Richman Family Foundation

The Richman Family Foundation operates as the philanthropic vehicle of the Richman family, principals of Richloom Fabrics Group, a New York City decorative textiles company headquartered at 261 Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. This corporate-family structure shapes every dimension of its giving model: the foundation runs with zero officer compensation, is governed exclusively by Richman family directors (currently James Richman and Carol Saivetz), and maintains an intentionally minimal public profile — its registered website (richmanfamily.org) is an unrelated genealogical site, and no public grants portal has ever existed.

Five priority areas anchor all documented giving: children, health, arts and culture, medical research, and education. Importantly, every grant in the available record is classified as general operating support — not project-specific, not capital, not restricted. This signals that the foundation trusts its grantees rather than constraining use of funds, and that its evaluative lens is institutional strength rather than programmatic deliverables.

The database classification of preselected_only is the single most critical fact for prospective applicants. This foundation predominantly reaches out to organizations it has identified rather than responding to unsolicited inquiries. The Society for Nonprofits listing notes 'there is no deadline for applying,' but this should be interpreted as 'the door is not locked' rather than 'all applications are welcome.' Cold outreach without a prior relationship or a warm referral from within the Richman family's network faces extremely high friction.

First-time applicants should focus on three realistic entry pathways: (1) a mutual connection through New York's textile, interior design, or home furnishings sectors where Richloom Fabrics Group has operated for decades; (2) a referral from an existing Richman grantee organization; or (3) a direct phone inquiry to the 261 Fifth Avenue office at (212) 685-5400, prepared with a concise description of the organization's NYC impact.

Recent giving history shows a consolidation toward a single annual award of $1.5M–$2.1M, meaning the foundation is deepening one relationship per year rather than maintaining a broad portfolio. This makes relationship cultivation before any formal ask far more determinative of success than proposal quality alone.

The Richman Family Foundation has distributed between $548,000 and $3.1 million annually over the 2011–2023 period, with a long-run average of approximately $2.0 million per year. Total assets have declined from a peak of $37.5 million in 2012 to $30.4 million in 2023, as grants paid have periodically outpaced net investment income — a pattern consistent with modest, intentional spend-down.

Key annual benchmarks from Form 990-PF filings:

• FY2023: $2,067,500 in charitable disbursements; $30.4M total assets; $1.1M total income
• FY2022: $548,102 total giving ($257,467 grants paid) — a 72% decline from FY2021, coinciding with negative total revenue of -$999,061 as market losses directly constrained payout
• FY2021: $1,982,162 total giving; $1,695,790 grants paid; $32.3M assets
• FY2020: $1,888,659 total giving; $1,656,056 grants paid; $34.4M assets
• FY2019: $2,087,102 total giving; $1,939,256 grants paid; $28.2M assets
• FY2018: $1,886,754 total giving; $1,878,775 grants paid; $27.7M assets
• FY2013–2014 peak: total giving exceeded $3.0 million in both years

The most structurally significant change over the past five years is the collapse in grant count: five separate grants were documented in FY2019, while FY2020–FY2024 each show a single award. This consolidation has driven average grant size sharply upward — the five documented grants from the available grantee record averaged $1,448,872 each, and the single-award structure in recent years places typical disbursements in the $1.5M–$2.1M range.

All documented grants are classified as general operating support — no project-specific, capital, or restricted-use grants appear on record. All recipients are New York-based. No programmatic breakdown by focus area is publicly disclosed, but the five stated priorities (children, health, arts and culture, medical research, education) likely each attract separate multi-year relationships.

Net investment income has ranged from $547K (FY2021) to $3.1M (FY2012), with interest, dividends, and asset sales forming the revenue base. The 2022 contraction demonstrates that giving levels are sensitive to portfolio performance rather than tied to a fixed payout rate.

The Richman Family Foundation ($30M assets, approximately $2M annual giving) sits at the smaller end of New York City's family foundation landscape. The table below compares it to four comparable NYC-area private foundations; asset and giving figures are approximate, based on publicly available Form 990 filings.

