John Augustine Chilton Hearst (born October 24, 1952) is an American business and media executive, film producer and philanthropist.[1][2] He plays a leadership role in the family-owned Hearst Corporation, one of America's largest diversified media companies where he has been a member of the board of directors since 1990.[3] Hearst is also vice president of special projects for Hearst Entertainment & Syndication,[4] the operating group responsible for the Hearst Entertainment interests in cable television networks, including ESPN, Lifetime, A&E and HISTORY.
Career
Hearst is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Chestnut Holdings LLC, a private equity and agricultural development company.[5] He partnered with architect Philippe Stark and hotelier Alan Faena to develop the Faena Hotel+Universe in Buenos Aires.[6] The investment in the building, erected in 1902 as a grain storage facility, was in excess of $100 million. With Christopher Burch, he completed a $19 million luxury home project in Nantucket, Massachusetts.[7]
In fashion, Hearst was one of the first investors in Tory Burch. Other investments in the sector included Candela, Fashion Tech Forum, Jack Rogers, Soludos, and Bikyni.[8] In 2015, he launched with his wife designer Gabriela Perezutti Hearst, Gabriela Hearst.[9][10] In consumer products, he has been an initial investor in Jawbone[11][12] and Tipa Bags among others.[13] As a principal and founder of Bridge Builders Collaborative, he's made investments in the mind fitness sectors included Headspace, eMindful, Happify, Pear Therapeutics, and Interaxon.[14][15]
Philanthropy
Hearst is actively involved in a wide range of civic, philanthropic and global humanitarian causes, including early childhood development projects with Save the Children[16][17] and the government of Bhutan, and community agricultural projects in South Sudan.[18] He is on the board of directors of Save the Children USA,[19] an organization he has been closely involved with for more than 20 years. He was awarded The National Humanitarian 2014 Award.[20] Hearst also serves on the board of advisors of the Blue School,[21] and Karuna-Shechen, a non-profit humanitarian organization focused on providing education, healthcare and social services in the greater Himalayan region.[22]
Personal life
Hearst's father was William Randolph Hearst Jr., chairman of the Hearst Corporation in New York; his mother was Austine McDonnell, a columnist for The Washington Times-Herald.[23][24] Hearst is a grandson of the late William Randolph Hearst, the editor and publisher.[7] He has three children[25] and is married to fashion designer and Uruguayan rancher Gabriela Hearst. His previous marriage to Christine Mularchuk, the current wife of Stephen Schwarzman, ended in divorce.[26]
References
- ^ Nelson, Karin. "How Fashion Designer Gabriela Hearst Is Supporting Planned Parenthood". W Magazine. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Who We Are". Bridge Builders Collaborative. 2013-03-12. Archived from the original on 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "The Hearst Corporation: Board of Directors - Bloomberg". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Austin Hearst : Executive Profile & Biography - Bloomberg". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Austin Hearst, Founder at Chestnut Holdings, Inc. - Relationship Science". Relationship Science. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ Tzortzis, Andreas (2007). "A fantasy playground in Buenos Aires". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ a b Cheema, Sushil (2011-06-08). "Nantucket Retreat". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Hire Austin Hearst – Business Speaker Bureau - Booking Agent Fee". Celebrity Speakers Bureau. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ Karimzadeh, Marc (2016-02-17). "The Woman's Designer: Gabriela Hearst". CFDA.
- ^ "Farm to Label - SURFACE". SURFACE. 2017-04-17. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Jawbone: The trials of a 16-year-old can't-miss startup". Fortune. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Hosain Rahman on the "Defibrillator Experiences" of Jawbone". Y Combinator. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Compostable Packaging Company TIPA Raises $11 Million". CTECH - www.calcalistech.com. 2017-10-16. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ Inc., eMindful. "While Hearst Corp Executive Austin Hearst Leads Investment in eMindful Inc., CBS 60 Minutes and CNN's Anderson Cooper Shine Light and Cameras on the Surge in Mindfulness". GlobeNewswire News Room. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
{{cite news}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ^ "Partnership Board". Aspen Management Partnership for Health. Archived from the original on 2018-01-15. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Our Board of Trustees - Save the Children Action Network". Save the Children Action Network. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Ben Affleck, Tony Blair, Austin Hearst, TJ Maxx And More Honored At The 2nd Annual Save The Children Illumination Gala – Presented By JOHNSON & JOHNSON; Event Was Hosted By Jennifer Garner And Featured A Performance By Trisha Yearwood". Save the Children. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "John Augustine Chilton Hearst - Wealth-X Dossier". Wealth-X. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Gabriela Hearst In Kenya With Save The Children". Carmen Busquets. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ US, Save the Children (2014-11-19). "National Humanitarian Award goes to Austin Hearst, our Board member, for his commitment to #InvestInKidspic.twitter.com/HOFEdQ84JA". @SavetheChildren. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Advisory Board". Blue School - Independent School in New York City, Preschool, Elementary School, Middle School. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "About Karuna-Shechen". Linkedin.
- ^ "The Hearst Family". Observer. 2006-12-18. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Austine M. Hearst, 72, Newspaper Columnist". The New York Times. 1991-06-25. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ Iredale, Jessica (2016-01-20). "Ten of Tomorrow: Gabriela Hearst". WWD. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ Stewart, James B. (2008-02-04). "The Birthday Party". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2017-11-17.