Debra (Debbi) J. Fields epitomizes the American dream. From America's cherished tradition of humble beginnings, she launched what has become one of the nation's most visible, successful dessert empires.
She is one of the few innovators and entrepreneurs to see their name become a product brand symbol of quality that is known and revered worldwide. Few dream achievers (Ford, Edison, Bell among them) live to enjoy such well-deserved acclaim.
More than 25 years of entrepreneurial, operational and managerial experience, all of it earned in a company she built (literally) from scratch. Founder, baker, chief cookie lover and former Chairman, of Mrs. Fields Cookies, a $450 million company she founded in 1977. Mrs. Fields has since sold her company, which is a market leader among fresh-baked cookie stores.
At the age of 20, Debbi was a young housewife with no business experience. Yet, she had a dream, a recipe, and a passion for sharing her chocolate chip cookies. She managed to do what most people considered impossible. She convinced a bank to finance a business concept which had never before been proven and which appeared on the surface to have little likelihood of success.
Mrs. Fields wanted to open a chocolate chip cookie bakeshop and store. On August 16, 1977, Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chippery opened its doors to the public in Palo Alto, California. Twenty-plus years later, Debbi Fields' role had expanded from managing one shop to supervising operations, brand name management, public relations and product development of her company's 600+ company-owned and franchise stores in the United States and 10 foreign nations.
Debbi Fields' personal values guide her role as a businesswoman. Her philosophy of excellence, stated in her motto of "Good Enough Never Is," is mirrored in a company that has earned a reputation for providing the best in product quality and superior customer service. She attributes her greatest success to her ability to relate to her customers and earn their lifelong loyalty.
With expansion on the horizon in 1989, Mrs. Fields, Inc. was among the first companies to take advantage of dramatic computer technology advancements. Debbi Fields led her company into the computer age, streamlining operations and production schedules with a state-of-the-art computer system. Her program is used as a model for business efficiency at Harvard Business School. It remains an example of successful application of technology in business management.
Debbi Fields' business accomplishments and capabilities reach far beyond managing Mrs. Fields, Inc. Today, she sits on the boards of Outback Steakhouse, WKNO (a public radio and TV station), and The Orpheum Theater. She is in the process of co-authoring a book called “Service Entropy”.
She is the author of two cookbooks published by Time-Life. The first, 100 Recipes from the Kitchen of Debbi Fields has sold more than 1.8 million copies and was the first cookbook to top The New York Times bestseller list. The second, I Love Chocolate cookbook, published in 1994, has enjoyed tremendous success as well, posting sales of over half a million copies. She hosted Great American Desserts, a weekly program that aired nationally, on public television and is also the name of her third and newest book, Debbi Fields Great American Desserts, published by Simon and Schuster.
Debbi is the mother of Jessica (23), Jenessa (21), Jennifer (19), Ashley (14), and McKenzie (11). She resides in Memphis, Tennessee with her husband and family.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Madame C. J. Walker - First Female African-American Millionaire
Sarah Breedlove McWilliams Walker, better known as Madame CJ Walker or Madame Walker, together with Marjorie Joyner revolutionized the hair care and cosmetics industry for African American women early in the 20th century.
Early Years
Madame CJ Walker was born in 1867 in poverty-stricken rural Louisiana. The daughter of former slaves, she was orphaned at the age of seven. Walker and her older sister survived by working in the cotton fields of Delta and Vicksburg, Mississippi. She married at age fourteen and her only daughter was born in 1885. After her husband's death two years later, she traveled to St. Louis to join her four brothers who had established themselves as barbers. Working as a laundrywoman, she managed to save enough money to educate her daughter, and became involved in activities with the National Association of Colored Women.
Inspired by Need
During the 1890s, Sarah began to suffer from a scalp ailment that caused her to lose some of her hair. Embarrassed by her appearance, she experimented with a variety of home-made remedies and products made by another black woman entrepreneur, Annie Malone. In 1905, Sarah became a sales agent for Malone and moved to Denver, where she married Charles Joseph Walker.
Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower
Changing her name to Madame CJ Walker, Sarah founded her own business and began selling her own product called Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower, a scalp conditioning and healing formula. To promote her products, she embarked on an exhausting sales drive throughout the South and Southeast selling her products door to door, giving demonstrations, and working on sales and marketing strategies. In 1908, she opened a college in Pittsburgh to train her "hair culturists."
The Walker System
Eventually, her products formed the basis of a thriving national corporation employing at one point over 3,000 people. Her Walker System, which included a broad offering of cosmetics, licensed Walker Agents, and Walker Schools offered meaningful employment and personal growth to thousands of Black women. Madame Walker’s aggressive marketing strategy combined with relentless ambition led her to be labeled as the first known African-American woman to become a self-made millionaire.
Having amassed a fortune in fifteen years, this pioneering businesswoman died at the age of 52. Her prescription for success was perseverance, hard work, faith in herself and in God, "honest business dealings" and of course, quality products. "There is no royal flower-strewn path to success," she once observed. "And if there is, I have not found it - for if I have accomplished anything in life it is because I have been willing to work hard."
Improved Permanent Wave Machine
An employee of Madame CJ Walker’s empire, Marjorie Joyner invented an improved permanent wave machine. This device patented in 1928, curled or "permed" women’s hair for a relatively lengthy period of time. The wave machine was popular among women white and black allowing for longer-lasting wavy hair styles. Joyner went on to become a prominent figure in Madame CJ Walker’s industry, though she never profited directly from her invention, the assigned intellectual property of the Walker Company.
