Oprah Takes Aim
We’re a scant four weeks away from the sentencing and the story continues to evolve as Martha blames
everyone but herself.For sake of discussion, let's oversimplify Martha Stewart’s empire into media and retail. While the news media has been quick to point out how the conviction is impacting MSLO quarterly
earnings, retail is doing well. Depending on which story you read, you will see that the stock is down five percent or that MSLO lost $20 million last quarter.If earnings continue to plummet, the
NY Post predicts we will see more changes at MSLO.
The bottom line? Look for mass layoffs, running well over 100, coming soon - and that's just for starters. At its current headcount of 545, the company has barely cut back at all from its peak of 610 employees just two years ago. Look as well for an announcement, after a suitable interval, that the company plans to relocate to more "suitable" (read: cheap) offices elsewhere than its present digs in Midtown and TriBeCa.
So I send a shout out to those members of the press that ran with the five percent to keep things in perspective. Martha does not need any help painting this bleak picture.Or does she?Martha’s new
plan is to prove that MSLO cannot survive without her presence.
Forbes first broke this story last month (see below). This is a great plan to keep Martha in her farmhouse instead of the big house, but it conflicts with MSLO’s strategy of distancing themselves from Stewart.
Media Post provides us with inconsistency’s
case in point as it details MSLO’s plans for
Martha Stewart Living magazine.
Martha Stewart Living will retain its name, but undergo other alterations: Stewart's column will disappear by next month's issue, and the cover will be redesigned for the September issue.”While retaining the name Martha Stewart--which connotes brand attributes of quality expert information and a unique sense of style--we will place greater emphasis on the name 'Living' as the brand label," Chief Executive Officer Sharon Patrick said Friday morning.Patrick said that a survey found most readers felt it was too early to take Stewart's name off the magazine, but that it was important to make changes to the cover. The subscribers didn't seem to be put off by the verdict."These results demonstrate how much our subscribers value the key attributes associated with the name 'Martha Stewart,' and how much progress we have made in evolving the brand from expert personality to trusted brand attributes and brand labels," Patrick said.
Doph! Speaking of publishing, did I mention how well retail is doing?Oprah just
announced a new home magazine to capitalize on MSLO’s publishing funk and pick up Martha readers. This is a smart move on O’s part. She no longer has Rosie’s magazine to contend with and Rosie was handily addressing the Oprah audience and the Martha audience. Her approach might have been much different from Oprah and Martha, but she delivered.Here is a good exercise in brand personification—compare and contrast Oprah, Rosie and Martha. Rosie shows us a brand tied to an individual can survive scandal.
