Billionaires converged in the Hamptons for a socially distanced 1640 Society Family Office Wealth Forum the day after the expected hurricane Henri changed course and missed the Hamptons. The Forum was held outdoors at a $35 million estate south of the highway in Southampton and adhered to the latest NY state COVID guidelines. Participation in the network is by invitation only and capped at 200 families who get approved to join on an annual basis. It includes some of the most prominent family members, heirs and high net worth investors from across the globe including Asia, Middle East, Europe & Latin America. Leading families that regularly attend the conference include the Pitcairns, Kennedy’s, Bush, Firestone’s, Ford’s, Rockefeller’s, Bronfman’s, Kettering, Getty’s, Kluge, Pritzker’s, Johnson’s, Heinz, Hunt’s, Musk (co-founder of PayPal), along with international magnets like the Mittal family from India and the Pears families from Europe.
1640 Society is known for its timely and thought-provoking closed door ‘family to family’ discussions. This year there was a focus on influencing the reality of thriving for all. The topics explored trends in impact investing, philanthropy, family governance, asset allocation, wealth preservation, health and wellbeing, cannabis and holistic wellness, post-COVID solutions, innovation and space travel, and private jets and customized travel. This was complimented by Zero Gravity’s test flight the day before onboard a plane at zero gravity whereby families could experience life as an astronaut.
Highlights of a fabulous afternoon of leading edge influencers with prevalent elite topics included Donna Karan sharing My Journey: Connecting the Dots and the importance of regenerative placemaking with The Donna Karan Company as Urban Zen Foundation and David Rubenstein, the CEO and Co Founder of the Carlyle group discussing Patriotic Philanthropy and Investing in a Global Economy.
The Forum’s afternoon continued with leading CIO’s comparing asset allocation strategies, several billionaires discussing philanthropy, and the advantages of private island ownership in the Caribbean from the perspective of a large BVI private island owner. Entrepreneur, scientist and inventor Dr. Nicholas Perricone led a health and wellness panel which had the CEO of Nanoleq – a wearable smart t shirts that can monitor your health via software, the CEO of ChromaDex that makes the TRU NIAGEN® dietary supplement that promotes healthy aging and combats daily stress on your body, and the CEO of Strategic Vaccines which came out with a new vaccine that can work against multiple strains of coronavirus.
Stimulating panel discussions on timely topics included Seeking Alternatives to Alpha moderated by Rosemary Sagar at Kingdon Foundation; Cannabis Research and Growth in a Post-COVID Era with the leadership at Flora Growth Corp, including Luis Merchan, President & CEO, Jason Warnok, CRO, and Dr Annabelle Manola-Morgan, Scientific Advisor and Entrepreneur; Optimizing Health and Solving the CV-19 Dilemma with Dr. Varinder Singh, Chair of Interventional Cardiology at Lenox Hill Hospital; a brilliant Blockchain Panel featuring Hossein Azari, CEO of cmorq and Bryan Bodner, Director of BlockFi; and exploring multiple trends in regenerative real estate, including land conservation, eco living opportunities and white-glove custom travel in Families – Living and Travel with Sue Nickason, Principal at Dart Family Office, Jeffrey Menaged, Founder & CEO of Chief Executive Air; Kate George, Founder & CEO of Omnifique; and Britnie Turner, Entrepreneur and Founder of Aerial Group.
Philanthropic trends were beautifully represented with influencers and essential topics such as In-Kind Philanthropy for a Circular Economy with Steve Feldman, Founder & CEO of Renovation Angel and Susan Vanech, Principal of Susan Vanech Properties; and Personal Stories – Fighting Human Trafficking moderated by Yale Fishman, CEO, Hamptons Luxury Estates and featuring Attorney General Sean D Reyes (Utah) with a moving story of his personal journey and professional passion with this bold mission to eradicate human trafficking.
Kicking off the cocktail party was pop singer Carolina, who blasted out hit songs while guests mingled over poolside cocktails by Mirabeau dry Rose Gin and Cuestion Tequila, and sipped on the award winning Mirabeau Pure Provence Rose and Sparkling Rose. The beautiful setting was accented with gorgeous floral displays from Designs by Mark Masone. The celebration lasted until the late evening as guests enjoyed a delicious summer BBQ from upscale Kosher meat purveyor, Prairie Street Prime, along with an array of delectable hors d’oeuvres from the East End’s most sought after caterer, Elegant Affairs and staffing by Hamptons Employment Agency. This beautiful summer celebration brought family office members together who embraced and exchanged stories of their experiences with the global pandemic and vision for a thriving 2022 and beyond.
