The leader of the United Arab Emirates, who recently paid a monthlong visit to the Mayo Medical Center in Rochester, Minn., for neck surgery, also boosted the Twin Cities' economy when his wife and her entourage went shopping.
Witnesses said they filled trucks with gold-fringed damask tablecloths, sofas, mirrors, expensive perfumes, toys from Toys "R" Us, gold-rimmed china ringed with an elegant band of jaguar spots, $450 velvet Christmas tree skirts, a $4,000 bed and enough designer sheets and comforters to fill, well, the palace of Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.The fruits of their shopping spree filled 18 22-foot trucks, said Dennis Broughton, manager of Clements Car and Truck Rental in Rochester, which did business with the group. The goods were loaded onto a cargo plane bound for the United Arab Emirates.
"There were a lot of rumors about them," said Broughton. "It was just a rumor that they bought Cadillacs. I didn't see any Cadillacs."
Broughton confirmed they did buy two pickups and two 30-foot motor homes. He said the vehicles were flown out on a separate Russian cargo plane.
Teri Hjermstad, co-owner of T.R. Christian in Edina, said: "My shelves were bare when they left."
Hjermstad, still amazed by the sudden shopping spree that almost cleaned out her store a week ago, said: "We get celebrities and sports personalities, but we've never had a royal family before."
Zayed, 78, checked into Mayo on Sept. 25. The president was accompanied by his wife, Sheika Fatima, and an entourage of about 140. The family was accompanied by bodyguards and even agents with the Central Intelligence Agency, said sales clerks and others who waited on them.
Zayed is one of the wealthiest men in the world. In 1993, Fortune magazine reported that he was worth $5 billion and had made his money in oil, real estate and investments.
During his visit, the entourage occupied more than 100 hotel rooms.