since learned that Duke, while refusing to comment publicly, privately told friends and colleagues at the time that he and Fitzgibbon (right) were ‘on a break’Â
The couple, together for three years, reportedly hit the skids after Duke received a late-night call from New Zealand Warriors sideline reporter Tiffany Salmond in February 2024.
Whatever was said during those wee hours, insiders claim it triggered a blow-up big enough for Fitzgibbon to pack her bags and leave their Freshwater home soon after.
Her photo of stacked cardboard boxes – packed-up memories of their life together – became instant industry gossip.
Salmond, then freelancing for Fox Sports, told friends she had ‘no idea’ Duke was in a relationship – and we’re not suggesting otherwise.
Now, in the latest update to the saga, I’ve recently learned that Duke, while refusing to comment publicly, privately told friends and colleagues at the time that he and Fitzgibbon were ‘on a break’ – and that he and Salmond ‘only pashed’. Phew!
For her part, Salmond told the Sydney Morning Herald in July that Duke had ‘made it very clear to me that he was single, so I saw no issue in calling him for a chat while I was on my way home from a night out.’
Tiffany moved to Bondi after the controversy
Duke emerged from it all relatively unscathed. The same can’t be said for Salmond.
After doing freelance work for Fox Sports and Triple M throughout 2024, she made the move from Auckland to Bondi this year.
No contract was signed, but she claims she was promised more work if she based herself in Sydney.
Months passed and no gigs came her way. She now sees herself as a victim of a sports media ‘boys’ club’ that blacklisted her because her social media popularity ruffled feathers.
Whether the TV industry lets her back in remains to be seen – but for now, her eye-popping Instagram posts are keeping her in the spotlight.
Mimi’s gets grilled
Merivale institution Mimi’s in Coogee has long been a Mecca for Sydney’s air-kissing class – but spies tell me a new establishment could be taking its place.
Chris Lucas‘s Grill Americano steakhouse at 1 Chifley Square has barely been open for a hot minute and is already pulling in the city’s chicest crowd.
In fact, I spied tracksuit designer Pip Edwards and friend-to-the-stars Jack Charles enjoying a fancy dinner there just this week.
Posh foodies are already raving about the wood-fired breads, handmade pastas, and that flawless bistecca off the grill. The best part? It’s not as expensive as it should be for such a high-end CBD venue.
While no self-respecting socialite wants to be overheard comparing restaurant prices, word is getting around that Grill Americano is a bargain compared to Mimi’s.
‘You can even get a good bottle of wine there for $70.’ Ladies, say no more.
Chris Lucas’s Grill Americano steakhouse at 1 Chifley Square has barely been open for a hot minute and is already pulling in the city’s chicest crowd. (Pictured: Lucas and wife Sarah)
The Lucases dined with P.E Nation co-founder Pip Edwards (right) at Grill Americano this week. Well-heeled foodies tell me the food is just as good as Mimi’s and not nearly as expensive
Ruby’s a jewel in the crown for Gavin
Australia’s No. 1 prestige real estate agent is apparently ready to get hitched – and it’ll no doubt make for a historic day at Central Synagogue.
Gavin Rubinstein, founder of The Rubinstein Group and star of Amazon Prime series Luxe Listings Sydney, is said to be smitten with his British socialite girlfriend Ruby Adler.
Insiders in the eastern suburbs’ tight-knit Jewish community reckon there’ll be a proposal next year, with friends convinced Gavin, 34, is ready to put his playboy years behind him and settle down.
The celebrity realtor and Moriah College old boy swept Ruby, 29, off her feet back in July following her split from her Made in Chelsea co-star Reza Amiri.
Friends expect celebrity realtor Gavin Rubinstein (right) to propose to his British socialite girlfriend Ruby Adler (left) within a year
He took Ruby across Europe, hopping from yacht to yacht and apparently ‘spending a fortune on her’, a source revealed at the time.
She is now believed to be living with Gavin in Sydney and settling into a comfortable life as an eastern suburbs ‘It’ girl.
Ruby first met Gavin a decade ago when they were both holidaying in Mykonos, but wouldn’t reconnect and start dating until this year.
As previously reported by the Mail, Gavin is said to have splashed out on an entirely new wardrobe for his London love since her arrival Down Under.
And his generosity seems to know no bounds: we hear he’s offered to fly over one of Ruby’s friends from England so they can enjoy the Australian summer together.
- Additional reporting by Mary Mrad
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