To start off July with a kick, today I’ll be sharing a truly inspirational entrepreneur story; that of the only and only, Martha Stewart, on how she became the business mogul she is. So grab a cup of tea – or coffee – a sneaky treat, and I hope you find today’s dose of inspiration from Martha’s story.
There’s no better place to start a story than at the beginning. Martha grew up in New Jersey, USA, and had her first brush with fame as a babysitter for three team members of the New York Yankee’s. She not only babysat, but organized and supervised birthday parties for the baseball players’ children. All of which kicked off her curiosity for creating.
As with most people, Martha’s parents were a huge influence on her career from the start. When Martha was young her mother taught her how to sew and cook, and got her penchant for plants from her father, who had quite the green thumb. Growing up with such influences all around, it’s no wonder where Martha got her passion for all things homely. The seeds for success had been sown.
At the age of 15, she was spotted in New Jersey where Martha Stewart started her modelling career. I bet not many of you knew that about our crafty Martha! She began making appearances in not only magazines but television commercials, and by the time she hit college, Martha was modelling for Chanel.
The Martha Stewart brand we know and love very nearly didn’t come to be; Martha had contemplated studying chemistry in college, but luckily for us, she opted for Architectural History. During her years in college she met Andrew Stewart. After they graduated, they got married, packed up and headed to Westport, Connecticut. The two purchased their first house, which in time would become the hub for Martha Stewart Living. As they restored and decorated their home, Martha’s eye for decor came to the fore. It was also around this time that the legend of Stuart starting off baking cookies in her basement began – a perfect example of inspiration for all budding entrepreneurs!
By chance, while catering at an event of her husband’s later that year, Martha met Alan Mirken, producer of Crown Publishing, who was blown away by Martha’s passion and talent at cooking and entertaining. He immediately proposed the idea of a cook book to Stuart, and the rest they say, is history.
Martha went on to produce a book every year for the next 8 years. Not only was Martha a success in hardback, but she branched into becoming an interior designer, author, chef, television personality, and magazine publisher. There was no medium Stuart wasn’t part of or couldn’t handle.
As we all know, Martha had her ups as well as downs. During the stock sale incident in 2001, Martha held strong and served her time – 5 months in jail, 5 months of house arrest, two years probation and a hefty fine. It was a trying time for Stuart as she was under scrutiny from every angle. As People magazine stated, “.….. with the drive that would make her a billionaire, Stewart took her lemon of a sentence and made lemonade. Heck, she made lemonade souffle.” Martha Stewart Living suffered in the following months, but thanks to her blind determination, two years after the initial incident, Martha Stewart Living was back on track and as strong as ever. That my lovelies, is determination and strength.
Her company has continued to jump from strength to strength. She launched her own television show, countless new books, home furnishings, cookware, her own line of paint, as well as appearing on hit TV shows, the Stewart brand has been skyrocketing since.
She is not only a constant source of inspiration, but a testament to us all that when you fall down, you get back up. That we all have our days; even Martha. Failure is part of our journey to success. It’s a good thing.