Madame Walker on Herself
"I am a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub. From there I was promoted to the cook kitchen. And from there I promoted myself into the business of manufacturing hair goods and preparations. I have built my own factory on my own ground" - Madame Walker
Biography
* I got my start by giving myself a start.
* I am a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub. From there I was promoted to the cook kitchen. And from there I promoted myself into the business of manufacturing hair goods and preparations. I have built my own factory on my own ground.
* I had to make my own living and my own opportunity. But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them.
* One night I had a dream, and in that dream a big black man appeared to me and told me what to mix up for my hair. I made up my mind I would begin to sell it.
* I am not satisfied in making money for myself. I endeavour to provide employment for hundreds of the women of my race.
* There is no royal flower-strewn path to success. And if there is, I have not found it for if I have accomplished anything in life it is because I have been willing to work hard.
* Perseverance is my motto.
Early Years
Madame CJ Walker was born in 1867 in poverty-stricken rural Louisiana. The daughter of former slaves, she was orphaned at the age of seven. Walker and her older sister survived by working in the cotton fields of Delta and Vicksburg, Mississippi. She married at age fourteen and her only daughter was born in 1885. After her husband's death two years later, she traveled to St. Louis to join her four brothers who had established themselves as barbers. Working as a laundrywoman, she managed to save enough money to educate her daughter, and became involved in activities with the National Association of Colored Women.
Inspired by Need
During the 1890s, Sarah began to suffer from a scalp ailment that caused her to lose some of her hair. Embarrassed by her appearance, she experimented with a variety of home-made remedies and products made by another black woman entrepreneur, Annie Malone. In 1905, Sarah became a sales agent for Malone and moved to Denver, where she married Charles Joseph Walker.
Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower
Changing her name to Madame CJ Walker, Sarah founded her own business and began selling her own product called Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower, a scalp conditioning and healing formula. To promote her products, she embarked on an exhausting sales drive throughout the South and Southeast selling her products door to door, giving demonstrations, and working on sales and marketing strategies. In 1908, she opened a college in Pittsburgh to train her "hair culturists."
The Walker System
Eventually, her products formed the basis of a thriving national corporation employing at one point over 3,000 people. Her Walker System, which included a broad offering of cosmetics, licensed Walker Agents, and Walker Schools offered meaningful employment and personal growth to thousands of Black women. Madame Walker’s aggressive marketing strategy combined with relentless ambition led her to be labeled as the first known African-American woman to become a self-made millionaire.
Having amassed a fortune in fifteen years, this pioneering businesswoman died at the age of 52. Her prescription for success was perseverance, hard work, faith in herself and in God, "honest business dealings" and of course, quality products. "There is no royal flower-strewn path to success," she once observed. "And if there is, I have not found it - for if I have accomplished anything in life it is because I have been willing to work hard."
Improved Permanent Wave Machine
An employee of Madame CJ Walker’s empire, Marjorie Joyner invented an improved permanent wave machine. This device patented in 1928, curled or "permed" women’s hair for a relatively lengthy period of time. The wave machine was popular among women white and black allowing for longer-lasting wavy hair styles. Joyner went on to become a prominent figure in Madame CJ Walker’s industry, though she never profited directly from her invention, the assigned intellectual property of the Walker Company.
Madame Walker on Herself
"I am a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub. From there I was promoted to the cook kitchen. And from there I promoted myself into the business of manufacturing hair goods and preparations. I have built my own factory on my own ground" - Madame Walker
Biography
* I got my start by giving myself a start.
* I am a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub. From there I was promoted to the cook kitchen. And from there I promoted myself into the business of manufacturing hair goods and preparations. I have built my own factory on my own ground.
* I had to make my own living and my own opportunity. But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them.
* One night I had a dream, and in that dream a big black man appeared to me and told me what to mix up for my hair. I made up my mind I would begin to sell it.
* I am not satisfied in making money for myself. I endeavour to provide employment for hundreds of the women of my race.
* There is no royal flower-strewn path to success. And if there is, I have not found it for if I have accomplished anything in life it is because I have been willing to work hard.
* Perseverance is my motto.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Oprah Winfrey - About.com Readers' Most Admired Entrepreneur
In a recent poll, we asked readers, "Which entrepreneur do you admire most?" The winner, hands down, was Oprah Winfrey, with nearly double the votes of Bill Gates and four times Richard Branson. In a career filled with firsts and superlatives, Oprah has managed to amass a sizable fortune, become one of the most powerful people in the entertainment industry, and yet maintain a sense of humility and compassion we all should strive to achieve.
Broadcasting Pioneer:
Born in a small town in Mississippi in 1954 and raised in Nashville, Tennessee, Oprah began her career in broadcasting at age 17 at radio station WVOL. By 19, she was anchoring the news at WTFV-TV, both the the first African-American woman and the youngest person ever to do so. In 1976 she moved to Baltimore, where she co-anchored WJZ-TV's Six O'Clock News. She soon made the switch to doing talk shows, hosting the local People Are Talking.
The Oprah Winfrey Show:
In 1984, Oprah relocated to Chicago to host AM Chicago. Within just one month, it had surpassed Donahue as the #1 local talk show, and within a year it was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show. A year later, it entered national syndication and became the highest-rated talk show in TV history. It has remained the number one talk show for 18 seasons, has won dozens of Emmys, and is seen by an estimated 30 million viewers a week in the United States and is broadcast internationally in 111 countries.
