An Interview With Lady De Rothschild

L.G.: Your expertise in the retail business comes from what? Your experience as a consumer? Your experience on the board of at least one retail company that I know of?

L.R.: My interest comes from the knowledge I believe I've developed about what could be next in India. I would not be a buyer of Western brands for Western markets, although there are people who are doing that. I'm very comfortable in brand-new spaces. I'm very comfortable with a blank sheet of paper. In fact, I've made my money by doing what people have never done before. And this sector in India is not as undeveloped as the agricultural sector was—we were really on an adventure in FieldFresh. There is retail. There are big commitments to retail. But we think that we can bring Western capital, of course; we can bring Western know-how; we can bring Western distribution; we can bring Western good-governance practices, which will make it easier for Western brands to associate with us. And I think we're establishing ourselves in India enough that the Indian companies are comfortable with us. I didn't go into retail or into brands or into luxury because I feel I necessarily have more knowledge of those things. I am looking at them as businesses, as opportunities, and the first thing that we will be doing is hiring really competent people who want to latch on to our vision.

L.G.: Well don't hire me then.

L.R.: Can I hire you?

L.G.: No, you can't, because I know nothing about that. I'm the worst consumer possible.

L.R.: Why do you say that?

L.G.: Well, we'll take this up when you do the interview with me. In any event, is E.L. Rothschild just a vehicle with which you and Evelyn figure out where to invest your resources, or you are raising money from other investors? Can people invest in your company or not? How does that work?

L.R.: The third business that we are considering is virtually a fund where we would bring people in and invest alongside them, but we would be the owner and operator of those businesses.

L.G.: So they would be putting their faith in your expertise and knowledge and gut and whatever.

L.R.: Yes.

L.G.: Okay, now you and Evelyn are also, as I understand it, the biggest investors in the Economist.

L.R.: Well the F.T. [Financial Times] would be very upset if you wrote that. [Laughs.] We're the biggest family investors.

L.G.: Is there a possibility of I.P.O. there?

L.R.: Oh my God! [Laughs.] Um, I could never talk about that. But I wouldn't hold my breath. It's a very good company, we're very proud to be associated with it, and it'll continue to have lots of options and lots of growth opportunities.

L.G.: Now, you're on the Lauder board. Do you expect that the current management—i.e., C.E.O. William Lauder —will stay in for quite a while yet?

L.R.: It's a great company, and the Lauder family is essential to the success of that company. William is a young, very, very talented man, just like his father is very talented, his cousins are very talented. They're in the business. You know, the business is better off for having them there. I think he's done an excellent job. I don't think there are many people in that high-end-cosmetic world who know more than William, or have his degree of integrity and absolute dedication to the success of the company, so we're very happy.

L.G.: Let me ask you, when your fellow capitalists come to you and express worries and fears about what Hillary Clinton will do in terms of raising taxes on capital gains and hedge fund operators, and income taxes, what do you tell them to reassure them that Hillary will be good for business?