Winning Some, Losing Some: Key Lessons Learned From Celebrity Businesses That Shut Down
Celebrity success is normalized. From box office hits to sold-out concert venues, the rich and famous always seem to be in the public eye. Business is not easy, even for the elite.
investedia report About 20% of new businesses fail in the first two years of operation, 45% in the first five years, and 65% in the first ten years. Overall, only 25% of new businesses survive for 15 years or more. The hardest industries to succeed in are food spaces (celebs’ favorite restaurants) and hospitality.
When a star enters a business, the financial loss can be devastating, as can the subsequent media coverage from failure.But as the saying goes, fail fast and learn fast. .
Here are some lessons learned from failed celebrity business ventures.
01
Rihanna – LVMH Apparel Partnership
Nina Westervelt of The New York Times
02
Oprah – Early days of OWN networks
We don’t know today, but the legendary network OWN didn’t do well at first. His hugely successful Winfrey’s Talks show, which launched in January 2011, was supposed to draw viewers to the channel, but it didn’t. In his first week, the channel lost his 685,000 viewers, and as of May 2012 he is reported to have lost $330 million. However, after changing the show’s direction, the channel recovered. Lesson learned: Don’t assume your audience will follow you from venture to venture. Target each business to the right target audience.
03
Leaves – pastel clothes
The Yeezy apparel brand recently made Kanye West (Ye) a millionaire, but success in fashion is hard-earned. In 2006, he entered fashion for the first time with his own brand Pastel His Clothing, which received very mixed reviews. After four years of development, the line was closed in 2009. He then launched another line for women, DW Kanye West, which debuted at his fashion week in Paris in 2011. Years later, it’s the first time Yeezy has a better overall reputation, and the rest is history. Lesson learned: listen to feedback, evolve and keep moving forward.
04
Flavor Flav – Flav’s Fried Chicken
In January 2011, colorful rapper and television personality Flav decided to open Flav’s Fried Chicken, a fried chicken restaurant in Clinton, Iowa. But as we know food ventures aren’t easy to maintain and unfortunately the restaurant has dealt with a series of disputes between Flav and his co-founder and partner. The “Public Enemy” rapper eventually broke the partnership and went on his own to find somewhere else but ultimately failed quickly. Be very careful when tying and evaluate if you can do it yourself.
05
Naomi Campbell – Fashion Cafe
It’s rare that what a supermodel touches isn’t gold, but the fashion cafe was one of those slightly lemony ventures. In 2012, he launched a fashion cafe. Unfortunately, there was a disconnect between the supermodel and the diet among the clientele, and the patron suffered.The restaurant closed in 1998. Lesson learned: Be aware of your brand story and aim to tell an authentic story.
06
50 Cent – Magic Stick Condoms
Moguls and rapper 50 Cent attempted to launch a line of condoms called Magic Sticks in 2008, following his eponymous hit. But the product never even made it to market because of its chemical structure, which featured a toxin that promised to enhance sexual performance. It is important to be
07
Beyoncé – DeLeon House
https://www.essence.com/news/money-career/celebrity-business-flops-entrepreneurship-failures/ Winning Some, Losing Some: Key Lessons Learned From Celebrity Businesses That Shut Down
