Some families start a family office to create a multigenerational legacy. Consuelo Vanderbilt Costin’s family already has a multigenerational legacy — so she is launching a family office, House of Vanderbilt, to provide what she calls the “connective tissue” that will tie together generations of contributions from her family in business, culture and philanthropy. She is looking to build on that family history to create new generations of contributions.
Costin is a seventh-generation descendent of Cornelius Vanderbilt, the 19th century shipping and railroad magnate who became one of the wealthiest Americans in history. Vanderbilt and his descendants built Gilded Age mansions and were also patrons of universities, libraries and cultural institutions. The family has ties to over two dozen American institutions, including the Vanderbilt Museum, Vanderbilt University, Fisher Island, Biltmore Estate and New York’s Grand Central Terminal.
“For every institution, there are multiple family members behind it,” Costin says. “Next to all the great men in my family have been exceptional women, from Gertrude Vanderbilt, who started the Whitney Museum, to Consuelo Vanderbilt, the Duchess of Marlborough, who became one of the leading suffragettes.”
Costin, who launched House of Vanderbilt about two months ago, is drawing on her own multifaceted background in both creative and entrepreneurial endeavors: She has had a successful career as a singer-songwriter and launched her own record label, C&R Productions. She also launched a jewelry collection based on Vanderbilt family heirlooms and poured herself into co-founding SohoMuse, a vertical social networking platform that she describes as “LinkedIn for creatives,” that seeks to promote their talents, projects, network and interest in collaborating with other creatives. That venture, like some others, includes outside investors as well as members of the Vanderbilt family.
“We have invested into technology and creativity building SohoMuse, and will continue to invest into AI and robotics, and eventually education and healthcare,” Costin says. “We’re also diving into many different worlds that are so rich, from fashion to innovation, to media and storytelling.”
Continuing a legacy
Costin hopes this new incarnation of the family brand will endure.
“I think the reason for a family office that is different than just an investment vehicle or a fund is that it allows the legacy of the family to continue,” Costin says. “That, to me, is the most important thing.”
House of Vanderbiltwill also have a media division that will focus on docuseries, books and other ways to tell stories about the family’s history — buttressed by public interest in the Gilded Age — and about its current projects.
“It’s a way in which we’re connecting and showing my family out in the world today,” Costin says. “People’s fascination and curiosity about my family and about that time period has become much more prevalent.”
Building the House of Vanderbilt team has been a critical first step.
“I brought in Julia Valentine, who is my COO, who has had 30 years of experience in finance,” Costin says. “She has worked in every major financial institution and has helped to build multi-billion dollar family offices. So I’ve got a leading team player who knows exactly how to build, and who has all the relationships as well.”
They then focused on cementing relationships with major financial institutions, as well as building out advisory teams for each area.
Hands-on support
Costin is interested not only in making financial investments, but also in hands-on involvement with the investments and related causes that she supports.
One example: The B. Wright Leadership Academy in Miami recently announced the Consuelo Vanderbilt Costin Girls Leadership Outreach Program, which will work with SohoMuse to connect students with mentors.
“I’m starting a program that is all about entrepreneurship, and I’m bringing in speakers from around the world to speak to the kids,” Costin says. The program connects her entrepreneurial activity and her philanthropy: SohoMuse members benefit from the community the platform provides, and they in turn help students.
“This is direct investing into people: supporting schools and 501c3s that need help with entrepreneurship. That’s a big part of my initiatives,” Costin says.
Costin is working at a deliberate pace to ramp up the family office’s activities.
“Because this is my family, and it’s so important to make sure that the legacy is intact and protected, I’d rather be slow and do it well,” she says.
Looking ahead
Costin plans to explore ideas for expansion in the future, including bringing in other families to make House of Vanderbilt a multifamily office.
“That’s much [further] down the line,” she says. “I want to make sure this really works — that we’ve got the bones, and the bridge to become successful. The investments we are making could become a very solid arm to open doors.”
For the moment, she is focused on creating a strategic family brand that honors the family’s legacy.
“Every delicate footstep that I take is to ensure that I am honoring the vision and the legacy of my family – that what Cornelius built is a legacy dynasty brand that has the most impact and continues into the next generation,” Costin says. “I hope that hundreds of years from now, it still continues and we are still giving back — and it is exactly what Cornelius started.”