Entertainment Entrepreneur:
Not content to work for somoeone else, in 1988, Oprah founded her own production facility, Harpo Studios (in case you hadn't noticed, that's "Oprah" spelled backwards, not a Marx Brothers reference). Since then, it has grown into Harpo, Inc., which employs around 250 full-time people in television and film production, magazine publishing, and online media. She is also co-founder of Oxygen Media, which operates the Oxygen Network, a cable network for women reaching more than 54 million viewers.
Movies:
In 1985 Oprah gave a breakout performance as "Sofia" in Stephen Spielberg's The Color Purple, garnering both Golden Globe and Oscar nominations. She has also acted in several made-for-TV movies. In 1990, she founded Harpo Films to work on projects based on contemporary and classic literature, such as 1998's Beloved, based on Toni Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and co-starring Oprah and Danny Glover. Harpo has a long-term deal with ABC to produce the "Oprah Winfrey Presents" telefilms.
O Magazine:
In 2000, in partnership with Hearst Magazines, Oprah launched O, The Oprah Magazine, a monthly magazine that has become one of today's top women's lifestyle publications. It now has a circulation of more than two million monthly readers (more than Martha Stewart Living or Vogue) and Fortune called it "the most successful startup ever in the industry". In 2004, she launched O at Home, a seasonal home design magazine.
Internet Innovator:
With three million users per month generating 45 million page views, Oprah.com is one of the top women's lifestyle websites, covering a variety of topics, as well as providing in-depth resources about the show. It's also the home of Oprah's Book Club, now the largest book club in the world with more than half a million members. It's also the home of Live Your Best Life, an multimedia section featuring Oprah's personal life stories, life lessons, and an interactive workbook.
Private Life:
For a very public person, Oprah lives a remarkably private life. That's by design. Harpo employees are barred from talking or writing about her personal or business affairs and those of her company for the rest of their lives. Only once did a former employee, Elizabeth Coady, challenge it in court. Coady lost and Oprah's business and personal life remain remarkably private. Her companion, Stedman Graham, is a prominent management and marketing consultant with two best-selling books to his name.
Philanthropy:
In 1987 Oprah created The Oprah Winfrey Foundation "to support the education and empowerment of women, children and families in the United States and around the world." The charity has awarded millions of dollars to organizations throughout the world to improve education and health care. In 1997 she founded Oprah's Angel Network to inspire people to make a difference in the lives of others. So far the group has raised $27 million almost entirely from audience donations.
The Accidental Businesswoman:
Although she's a billionaire (the first black woman to achieve it) with a long list of business accomplishments and awards, Oprah told Fortune Magazine, "I don't think of myself as a businesswoman. The only time I think about being a businesswoman is now, while I'm talking to you. There's this part of me that's afraid of what will happen if I believe it all." She's turned down invitations to join the corporate boards of AT&T, Ralph Lauren, and Intel. But by most people's accounts, she's the most powerful woman in the entertainment industry.
Oprah's tremendous appeal comes from the fact that, although certain aspects of her life are very private, as Patricia Sellers put it, "Oprah's life is the essence of her brand, and her willingness to open up about it on daytime TV helped win the enduring trust of her audience." Oprah has maintained strict control of that brand, turning away countless requests for her to lend her name to a wide variety of products. Everything with her name on it is put out by her company under her direct supervision. Even the deals with ABC, Oxygen Network, and Hearst Magazines are basically distribution deals -- she retains full control. She owns 90% of Harpo's stock.
She does, however, have a top-notch behind-the-scenes partner managing the day-to-day running of the business. Jeff Jacobs, an entertainment lawyer who she originally approached to help with her AM Chicago contract, is the president and 10% shareholder of Harpo, Inc. He also acts as her agent and manager for her movie deals.
In the end, though, it's not all about the money. From her philanthropic efforts to the inspirational and educational nature of her shows to her book club to her Live Your Best Life program, it's clear that Oprah is all about two things: living a great life for yourself and making a difference in the world. She seems to have mastered both.
Elsewhere on the Web
* Oprah.com Official Bio
* Academy of Achievement Bio
* The Business of Being Oprah
Broadcasting Pioneer:
Born in a small town in Mississippi in 1954 and raised in Nashville, Tennessee, Oprah began her career in broadcasting at age 17 at radio station WVOL. By 19, she was anchoring the news at WTFV-TV, both the the first African-American woman and the youngest person ever to do so. In 1976 she moved to Baltimore, where she co-anchored WJZ-TV's Six O'Clock News. She soon made the switch to doing talk shows, hosting the local People Are Talking.
The Oprah Winfrey Show:
In 1984, Oprah relocated to Chicago to host AM Chicago. Within just one month, it had surpassed Donahue as the #1 local talk show, and within a year it was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show. A year later, it entered national syndication and became the highest-rated talk show in TV history. It has remained the number one talk show for 18 seasons, has won dozens of Emmys, and is seen by an estimated 30 million viewers a week in the United States and is broadcast internationally in 111 countries.
Entertainment Entrepreneur:
Not content to work for somoeone else, in 1988, Oprah founded her own production facility, Harpo Studios (in case you hadn't noticed, that's "Oprah" spelled backwards, not a Marx Brothers reference). Since then, it has grown into Harpo, Inc., which employs around 250 full-time people in television and film production, magazine publishing, and online media. She is also co-founder of Oxygen Media, which operates the Oxygen Network, a cable network for women reaching more than 54 million viewers.
Movies:
In 1985 Oprah gave a breakout performance as "Sofia" in Stephen Spielberg's The Color Purple, garnering both Golden Globe and Oscar nominations. She has also acted in several made-for-TV movies. In 1990, she founded Harpo Films to work on projects based on contemporary and classic literature, such as 1998's Beloved, based on Toni Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and co-starring Oprah and Danny Glover. Harpo has a long-term deal with ABC to produce the "Oprah Winfrey Presents" telefilms.
