Martha Helen Kostyra Stewart, known popularly as Martha Stewart is an American retail businesswoman who is also known for her various television appearances. She is also a lifestyle influencer as well as the writer of several cookbooks.
She was the United States of America’s first woman billionaire who was self-made without the help of any inheritance.
Having learned her domestic arts skills from her mother, she was inspired to come up with the idea of being a lifestyle author and entrepreneur.
Quick Facts About Martha Stewart
| Full Name | Martha Helen Kostyra Stewart |
| Profession | Businesswoman, Writer, TV Personality |
| Date and Place of Birth | August 3, 1941 in New Jersey, United States |
| Net Worth | 400 million USD |
| Nationality | American |
| Ex-Husband | Andrew Stewart |
| Children | Alexis Stewart |
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSLO)
Martha Stewart has seen major fluctuations in her wealth throughout her career as a businesswoman.
A significant portion of that wealth can be credited to the success of her company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. She was once worth one billion USD which was accumulated by selling shares of her company in the stock market. The company itself was valued at a staggering two billion USD at its prime. When the initial public offering was first announced, the price per share was $18. It escalated to a record high of $39.75 per share during the final days of trading.
She was the president, chairwoman, and CEO of the company. The company is currently owned by Marquee Brands LLC. Martha was also involved in a catalog business, namely Martha By Mail which also had a business service responsible to provide the customers with flowers of their choice delivered directly to them.
Financial Crisis
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, formed to avoid any manipulation of the stock market, investigated the case where Martha was found selling stocks of ImClone Systems, a biopharmaceutical company in a haste. She managed to extract confidential information about potential changes in the stock market in an unethical manner in 2001. Therefore, to protect herself from any loss, she threw everyone else under the bus by selling almost four thousand stocks one day before the price of the shares dramatically decreased. In 2003, 4th of June, she was charged on nine counts, with two of the major accusations being obstruction of justice and securities fraud.
While the securities fraud charge was overthrown, she was found guilty of lying to federal investors and obstruction of justice. She paid $30,000 as a penalty and spent up to five months in prison in 2004. She also had to undergo official scrutiny for two years after her release from prison.
The controversial scandal resulted in a dramatic drop of more than 50 percent of the company’s worth. This also affected Martha’s personal net worth which witnessed a drop of around 600 million USD out of a billion dollars.
Recovery
After her release, Martha made a comeback in March of the year 2005 with The Martha Stewart Show on television. The show aired from 2005 to 2010. It successfully ran for five seasons. She published baking and home-keeping handbooks in the years 2005 and 2006 respectively.
She also released her collection of luxury homewares with department store chain Macy’s and collaborated with FLOR Inc. to launch floor furnishings. Martha also has a Chardonnay wine brand with E & J Gallo Winery.
VH1 broadcasted a new show with Martha and her long-time friend Snoop Dogg named Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party in the year 2016.
In 2018, food-based channel Food Network broadcasted their cooking competition Chopped for which Martha made regular appearances as a judge.
She also had a show on HGTV named Martha Knows Best which showed her providing gardening tips and help to her friends and her fans who reach out to the show asking for advice.
The business mogul recently opened a 194-seat restaurant in Paris Las Vegas named The Bedford by Martha Stewart at the age of eighty-one.
Despite going through the aftermath of the scandal, she currently has a net worth of around $400 million and seems to be back on track with her enterprises.