Day 3 of the Fast Company Festival of Innovation featured Chip and Joanna Gaines–Founders of Magnolia, a home and lifestyle brand and the soon-to-be launched Magnolia Network. They became famous through their show ‘Fixer Upper’ on HGTV.
They are launching the Magnolia Network as a joint channel with the Discovery Network. The Gaineses wanted to start a network because they love challenges, they love storytelling, and they found that their own expertise (contracting and small business/retail) translated well into developing content. The network grew out of the success of the magazine and all the things that the magazine could do. The stories didn’t have to include Chip and Joanna as the ‘centerpieces’ but the curated stories of homes and home improvements would be the center. Home improvement, food, decorating, kids programming—a variety of types of programs will be presented.
Television and magazines are kind of ‘old fashioned’ ways to tell stories—linear and non-digital. They wanted the value of being able to physically touch the magazine—and there’s a limited number of ads so the reader doesn’t have to page through lots of ads to get to the stories. The network will be the same. They want the network shows to be ‘appointment television’ that families can watch together—highly meaningful and highly authentic.
The shows on the Magnolia Network will be ‘season long’ and each program will have multiple episodes. They reached out to people they’ve read about but didn’t know personally and ask them to be on the network—they said about 2/3 of the people they reached out to said no thank you! The people who agreed are ‘dreamers and risk takers’ who can motivate others to go out and take risks as well. The stars of the shows are diverse, and inclusivity is important to them because they believe everyone deserves a seat at the table. Diverse talent brings a diverse group of experiences to the network. It will be a ‘beautiful tapestry…telling beautiful stories.’ Chip said that our country is more divided than ever, and the network can try to bring people together. Different opinions make us all better, our lives more richer, and helps us see lifestyles and viewpoints that many people may not have seen. This is a way we can develop a new reality for the future—the Magnolia Network will bring a variety of perspectives to their audience.
Authentic stories are going to resonate with a variety of audiences—from young adults to their grandparents and great grandparents. Everyone should feel welcome. Every program won’t appeal to everyone—but there will be something for everyone during the programming day.
Basically, they are taking an existing Discover channel (the DIY channel) and changing to the Magnolia Network. They are ‘honoring’ the legacy of the DIY network and our working with existing DIY Channel audiences to make sure that content for them will still be available.
Chip and Joanna’s identity as small business owners has become their platform for growth. Their businesses taught them they are always evolving as a business and that they personally are evolving as people. It also taught them that they have an opportunity to create beauty—not only beautiful buildings, but beautiful moments when people are connecting with one another.
The culture of Magnolia focuses on a belief that dreams can come true—and that as a company, as a tight knit community and family, they can work together to make dreams come true. They want to learn, they want to try new things, they want to take risks, and they want to work hard and do work that really matters.
The secret to their relationship? Chip says that they are kind to one another, first and foremost. That transfers to their company—they lead with kindness. Kindness evolves into mutual respect, which causes teams to rise to new heights. Kindness is a fundamental value that some people are naturally drawn to, and some people may have trouble with this, as they think kindness equates with weakness. Chip and Joanna believe that kindness leads to strength.
Why Waco? They are impressed by the resilience of Waco. Waco had to deal with lots of negative things, both natural and man-made, and they both believe in the promise of Waco and how Waco can be a center for change in the world.
What are they most proud of?
1. The way that they handle adversity—they always put kindness at the center.
2. Innovation for innovation’s sake may not be always the best strategy—values of family, community and kindness are always important and shouldn’t be sacrificed in the name of innovation.
3. Simpler ways of life and innovation can live side by side, but must be complimentary.
4. The way they always look for hope and beauty.
5. Shiplap