O Magazine:
In 2000, in partnership with Hearst Magazines, Oprah launched O, The Oprah Magazine, a monthly magazine that has become one of today's top women's lifestyle publications. It now has a circulation of more than two million monthly readers (more than Martha Stewart Living or Vogue) and Fortune called it "the most successful startup ever in the industry". In 2004, she launched O at Home, a seasonal home design magazine.
Internet Innovator:
With three million users per month generating 45 million page views, Oprah.com is one of the top women's lifestyle websites, covering a variety of topics, as well as providing in-depth resources about the show. It's also the home of Oprah's Book Club, now the largest book club in the world with more than half a million members. It's also the home of Live Your Best Life, an multimedia section featuring Oprah's personal life stories, life lessons, and an interactive workbook.
Private Life:
For a very public person, Oprah lives a remarkably private life. That's by design. Harpo employees are barred from talking or writing about her personal or business affairs and those of her company for the rest of their lives. Only once did a former employee, Elizabeth Coady, challenge it in court. Coady lost and Oprah's business and personal life remain remarkably private. Her companion, Stedman Graham, is a prominent management and marketing consultant with two best-selling books to his name.
Philanthropy:
In 1987 Oprah created The Oprah Winfrey Foundation "to support the education and empowerment of women, children and families in the United States and around the world." The charity has awarded millions of dollars to organizations throughout the world to improve education and health care. In 1997 she founded Oprah's Angel Network to inspire people to make a difference in the lives of others. So far the group has raised $27 million almost entirely from audience donations.
The Accidental Businesswoman:
Although she's a billionaire (the first black woman to achieve it) with a long list of business accomplishments and awards, Oprah told Fortune Magazine, "I don't think of myself as a businesswoman. The only time I think about being a businesswoman is now, while I'm talking to you. There's this part of me that's afraid of what will happen if I believe it all." She's turned down invitations to join the corporate boards of AT&T, Ralph Lauren, and Intel. But by most people's accounts, she's the most powerful woman in the entertainment industry.
Oprah's tremendous appeal comes from the fact that, although certain aspects of her life are very private, as Patricia Sellers put it, "Oprah's life is the essence of her brand, and her willingness to open up about it on daytime TV helped win the enduring trust of her audience." Oprah has maintained strict control of that brand, turning away countless requests for her to lend her name to a wide variety of products. Everything with her name on it is put out by her company under her direct supervision. Even the deals with ABC, Oxygen Network, and Hearst Magazines are basically distribution deals -- she retains full control. She owns 90% of Harpo's stock.
She does, however, have a top-notch behind-the-scenes partner managing the day-to-day running of the business. Jeff Jacobs, an entertainment lawyer who she originally approached to help with her AM Chicago contract, is the president and 10% shareholder of Harpo, Inc. He also acts as her agent and manager for her movie deals.
In the end, though, it's not all about the money. From her philanthropic efforts to the inspirational and educational nature of her shows to her book club to her Live Your Best Life program, it's clear that Oprah is all about two things: living a great life for yourself and making a difference in the world. She seems to have mastered both.
Elsewhere on the Web
* Oprah.com Official Bio
* Academy of Achievement Bio
* The Business of Being Oprah
Friday, October 1, 2010
Redefining Business As We Know It
Anita Roddick was the founder of The Body Shop, one of the world's most successful retailers of cosmetics and related products. She is also known as one of the most outspoken social activists in the business world. The Body Shop still adheres to the core values laid out by Roddick (click on each for more info from The Body Shop's site):
* Against Animal Testing
* Support Community Trade
* Activate Self-Esteem
* Defend Human Rights
* Protect Our Planet
Childhood:
Born Anita Perella in 1942 in Littlehampton, England, she was the third of four children and grew up working in her parents' café, to which she attributes her intense work ethic. At eight, her parents divorced and her mother remarried to her husband’s first cousin. At a young age, she read a book about the holocaust that included photographs of those who suffered in concentration camps. "This kick-started me into a sense of outrage and a sense of empathy for the human condition," she recalls.
Studies and Travels:
Following Maude Allen Secondary, she started tertiary education to become a teacher. In 1962 she received a scholarship to study in a Kibbutz in Israel, but after a pranking incident, she was expelled and sent home. Anita held several jobs and saved money for her travels to Tahiti, New Hebrides, New Caledonia, Australia and South Africa. She stayed and went to school in South Africa until she was expelled there as well after going to a jazz club on black night, violating apartheid laws.
Marriage:
She returned home where she was introduced to her husband Gordon Roddick and married in 1971. The two of them made a living running a restaurant and an eight room hotel. They felt overworked and wanted a change. With Anita’s approval, Gordon Roddick went trekking on horse from Buenos Aries to New York leaving her to support her self and two girls.
Birth of The Body Shop:
While her husband was away, Roddick gave birth to The Body Shop. 0ut of desperation, she created cosmetics out of every ingredient that she stored in her garage. She opened her first shop in Brighton, England, with only fifteen products and was able to finance the store using her hotel as collateral. Her products contained ingredients that women used in cleansing rituals that she had witnessed in her travels. She describes a woman’s body as a canvas to paint stories on.
Growth and Success:
With its strong environmental flare and popular demand of the products, Roddick had already opened a second shop before her husband’s return of being gone 10 months. Customers wanted to sell the products, and in 1984 the company went public and spread franchises all over England. Today The Body Shop has over 1,980 stores and more than 77 million customers in 50 different markets serving customers in over 25 different languages. Its success put Roddick's net worth at more than $200 million. In 2006, the company became an independently managed subsidiary of the L'Oréal Group.
