You launched the Polo Jeans Company for Ralph Lauren, then headed up global apparel for Nike. Yes, and at Nike I was living this crazy life. My family was in New York, and I had offices in Portland, Oregon. I was out of the country 30 percent of the time. My daughter was 10 or 11. I said, “Now’s the time for me to do something new.” Where did HSN come in? A headhunter called me. HSN had not even been on my radar, but once I did some research, I got excited— not for what it was, but for what it could be. It was risky. Yes, but I figured the worst that could happen was I’d go do something else. I think a lot of people, especially women, make things such a science project of fear instead of focusing on the possibility and how change can propel you forward. If you’re willing to take a risk, be a little bold, that’s going to take you so much further. Your first move at HSN was a makeover of the physical place. Yes, the environment was very broken. I closed it down on a
“I think a lot of people, especially women, make things such a science project of fear instead of focusing on how change can propel you forward. If you’re willing to be a little bold, that’s going to take you so much further.” Friday to do a massive cleanup. I brought in 15 Dumpsters. I powerwashed everything— there was mold on the outside of the building. I replaced every chair on the campus. I got hundreds of e-mails thanking me for the chairs. I was focused on reenergizing the culture. It was important that people felt I was here for the long run and that I had their best interests at heart. How about work-life balance? There’s no such thing as 50/50. You’re always going to have to make difficult decisions. My daughter is 25 now, but when she was younger, there were times I really struggled. The important thing is that your family understands you took them into consideration with every decision.
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Do you have time to exercise? My husband and I live in downtown St. Pete, so I literally can walk out my door and run by the water. During the week, I go before work. I put it on the calendar. The thing that derails me is traveling for work. How much sleep do you get? I probably average six hours. With HSN being a 24-hour, live, by-the-minute business, I’ll think of something at 3 in the morning. I tell the people who work for me, “Just because you get an e-mail from me at 3 A.M., don’t think you have to answer it.” What advice do you give people trying to make it in your field? I love the book Give and Take, by Adam Grant. Everyone who works for me reads it. [Grant] divides people into categories. Givers are those who believe, as I do, that what you do for people isn’t just because you expect something in return. Are you a big shopper yourself? I love to shop. I get as excited in CVS as I do at Bergdorf Goodman. I understand the HSN customer because I am her.
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