Several contrasts are strategically important. Richman is the least accessible of the five despite having the smallest asset base — its preselected model means relationship capital, not proposal quality, is the primary currency. Foundations such as Altman and Fan Fox publish deadlines and accept LOIs from new applicants, creating genuinely competitive processes where grant-writing matters. Richman's consolidation to a single annual award also means it funds fewer organizations at a higher per-grant level than comparably sized peers: its typical disbursement of $1.5M–$2.1M can exceed what Herman Goldman, a foundation twice its size, distributes per award. The barrier is entry, not scale.

No press releases, announcements, or news coverage specific to the Richman Family Foundation (EIN 13-3332711, New York) were identified in web research conducted June 2026. Importantly, search queries frequently surface a distinct, unrelated entity — The Richman Family Foundation, Inc. (EIN 52-1899221, Baltimore, MD), which has a public website at richmanfdn.org and an active public grants program. These two foundations share a name but have no documented organizational relationship.

Form 990-PF filings provide the clearest picture of recent activity for the New York foundation. The most recent complete fiscal year (FY2023) shows giving recovering to $2,067,500 following the anomalous FY2022 contraction to $548,102 — a two-thirds rebound consistent with improved portfolio returns. FY2023 revenue consisted primarily of asset sales ($1,201,379), interest ($617,348), and dividends ($491,701).

Leadership as of the most recent filing consists of James Richman and Carol Saivetz as active directors, both serving without compensation. Historical filings also list Fred Richman and Rita Richman as directors; the apparent consolidation to two directors from four may reflect generational transition in family governance, though no public announcement was made.

The single most notable strategic development in the foundation's recent history is the shift from five separate grants in FY2019 to one large annual award from FY2020 onward. No public explanation has been offered; this likely reflects either a deliberate pivot to anchor partnership philanthropy or a reduction in administrative capacity. The foundation's asset base declining from $37.5M (2012) to $30.4M (2023) provides additional context for this consolidation.

Given the Richman Family Foundation's preselected, relationship-driven structure, standard grant-seeking tactics are insufficient. The following guidance is specific to this funder:

Prioritize warm introductions above all else. The Richman family's affiliation with Richloom Fabrics Group — a decorative textiles and home furnishings company — creates natural networks across New York's interior design, retail, and manufacturing industries. A referral from a business associate, fellow board member, or prior Richman grantee carries dramatically more weight than any cold application.

Align across multiple focus areas. The five stated priorities — children, health, arts and culture, medical research, and education — are deliberately broad. Organizations that demonstrate credible cross-cutting impact have a stronger pitch than single-area applicants: a children's health literacy program, an arts education initiative at NYC public schools, or a medical research institute training future physicians all fit naturally.

Lead with New York City specificity. Every documented grantee is New York-based. Organizations with regional or national scope must articulate clearly what the Richman grant enables locally — not what the broader mission accomplishes elsewhere.

Frame every ask around general operating support. One hundred percent of documented grants are general support. Do not open with a project budget, capital campaign request, or restricted-use proposal. Instead, demonstrate organizational track record, financial health, and leadership stability — this foundation invests in institutions, not programs.

Expect a multi-year cultivation timeline. The recent single-award disbursement of $1.5M–$2.1M implies deep, sustained partnership. First contact should not request this scale; an introductory relationship, if cultivated, may yield a smaller initial grant before scaling. Build for a 12–24 month relationship timeline before a meaningful ask.

Direct outreach: Call (212) 685-5400, ask for the Richman Family Foundation contact, and follow with a concise 1–2 page letter of inquiry by mail to 261 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016-7701. No public email address is listed.

Avoid: mass-distributed solicitation templates; unsolicited full proposals with project budgets; contacting only during market-downturn periods (the 2022 contraction shows giving can drop 72% in low-return years).