Social Activism:
The Body Shop has a reputation for supporting social and environmental causes, thanks to Roddick's strong personal sense of social responsibility. After stepping down in 2002 from co-chairman, she spent 80 days of the year working as a consultant in her stores and used the rest her time to advance causes in campaigns against human rights abuses and exploitation of the underprivileged. She recently donated $1.8 million donation to Amnesty International's School for Activism.
Outspoken Blogger and Speaker:
In addition to her extensive travels and speaking engagements, Roddick was one of the first celebrity entrepreneurs to take to blogging with a passion. Her site, AnitaRoddick.com, includes extensive commentary from Roddick on activism, politics, women and entrepreneurship.
Health Problems and Death:
In February 2007, Roddick revealed that she had contracted Hepatitis C from a blood transfusion in 1971 during the birth of her youngest daughter, Sam, and was additionally suffering from cirrhosis of the liver as a result. She had unknowingly lived with the virus for thirty years and only found out about it after a blood test. In addition to her many other causes, she began campaigning for Hepatitis C to be taken more seriously as a public health issue. On September 10, 2007, Roddick passed away due to a massive brain hemorrhage, apparently unrelated to her other health issues.
Quotes on Entrepreneurship:
"Dysfunction is the essence of entrepreneurship. I've had dozens of requests from places like Harvard and Yale to talk about the subject. It makes me laugh that ivy leaguers are so keen to "learn" how to be entrepreneurs, because I'm not convinced it's a subject you can teach. I mean, how do you teach obsession? Because it is obsession that drives the entrepreneur's commitment to a vision of something new."
"We entrepreneurs are loners, vagabonds, troublemakers. Success is simply a matter of finding and surrounding ourselves with those open-minded and clever souls who can take our insanity and put it to good use."
"I want to define success by redefining it. For me it isn't that solely mythical definition - glamour, allure, power of wealth, and the privilege from care. Any definition of success should be personal because it's so transitory. It's about shaping my own destiny."
"An entrepreneur is very enthusiastic and dances to a different drum beat, but never considers success as something which equates to personally wealth. That never enters our consciousness. We have incredible enthusiasm, and I think part of the success of any entrepreneur is energy. If one has that energy one can create a wonderful enthusiasm. Entrepreneurs have this real belief that their lives are about services and leadership.
* Against Animal Testing
* Support Community Trade
* Activate Self-Esteem
* Defend Human Rights
* Protect Our Planet
Childhood:
Born Anita Perella in 1942 in Littlehampton, England, she was the third of four children and grew up working in her parents' café, to which she attributes her intense work ethic. At eight, her parents divorced and her mother remarried to her husband’s first cousin. At a young age, she read a book about the holocaust that included photographs of those who suffered in concentration camps. "This kick-started me into a sense of outrage and a sense of empathy for the human condition," she recalls.
Studies and Travels:
Following Maude Allen Secondary, she started tertiary education to become a teacher. In 1962 she received a scholarship to study in a Kibbutz in Israel, but after a pranking incident, she was expelled and sent home. Anita held several jobs and saved money for her travels to Tahiti, New Hebrides, New Caledonia, Australia and South Africa. She stayed and went to school in South Africa until she was expelled there as well after going to a jazz club on black night, violating apartheid laws.
Marriage:
She returned home where she was introduced to her husband Gordon Roddick and married in 1971. The two of them made a living running a restaurant and an eight room hotel. They felt overworked and wanted a change. With Anita’s approval, Gordon Roddick went trekking on horse from Buenos Aries to New York leaving her to support her self and two girls.
Birth of The Body Shop:
While her husband was away, Roddick gave birth to The Body Shop. 0ut of desperation, she created cosmetics out of every ingredient that she stored in her garage. She opened her first shop in Brighton, England, with only fifteen products and was able to finance the store using her hotel as collateral. Her products contained ingredients that women used in cleansing rituals that she had witnessed in her travels. She describes a woman’s body as a canvas to paint stories on.
Growth and Success:
With its strong environmental flare and popular demand of the products, Roddick had already opened a second shop before her husband’s return of being gone 10 months. Customers wanted to sell the products, and in 1984 the company went public and spread franchises all over England. Today The Body Shop has over 1,980 stores and more than 77 million customers in 50 different markets serving customers in over 25 different languages. Its success put Roddick's net worth at more than $200 million. In 2006, the company became an independently managed subsidiary of the L'Oréal Group.
Social Activism:
The Body Shop has a reputation for supporting social and environmental causes, thanks to Roddick's strong personal sense of social responsibility. After stepping down in 2002 from co-chairman, she spent 80 days of the year working as a consultant in her stores and used the rest her time to advance causes in campaigns against human rights abuses and exploitation of the underprivileged. She recently donated $1.8 million donation to Amnesty International's School for Activism.
Outspoken Blogger and Speaker:
In addition to her extensive travels and speaking engagements, Roddick was one of the first celebrity entrepreneurs to take to blogging with a passion. Her site, AnitaRoddick.com, includes extensive commentary from Roddick on activism, politics, women and entrepreneurship.
Health Problems and Death:
In February 2007, Roddick revealed that she had contracted Hepatitis C from a blood transfusion in 1971 during the birth of her youngest daughter, Sam, and was additionally suffering from cirrhosis of the liver as a result. She had unknowingly lived with the virus for thirty years and only found out about it after a blood test. In addition to her many other causes, she began campaigning for Hepatitis C to be taken more seriously as a public health issue. On September 10, 2007, Roddick passed away due to a massive brain hemorrhage, apparently unrelated to her other health issues.
