Vishal Harishchandra is chairman and CEO of The Valkin Group, a single family office and investment holding company with global interests in media, fashion, real estate, private equity, films and trading. He founded Elite Model Management London, which today manages over 800 models from five continents.
The Valkin Group, which has operations in New York, London, Singapore and Hong Kong, was created as a holding company about 10 years ago, though Harishchandra has been investing for about 20 years. It has a staff of 13 people and represents Harishchandra's immediate family. He talks about the formation of — and plans for — the family office:
What does The Valkin Group do?
It's a comprehensive family office, though it's quite informal in the way that it's set up. We do all the investment allocation and the tax planning, inheritance planning, trusts.
We can't do everything in-house, so we are also managing outside providers. If we think a task is pretty lightweight and manageable and we don't need a lot of expert advice, then we do it in-house. If we don't have the expertise in-house, then we outsource.
What types of investments do you make?
We have a long history of investments in consumer goods, consumer brands, ecommerce and retail, with check sizes of $100,000 to $5 million. We have a whole team doing deal origination. We get a lot of deal flow from private bankers and from our network — friends and family, other family offices.
We have one profitable company [where] we're investing in the supply chain that's going to go public soon. We also invest in regular asset classes like ETFs bonds, and stock allocations.
We do a lot of co-investments with other families.
What are the advantages of co-investing with other families?
It lowers the cost of due diligence, and it usually leads to better outcomes. If you're investing in a sector that's slightly outside your area of expertise, it helps to invest with someone who knows that sector. If you're investing in a geography that's outside your local area, having a local family helps.
Also, you have access to bigger deals and better deals that you wouldn't have had originally on your own. No man is an island.
Have you changed your investment strategy over time?
For private investments, we're pretty focused on what we do best. We know what we're doing and we stick to that — we know what we don't know.
What advice would you give to a family office looking to make direct investments?
I would say if you're doing a direct investment, do it in a sector that you're familiar with, or do it with people that are experts in the subject matter. I have a friend who made money in farming who is now investing in cows — it's what he knows.
How hands-on are you with your direct investments?
Our specialty is consumer private credit. We do a lot of work with our own operating business, which is going public, but with our investments, we're very hands-off. We don't like to get involved in other people's business — we like a steady return.
You are currently based in Singapore. How did you choose that location?
We are global investors who work between New York, London, Singapore and Hong Kong. I grew up in Dubai, and my wife is French. We're global citizens.
How are you thinking about succession for your family office?
We have a 4-year-old and a 2-year-old. I'm the first generation of my family office — I'm the patriarch. It's a different story if you're second generation or third generation. I am thinking ahead to how to set this up for future generations, though. You want to create a rolling foundation. A friend of mine put it best: ‘It's not my money, it's my kids' money, and I'm the trustee.'
At the end of the day, you want to give something back to society. You also want to leave something for your kids: enough that they can do anything, but not so much that they do nothing.
How do you approach philanthropy?
All our investments are impact investments — I believe in venture philanthropy. I don't believe in straight-up philanthropy, because it's limited to the resources that you have. But if you can invest and have an impact at the same time, that for me is sustainable. I like that idea.
Impact investments can have many angles: environmental, social, socioeconomic, educational. We look at small businesses, the circular economy, women-owned businesses, minority founders. That's our focus.
