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CEO Profile
Patricia Kluge's
legacy
Socialite turned businesswoman strives for beauty
and long-term impact
by Timothy Sprinkle
for Virginia Business Options
March
2006
Not many entrepreneurs would
put an elegant, Parisian-style food market serving
fleur verte tarts and artisan cheeses
in the Virginia countryside. And, at first glance,
the combination of a self-service gasoline station
and white-linen restaurant seems out of place as well.
But Patricia Kluge, one of Central Virginia’s
best-known personalities, has always shown creative
flair when it comes to her businesses — that
ability to mix things up in a pleasing and unique way.
During the past 20 years Kluge,
56, has evolved from a socialite (she was formally
married to billionaire
media magnate John Kluge Sr.) into a shrewd businesswoman.
From her work as CEO of Kluge Investments — a
venture capital and money-management firm — to
her various philanthropic projects and the Kluge Estate
Winery and Vineyard that she and husband Bill Moses
started in 1999, she has toiled to carve out a niche
in the community bearing her own stamp.
“Beauty and longevity is our
mantra for everything we do,” she says. “‘Does
it look good, and will it be here after we are gone?'
is how we measure
everything.”
But behind this hard-charging exterior,
Kluge is a passionate, grounded person, dedicated to
her family
and work, and driven to make a contribution to the
world. “Children, personal freedom and faith
have been my focus,” she says. “We need
to protect children, educate them, and offer them all
of the opportunities that are available. When we don’t,
we only hurt ourselves and all that we stand for.” Raised in London (her father was British and her mother
Iraqi), Kluge brings a European sensibility to everything
she does. In addition to business interests, she supports
a variety of causes through the Patricia M. Kluge Foundation
and other family foundations. Rural education, human
rights, health care and the arts have all benefited
from Kluge donations.
In Charlottesville, home of
Fuel (her aptly named restaurant/gas station) she
started the Virginia Festival
of American
Film, now known as the Virginia Film Festival, in the
early 1980s to help attract big-city artists to the
Virginia Piedmont. She’s also an active patron
of the local arts scene and a fixture at area galleries.
Her recent support of renovations to the historic Paramount
Theater on Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall helped
save the landmark building from being demolished. The
refurbished art deco theater has become an anchor of
the area’s new downtown entertainment district.
“At one point, [Kluge] had
actually been one of the owners of the Paramount building,” says
Chad Hernshner, president and CEO of the Paramount
Theater. “She
was that catalyst, or one of the catalysts, to allow
the property to transfer ownership into the nonprofit
board’s hands and lay the foundation for the
project’s moving forward. Since the theater has
been reopened, she has been there for performances,
she was there for opening night, and, through her foundation,
has underwritten educational tickets for children in
the Esmont district.”
Kluge’s passions extend beyond the art world.
She established the Kluge Children’s Rehabilitation
Center at the University of Virginia Children’s
Hospital and helped create a series of after-school
programs for underprivileged children in the Charlottesville-Albemarle
area. Recently, the Kluge-Moses Foundation donated
$1.2 million for science and health education at Piedmont
Virginia Community College. Kluge sits on the board
of Commonwealth Public Broadcasting Corp. and serves
on the board of the Krasnow Institute for Advanced
Study at George Mason University in Fairfax.
These days running a winery
takes up a lot of her time and energy. She’s dedicated the last seven years
to this business — in an industry that’s
all about waiting for results. “We hope that
our influence will be far reaching,” she says. “Short
and long term, we hope to expand Kluge Estate Winery
and Vineyard beyond our own estate. We want to establish
Virginia as a national and global contender in the
world of wine, [and] through education and example,
to set regional standards of viticulture and oenology,
so Virginia can compete with the best in the world."
The winery launched its first
two vintages — the
well-received New World Red and Kluge SP — in
March 2002. The original 34-acre vineyard has been
expanded to nearly 130 acres with more expansion planned
for the coming year.
Still, not everything about
doing business in Albemarle County has been easy.
Kluge raised eyebrows in 2003
when she announced plans to develop 24 “mini-estates” — multimillion-dollar
luxury homes complete with concierge service, historically
inspired architecture, professionally designed period
gardens and private vineyards — on part of her
property in an effort to raise funds for the winery.
So far, the project is on track.
Vineyard Estates broke
ground this past January. Kluge isn’t disclosing
the names of any of the home buyers.
"The art of architecture is my passion and hobby, as
is the complex subject of community building," Kluge
says of the project that’s literally in her own
backyard. "In a small way, we at Vineyard Estates
hope to set new standards in conservation, horticulture,
viticulture, and, of course, architecture. We intend
on building homes for the ages, and not for the short
term." Beyond her work, however, it's
still home and family that inspire Kluge. She and
her husband run H&G
LLC, the holding company for their ventures in wineries,
real estate, food and retail companies, and they have
two children, John Kluge II and Kristin Moses. “Everything
I am today,” Kluge says, “I learned growing
up. Everything I am learning today will make my tomorrow."
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