Quotes on Entrepreneurship:
"Dysfunction is the essence of entrepreneurship. I've had dozens of requests from places like Harvard and Yale to talk about the subject. It makes me laugh that ivy leaguers are so keen to "learn" how to be entrepreneurs, because I'm not convinced it's a subject you can teach. I mean, how do you teach obsession? Because it is obsession that drives the entrepreneur's commitment to a vision of something new."
"We entrepreneurs are loners, vagabonds, troublemakers. Success is simply a matter of finding and surrounding ourselves with those open-minded and clever souls who can take our insanity and put it to good use."
"I want to define success by redefining it. For me it isn't that solely mythical definition - glamour, allure, power of wealth, and the privilege from care. Any definition of success should be personal because it's so transitory. It's about shaping my own destiny."
"An entrepreneur is very enthusiastic and dances to a different drum beat, but never considers success as something which equates to personally wealth. That never enters our consciousness. We have incredible enthusiasm, and I think part of the success of any entrepreneur is energy. If one has that energy one can create a wonderful enthusiasm. Entrepreneurs have this real belief that their lives are about services and leadership.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Historically, entrepreneurship has been a male-dominated pursuit, but many of today's most memorable and inspirational entrepreneurs are women. Come learn about some of the most influential entrepreneurial women past and present.
Mary Kay Ash - Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century
The founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics created a business that has helped some half a million women fulfill their dreams of business ownership. A best-selling author and powerful motivational speaker, Lifetime Television named her the Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century.
Jenna Jameson - From Porn Princess to Media Mogul
Entrepreneurship may not be the first thing on your mind when you hear her name, but this is one shrewd businesswoman. She turned the business model in her industry on its head before diversifying into a wide range of other products. Her story of powerful branding, tightly controlled distribution and multiple streams of passive income contains lessons for entrepreneurs in any industry.
Anita Roddick - Redefining Business As We Know It
Anita Roddick is the founder of The Body Shop, a store that purchases outstanding natural ingredients for a line of cosmetics, helping the disadvantaged communities generate income and providing women with superb cosmetics.
Oprah Winfrey - About.com Readers' Most Admired Entrepreneur
In our ongoing poll, About.com asked readers to select the entrepreneur they most admired. Was it Bill Gates? Richard Branson? Donald Trump? Nope -- Oprah Winfrey stood out head and shoulders above the rest. Read Oprah's story and some of the things that make her so admirable.
Madame C. J. Walker - First Female African-American Millionaire
The daughter of former slaves, orphaned at the age of seven, Walker built a thriving beauty products business in the early 20th century, eventually employing over 3,000 people. Her hard work, honest business dealings and quality products led her to become the first self-made female African-American millionaire.
Coco Chanel - As Bold and Distinctive as Her Signature Fragrance
Coco Chanel was one of the major innovators of 20th century fashion, introducing elements from menswear and sports apparel into women's fashion to create a distinctively simple, yet elegant style. Her signature fragrance, Chanel No. 5, was the first perfume to bear the designer's name. Launched in 1923, it is still one of the best-selling fragrances in the world.
Debbi Fields - Founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies
At age 20, Debbi Fields was a housewife with no business experience, but a great chocolate chip cookie recipe and a dream. Today, Mrs. Fields Cookies is one of the world's most recognizable dessert franchises, with over 600 stores in the U.S. and ten other countries.
Estée Lauder - Making Beauty Into Big Business
The daughter of immigrants, she is the embodiment of the American Dream. She started out selling skin creams created by her uncle, but with persistence and personality, she worked her way into the cosmetics counters of department stores. She developed a personalized selling style that put her brand at the top of the industry, with a 45% share of the cosmetics market in U.S. department stores.
Mary Kay Ash - Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century
The founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics created a business that has helped some half a million women fulfill their dreams of business ownership. A best-selling author and powerful motivational speaker, Lifetime Television named her the Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century.
Jenna Jameson - From Porn Princess to Media Mogul
Entrepreneurship may not be the first thing on your mind when you hear her name, but this is one shrewd businesswoman. She turned the business model in her industry on its head before diversifying into a wide range of other products. Her story of powerful branding, tightly controlled distribution and multiple streams of passive income contains lessons for entrepreneurs in any industry.
Anita Roddick - Redefining Business As We Know It
Anita Roddick is the founder of The Body Shop, a store that purchases outstanding natural ingredients for a line of cosmetics, helping the disadvantaged communities generate income and providing women with superb cosmetics.
Oprah Winfrey - About.com Readers' Most Admired Entrepreneur
In our ongoing poll, About.com asked readers to select the entrepreneur they most admired. Was it Bill Gates? Richard Branson? Donald Trump? Nope -- Oprah Winfrey stood out head and shoulders above the rest. Read Oprah's story and some of the things that make her so admirable.
Madame C. J. Walker - First Female African-American Millionaire
The daughter of former slaves, orphaned at the age of seven, Walker built a thriving beauty products business in the early 20th century, eventually employing over 3,000 people. Her hard work, honest business dealings and quality products led her to become the first self-made female African-American millionaire.
Coco Chanel - As Bold and Distinctive as Her Signature Fragrance
Coco Chanel was one of the major innovators of 20th century fashion, introducing elements from menswear and sports apparel into women's fashion to create a distinctively simple, yet elegant style. Her signature fragrance, Chanel No. 5, was the first perfume to bear the designer's name. Launched in 1923, it is still one of the best-selling fragrances in the world.
