Can you imagine making $70 million in one day? Let’s take this in for a moment because that… is absolutely incredible. Talk about being smart with your brand, to make smart decisions, that turn into smart investing opportunities…that bring in smart money. Oprah Winfrey is one smart businesswoman!
So just how did my Aunt (in my head) make those type of coins in one day? Two words: Weight Watchers. While most people hit up Weight Watchers to lose, lose, lose… Oprah did the exact opposite. She gained, gained, gained…in the best way possible.
Oprah made her official announcement via Twitter:
I believe in the @weightwatchers program so much I decided to invest, join the Board, and partner in #wwfamily evolution.
Apparently, all you have to do is attach Oprah’s name to it, and the magic just happens. Once word got out that Aunt O acquired a 10% stake in the company (buying 6.4 million shares at $6.79 & was awarded options to buy 3.5 million more), the stock more than doubled to $13.92 a share. Wow! That’s that Oprah power for you.
That one-day spike added $70 million to Oprah’s estimated $3.1 billion empire (according to Forbes’ calculation). If that doesn’t inspire you, you’re looking for inspiration in the wrong things. Oprah has worked her way up from nothing. It’s not like she hasn’t taken any losses…which makes seeing the wins that much sweeter.
As far as Weight Watchers is concerned, it’s a big win for them as well. In recent years, the company has been struggling with gaining revenue. Sales were down 22% and profits were off nearly 50% in the first half of this year. It’s safe to say that Oprah’s endorsement gave them the boost they needed.
Go Oprah!
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