He is not afraid of contradictions. Received abroad as no lesser figure than a head of state, he sleeps in a monk's cell, with a view on the Elysee Palace. He has never borrowed a single franc from a bank. He auto-finances everything, does not advertise (except for his perfumes) and re-invests his profits in property. "Money is only a means," he says, "my lifestyle has not changed in twenty years."