Debbi Fields - Founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies
At age 20, Debbi Fields was a housewife with no business experience, but a great chocolate chip cookie recipe and a dream. Today, Mrs. Fields Cookies is one of the world's most recognizable dessert franchises, with over 600 stores in the U.S. and ten other countries.
Estée Lauder - Making Beauty Into Big Business
The daughter of immigrants, she is the embodiment of the American Dream. She started out selling skin creams created by her uncle, but with persistence and personality, she worked her way into the cosmetics counters of department stores. She developed a personalized selling style that put her brand at the top of the industry, with a 45% share of the cosmetics market in U.S. department stores.
From Porn Princess to Media Mogul
I was taking a look at the Forbes Celebrity 100, a list of the 100 wealthiest people in sports and entertainment, and their story about Jenna Jameson caught my eye. In case you don't know her name (or at least won't admit to it), Jameson is the world's most famous pornstar. While she has done only about 50 movies (not really very many by porn industry standards), she has managed to successfully cross over from her hardcore background into mainstream media. She has appeared over 30 times on Howard Stern's radio and TV show, has made numerous guest appearances on a variety of E! TV shows, has just completed a pilot for a new reality series, and her autobiographical How to Make Love Like a Porn Star spent six weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.
Jameson's holding company, ClubJenna, expects revenues of $30 million this year, at nearly 50% profitability! They plan to expand into Jenna-branded strip clubs, cosmetics, and an apparel line, as well as some racier products you might expect. You can even download a "moan tone" for your mobile phone. 40% of the company's revenue comes from web site membership fees and site management fees for other porn stars' Web sites, which they run for 16 other actors, including Tera Patrick and Briana Banks.
Now here's the punch line... Jenna Jameson hasn't had sex on-camera with a male partner other than her husband in seven years. In fact, she plans to grow her business without ever again having sex on video with anyone--male, female or herself. She has shot enough footage with her husband to release two movies a year for the next decade. She has signed five new actresses to star in ClubJenna movies, offering them a rare deal that includes 3% residuals on any sales over 10,000 copies (most porn stars do not receive residuals on their films).
Jameson's story is full of lessons for entrepreneurs. Let's take her story out of context for a minute. This is a woman who was being underpaid in a dead-end job while other people made money off of her work. But she didn't just take it lying down -- she decided to leverage the exposure she received by branching out into other products and services, all while still keeping her "job". Her first contract with Wicked Pictures paid her barely $1,000 a picture, doing eight to ten a year. But as a headlining stripper, she was getting paid $5,000 a show. Add to that posing for pictures with fans, selling her latest movie, and tips, and she was making as much as $50,000 in a week while on tour.
In the Forbes interview, her husband, porn star/director/producer Jay G. Grdina, said, "This has developed from an individual star into a porn conglomerate. Her brand has been developed with the reputation of being the best, and now we are capitalizing on that and monetizing the name."
Not only that, they largely control the distribution channel. While their movies are distributed by Vivid Entertainment, much of their content is available exclusively through their web site.
This combination of a strong brand and a tightly controlled distribution allows them to diversify much more easily. When launching a new product, they already have both marketing and distribution channels in place, as well as a loyal established customer base who will buy the new products, helping with initial market penetration.
She has also made a successful leap to passive income. Shooting a feature film every month and then touring as a dancer makes for a pretty grueling schedule. Now the vast majority of her income comes from product sales, Web site subscriptions, and site management fees. If Jenna Jameson goes on vacation for a month, the money still keeps coming in.
Jameson's holding company, ClubJenna, expects revenues of $30 million this year, at nearly 50% profitability! They plan to expand into Jenna-branded strip clubs, cosmetics, and an apparel line, as well as some racier products you might expect. You can even download a "moan tone" for your mobile phone. 40% of the company's revenue comes from web site membership fees and site management fees for other porn stars' Web sites, which they run for 16 other actors, including Tera Patrick and Briana Banks.
Now here's the punch line... Jenna Jameson hasn't had sex on-camera with a male partner other than her husband in seven years. In fact, she plans to grow her business without ever again having sex on video with anyone--male, female or herself. She has shot enough footage with her husband to release two movies a year for the next decade. She has signed five new actresses to star in ClubJenna movies, offering them a rare deal that includes 3% residuals on any sales over 10,000 copies (most porn stars do not receive residuals on their films).
Jameson's story is full of lessons for entrepreneurs. Let's take her story out of context for a minute. This is a woman who was being underpaid in a dead-end job while other people made money off of her work. But she didn't just take it lying down -- she decided to leverage the exposure she received by branching out into other products and services, all while still keeping her "job". Her first contract with Wicked Pictures paid her barely $1,000 a picture, doing eight to ten a year. But as a headlining stripper, she was getting paid $5,000 a show. Add to that posing for pictures with fans, selling her latest movie, and tips, and she was making as much as $50,000 in a week while on tour.
In the Forbes interview, her husband, porn star/director/producer Jay G. Grdina, said, "This has developed from an individual star into a porn conglomerate. Her brand has been developed with the reputation of being the best, and now we are capitalizing on that and monetizing the name."
Not only that, they largely control the distribution channel. While their movies are distributed by Vivid Entertainment, much of their content is available exclusively through their web site.
This combination of a strong brand and a tightly controlled distribution allows them to diversify much more easily. When launching a new product, they already have both marketing and distribution channels in place, as well as a loyal established customer base who will buy the new products, helping with initial market penetration.
