Oh Martha, Martha, Martha! It seems when it rains it pours as more sour news continues for Martha. Earlier this month, we reported her fabulous show, ‘The Martha Stewart Show’ is to end due to poor ratings and high production costs (see “Breaking News: ‘The Martha Stewart Show’ to End in April”). It was also during this time that home improvement giant Home Depot announced their plans to terminate their relationship with Martha’s brand ceasing her paint collection. Ouch. Well it seems Stewart and her Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. empire are not in the clear as reports of a lawsuit surface.
Earlier this week, Macy’s filed a complaint in the New York State Supreme Court against Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Their reason? J.C. Penney. For years, Stewart and Macy’s kept a relationship for her collection of home products (bedding and bath, kitchen and cookware) to sell in Macy’s stores. More importantly, Macy’s has always maintained exclusive rights to Martha’s products which she could inevitably breach with a potential partnership with J.C. Penney. Back in December, Ron Johnson, the CEO of J.C. Penney revealed the department store’s plans to purchase a stake in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (reportedly $38.5 million) and boost sales with mini stores full of her products.
From the sounds of it, Macy’s does not harbor bad sentiments about Martha, but simply wants her to honor their agreement. “Macy’s plans to fully support its exclusive Martha Stewart-branded products going forward,” reveals Jim Sluzewski, a spokesperson for Macy’s. While the new partnership if executed with J.C. Penney sounds great, if you have an exclusive contract, you have an exclusive contract. The agreement between Macy’s and Martha Stewart Living is set to expire in January 2018.
What do you think about this suit? Is Martha simply trying to expand her business, or burning bridges with greed?
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