issue 1 - Roland Berger

paul newman’s sauces have earned more than $150 million
business culture f
Tehama one of the top five brands in the
“Best of Men’s Activewear” category.
Like Eastwood, an increasing number of
actors, star athletes and music celebrities
are trying their hands as entrepreneurs.
US punk singer Gwen Stefani is backing
the handbag label LeSportsac, that allows
buyers to custom-design the bags over the
Internet. Latina pop star Jennifer Lopez
has invested some of the millions she has
earned on stage and in movies in her own
perfume and clothing collection, as has
her ex-boyfriend, rapper P. Diddy. Tennis
starlet Anna Kournikova also likes fragrant
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER OVERESTIMATED
HIMSELF, AND BRYAN ADAMS’
MAGAZINE WAS DISCONTINUED
scents and is pitching a perfume brand
bearing her name as “shamelessly sensual.”
Boxing chanpion Henry Maske, on the
other hand, prefers hefty and calorieladen;
he is currently the owner of four
McDonald’s franchises.
Stars can’t always be sure of hitting the
jackpot, however. Wimbledon winner
Boris Becker sunk millions into setting up
a sports portal on the Internet, which
flopped just as did his investments in fashion
and nutrition. Canadian rock star
Bryan Adams unsuccessfully tried his
hand as publisher of a German lifestyle
quarterly called Zoo, launched in October
2003. And Hollywood action heros Arnold
Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone and
Bruce Willis, along with comedienne
Whoopi Goldberg, completely overestimated
the business potential of their
movie-themed restaurant Planet Hollywood.
The restaurant chain opened in 1996
and went bankrupt three years later, as
not enough patrons wanted to eat their
burgers and french fries amidst original
movie costumes.
So what distinguishes the celebrities who
succeed as entrepreneurs? It takes more
“ I just wanted to make sure that I could keep buying
my clothes at Cordings.”
Eric Clapton
than the right accountant and attorney to
evaluate a business model’s chances of
success. It takes a mix of business savvy, a
healthy assessment of one’s own market
value, and occasionally a heartfelt story.
Antonio Banderas, 44, for example, comes
off as patriotic when he says, “A man without
roots is nothing,” —and lives by it. Born
in Málaga, Spain, the Hollywood star of
“Desperado” and “Evita” invested the millions
from his movies exclusively in Spanish
brand names: restaurants, movie
theatre chains and olive oil.
Guitar legend Eric Clapton, 59, reveals a
sense of tradition and typical British understatement
when he says, “I just wanted
to make sure I could keep buying my
clothes at Cordings.” Mister Slowhand reacted
quickly and took a 50 percent stake
in the menswear store dating back to 1839
when it was threatened with closure in
late 2003. Now this traditional company,
located on Piccadilly in London, radiates a
new look and will soon be launching its
first collection for women.
A personal story links 79-year-old Oscar
winner Paul Newman with his commercial
success. When he transformed a family
Christmas tradition into a giant business
in 1982 by founding “Newman’s Own,” the
actor decided that he would donate all
profits to charitable organizations—among
others the foundation he created in the
wake of his son’s drug-related death. Many
Based on the family recipe used by the
Newmans every year on Christmas Eve,
the salad dressing became very popular
with many Americans. In the first year of
business, Newman and his partner made a
million dollars. Since then, he has raked in
about $150 million for good causes with his
variety of high-end dressings, soft drinks,
sauces and more. “It got out of control in a
good way,” is Newman’s comment about
his culinary adventure.
Top director Francis Ford Coppola (“The
Godfather” ) and his colleague and friend
George Lucas (“Star Wars”) have demonstrated
how to transform a high-profile
name into a brand. Over the last 12 years,
Coppola has worked as a distinguished
winemaker. In 2002 he and Lucas brought
out a Merlot called “Viandante del Cielo”—
Italian for “Skywalker,” and a reference to
the main character in the science fiction
saga “Star Wars.”
“Cyrano” is also both brand name and allusion:
The French actor Gérard Depardieu
has 100,000 bottles of wine with the “Cyrano”
label produced every year. In a muchlauded
performance, Depardieu played the
big-nosed poet and fencing master Cyrano
SUCCESS IS LIKELY WHEN
A BRAND, FAME AND A GOOD
STORY ALL WORK TOGETHER
de Bergerac in a 1990s movie. Ever since
Depardieu, an avowed bon vivant, purchased
the Château de Tigné vineyard in
Anjou, France, he has become a bona fide
collector. In addition to his French vineyards
in Bordeaux and Languedoc-Roussillon,
he now also owns others in Italy, Spain,
Algeria, Morocco and Ukraine. Depardieu
wines such as the 2003 “Ma Vérité” and
“Confiance”, received the highest praise
from the famous wine critic Robert M. Parker,
Jr. The 55-year-old actor shows that he
not only has a distinctive nose for character
roles but also a good sense for business.
think: act 55