She has also made a successful leap to passive income. Shooting a feature film every month and then touring as a dancer makes for a pretty grueling schedule. Now the vast majority of her income comes from product sales, Web site subscriptions, and site management fees. If Jenna Jameson goes on vacation for a month, the money still keeps coming in.
Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century
Upset with the way she had been treated in the male-dominated business world, Mary Kay Ash began to make a list of all the negative and positive things she’d seen working for previous employers. She discovered after writing this down that she had the perfect plan for a successful company.
Before Mary Kay Inc.:
Born Mary Kathlyn Wagner in 1918, at age 17 she married Ben Rogers and soon had three children. While he served in WWII, she sold books door-to-door, selling an amazing $25,000 in just six months. After her husband's return in 1938, they divorced and she decided to change careers, going to work for Stanley Home Products. Though one of the top sales directors, she was repeatedly refused promotions and pay raises that the men were getting. After 25 years of hard work, she retired in 1963.
Mary Kay Inc.:
With her life savings of $5,000 and the help of her 20-year-old son, Mary Kay opened her first 500 sq. ft. store in Dallas in 1963. Mary Kay Inc. started with just nine independent beauty consultants. She based the company’s philosophy strongly on her Christian faith. She told her people to prioritize their life with God first, family second, and work third. With this as her guiding practice she has encouraged women and given them new opportunities for their own personal and financial success.
Incentives:
One of Mary Kay’s most effective strategies was incentives. In 1969, pink Cadillacs were given to the top sales directors. Diamond bee pins were another incentive to keep the women striving to do their best. With thirty-seven markets world wide, and well over 350,000 consultants, Mary Kay Inc. now makes over $1 billion in sales in nineteen different countries.
Recognition and Awards:
Fortune magazine recognized Mary Kay Inc. with inclusion in “The 100 best companies to work for in America.” The company was also named one of the best 10 companies for women to work. Her most recent acknowledgements were the “Equal Justice Award” from Legal Services of North Texas in 2001, and “Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century” from Lifetime Television in 1999.
Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation :
Mary Kay started the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation in 1996 after seeing her most recent husband’s suffering and death from cancer in 1980. The organization is a non-profit establishment that provides funding for the research of cancers affecting women and is dedicated to putting an end to violence against women by supporting women's shelters and educational programs.
Best-Selling Author:
Mary Kay is the author of three best-selling books. The first was her autobiography, Mary Kay, which sold over 1 million copies. Her second book, Mary Kay on People Management, was based on her business philosophy and has been included in business courses at Harvard University. Her third book, You Can Have it All, was a best-seller just a day after it was introduced.
Mary Kay Ash died in 2001. A Web site dedicated to her memory is located at MaryKayTribute.com.
Quotes:
"Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember you can achieve."
"Do you know that within your power lies every step you ever dreamed of stepping and within your power lies every joy you ever dreamed of seeing? Within yourself lies everything you ever dreamed of being. Become everything that God wants you to be. It is within your reach. Dare to grow into your dreams and claim this as your motto: Let it be me."
Before Mary Kay Inc.:
Born Mary Kathlyn Wagner in 1918, at age 17 she married Ben Rogers and soon had three children. While he served in WWII, she sold books door-to-door, selling an amazing $25,000 in just six months. After her husband's return in 1938, they divorced and she decided to change careers, going to work for Stanley Home Products. Though one of the top sales directors, she was repeatedly refused promotions and pay raises that the men were getting. After 25 years of hard work, she retired in 1963.
Mary Kay Inc.:
With her life savings of $5,000 and the help of her 20-year-old son, Mary Kay opened her first 500 sq. ft. store in Dallas in 1963. Mary Kay Inc. started with just nine independent beauty consultants. She based the company’s philosophy strongly on her Christian faith. She told her people to prioritize their life with God first, family second, and work third. With this as her guiding practice she has encouraged women and given them new opportunities for their own personal and financial success.
Incentives:
One of Mary Kay’s most effective strategies was incentives. In 1969, pink Cadillacs were given to the top sales directors. Diamond bee pins were another incentive to keep the women striving to do their best. With thirty-seven markets world wide, and well over 350,000 consultants, Mary Kay Inc. now makes over $1 billion in sales in nineteen different countries.
Recognition and Awards:
Fortune magazine recognized Mary Kay Inc. with inclusion in “The 100 best companies to work for in America.” The company was also named one of the best 10 companies for women to work. Her most recent acknowledgements were the “Equal Justice Award” from Legal Services of North Texas in 2001, and “Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century” from Lifetime Television in 1999.
Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation :
Mary Kay started the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation in 1996 after seeing her most recent husband’s suffering and death from cancer in 1980. The organization is a non-profit establishment that provides funding for the research of cancers affecting women and is dedicated to putting an end to violence against women by supporting women's shelters and educational programs.
Best-Selling Author:
Mary Kay is the author of three best-selling books. The first was her autobiography, Mary Kay, which sold over 1 million copies. Her second book, Mary Kay on People Management, was based on her business philosophy and has been included in business courses at Harvard University. Her third book, You Can Have it All, was a best-seller just a day after it was introduced.
Mary Kay Ash died in 2001. A Web site dedicated to her memory is located at MaryKayTribute.com.
Quotes:
"Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember you can achieve."
"Do you know that within your power lies every step you ever dreamed of stepping and within your power lies every joy you ever dreamed of seeing? Within yourself lies everything you ever dreamed of being. Become everything that God wants you to be. It is within your reach. Dare to grow into your dreams and claim this as your motto: Let it be me."
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