Running head: MSLO 1
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Name
Course Name and Section Number
Unit Number
, MSLO 2
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Introduction
Started in 1997 by Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSLO) is a
media and merchandising company whose primary business segments are the internet,
merchandising product lines, broadcasting media, and internet. Initially, the company opened to
serve as an umbrella for the various merchandising ventures linked to Martha Stewart. It later
diversified its ventures to include distribution of an array of commodities including paints,
wines, and magazines. The fall of the company began after Stewart was found guilty of colluding
with insiders of ImClone System Inc. to manipulate stock sales of the company. Consequently,
she was sentenced to 5 months in prison and was prohibited from running a public organization.
As a result, she lost her position at the helm of her company and this called for a reorganization
of leadership. The resulting failure of governance, competition from rivals and changing
consumer preferences exacerbated the situation at the company until it was acquired by
Sequential Brand Group in 2015.
Company and situation
As mentioned earlier, the involvement of Stewart in using insider information to sell her
ImClone System Inc. shares before the company announced a drop adversely affected the
operations of MSLO. Her subsequent imprisonment and prohibition in managing her company
created a leadership void that led to the decline of the company. Following her indictment and
imprisonment, her shows dropped by 63 percent in ad pages (Shein, 2016). Further, the company
went ahead to lay off 40 percent of employees in addition to slashing 60 percent of the products
it offered. Moreover, the new management sought to distance the company from Stewart in
pursuit of reviving it. Accordingly, it introduced services that did not have Stewart’s name on
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Name
Course Name and Section Number
Unit Number
, MSLO 2
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Introduction
Started in 1997 by Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSLO) is a
media and merchandising company whose primary business segments are the internet,
merchandising product lines, broadcasting media, and internet. Initially, the company opened to
serve as an umbrella for the various merchandising ventures linked to Martha Stewart. It later
diversified its ventures to include distribution of an array of commodities including paints,
wines, and magazines. The fall of the company began after Stewart was found guilty of colluding
with insiders of ImClone System Inc. to manipulate stock sales of the company. Consequently,
she was sentenced to 5 months in prison and was prohibited from running a public organization.
As a result, she lost her position at the helm of her company and this called for a reorganization
of leadership. The resulting failure of governance, competition from rivals and changing
consumer preferences exacerbated the situation at the company until it was acquired by
Sequential Brand Group in 2015.
Company and situation
As mentioned earlier, the involvement of Stewart in using insider information to sell her
ImClone System Inc. shares before the company announced a drop adversely affected the
operations of MSLO. Her subsequent imprisonment and prohibition in managing her company
created a leadership void that led to the decline of the company. Following her indictment and
imprisonment, her shows dropped by 63 percent in ad pages (Shein, 2016). Further, the company
went ahead to lay off 40 percent of employees in addition to slashing 60 percent of the products
it offered. Moreover, the new management sought to distance the company from Stewart in
pursuit of reviving it. Accordingly, it introduced services that did not have Stewart’s name on
