AOL Money & Finance

Money Face-Off: Oprah Winfrey vs. Martha Stewart

More

This post is part of our Money Face-Offs feature. Let us know who you think comes out ahead in this head-to-head match-up, and check out our other Money Face-Off posts.

Celebrities -- they're more than superior human beings, they're money-making machines. If these celebrities were stocks, which would be the shrewd buy?

One sure sign of celebrity is first-name recognition, and today's contestants have certainly reached that pinnacle. Oprah and Martha are brands known worldwide, Oprah for compassion and wisdom, Martha for style and elegance.

Martha Stewart's brand is still tainted by her 2004 insider trading conviction and her stretch in Camp Cupcake. Before then, her growth from model and stockbroker to America's favorite lifestyle celebrity was impressive. After authoring the bestselling book Entertaining in 1979, she transitioned to television with her hit show Martha Stewart Living, for which she gathered several Emmys. In 1987, she inked a lucrative deal with déclassé retailer Kmart as a lifestyle consultant, to help it break into higher price-point retailing. In 1990, with Time Warner (NYSE:TWX) she launched Martha Stewart Living Magazine. The zenith of her career came in 1997 when she took herself public. The IPO for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (NYSE: MSO) made her a billionaire.

Since her conviction, the company has struggled to make money. The company has four profit centers. In television, her version of the hit show Apprentice was a 2006 flop, while her The Martha Stewart Show faces tough competition. The company hopes adding Macy's to retailers of MS-designed goods will boost that lagging segment. Magazine sales of Martha Stewart Living chug along at 1.9 million, while internet revenue remains a small part of the empire.

Oprah Winfrey began life with far less advantage than Martha, and much has been made of her amazing transition from child of a poor Mississippi single mother to billionaire. What the two women share is exceptional intellect. Winfrey launched her career as a newscaster in Chicago before finding her true calling as cohost of a local talk show. In 1985, she received an Academy Award nomination for her role in Steven Spielberg's The Color Purple, a springboard for the launch, in 1986, of The Oprah Winfrey Show. Her compassion, insight, and ability to talk with, and not down to, her audience and guests quickly made her a daytime hit. In a shrewd business decision, she started her own production company, Harpo Productions. In 2000, Oprah unveiled her own magazine, O, which has grown to 2.6 million in monthly sales.

She is known for her charitable work, including the recently opened Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. Winfrey was #1 in the most recent Forbes Celebrity 100, with $260 million in annual earnings.

Two powerful women, and two powerful brands. So which would you pick?

Oprah is 53, Stewart 66, so she has the age thing going for her. Martha is still recovering from her conviction, while Oprah's charitable work has burnished her reputation. Stewart has been unable to elevate her show above the many competitors, while Oprah is solidly entrenched in her slot. Oprah is also more focused businesswise, while Martha Stewart the corporation seems to be chasing squirrels up every tree in the forest, with not much success.

So would you choose a good meal or a good chat?

Vote in our poll for Martha Stewart or Oprah Winfrey, and let us know in the comments why your choice has the financial edge in this match-up. Also be sure to check out our other Money Face-Offs.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA-14.2810,318.16
NASDAQ-10.782,146.04
S&P 500-3.521,091.38

Last updated: November 22, 2009: 03:32 AM

BloggingStocks Exclusives

Hot Stocks

DailyFinance Headlines

Latest from BloggingBuyouts

TheFlyOnTheWall.com Headlines

    BioHealth Investor Headlines

    WalletPop Headlines

    My Portfolios

    Track your stocks here!

    Find out why more people track their portfolios on AOL Money & Finance then anywhere else.

    BloggingStocks Partners

    More from AOL Money & Finance

    WalletPop Headlines