Stewart Takes Control of Magazine, TV Show

Martha Stewart, whose recipe for 1990s family life has grown into a media empire of cooking, gardening and entertaining how-to, has taken control of her namesake magazine and TV series.

The purchase Tuesday calls for Stewart to buy out most of founding partner Time Inc.’s stake in Martha Stewart Living magazine, her syndicated TV show and some book-publishing operations. (Time Inc. is the publishing division of Time Warner Inc.)

The transaction stemmed from Stewart’s desire for greater autonomy and for the economic advantages of combining all the Martha Stewart businesses.

“Time was a wonderful corporate parent, but it is basically a magazine and book publisher, not a television company or an online service or a merchandising company--and those are areas where I foresee tremendous growth for us,” Stewart said in an interview Tuesday.

She said both companies agreed not to disclose the financial terms of the deal, but she noted that it leaves Time Warner with “substantially less than 20%” of her company.

Stewart said her dream remains to take the company public at some point. “The stock market is one way in which we can share the franchise with our readership and viewership,” she said.

Stewart, whose relaxed Connecticut style has created something of a cottage industry, said her company will also sell Martha Stewart brand goods in deals with Kmart Corp. and Sherwin Williams Co.

Time will work with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in several ways, most notably distributing Stewart’s magazine.

“Our association with Martha Stewart has been quite profitable. We wish Martha and her colleagues all the best for much continued success as they continue to grow the business, and we look forward to continuing to work with them,” Don Logan, Time’s chief executive, said in a statement.

Although figures were never made public, industry reports have pegged annual revenue from her empire at about $200 million, with Martha Stewart Living magazine accounting for about 25%

“She’s built a very strong personal franchise,” said Martin S. Walker of Walker Communications, a magazine-consulting firm.

Stewart’s career was cemented with the birth of Martha Stewart Living magazine in 1991, which now has a readership of 2 million. Her TV operations include a weekly syndicated series, Martha Stewart Living Television and specials.

Those operations will be part of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, along with “askMartha,” a syndicated newspaper column, and a mail-order catalog company called Martha by Mail.