The Careers Martha Stewart Held Before Becoming A Homemaking Guru

Before becoming a renowned lifestyle icon, Martha Stewart had to build a name for herself through a string of pivotal career moves. Stewart — born Martha Kostyra in 1941 to a Polish-American family — got a early calling for homemaking from her mom, Big Martha, who mentored her in cooking and sewing. She also received practical lessons from her DIYer father, Edward, with whom she enjoyed sharing retro-classic pungent sandwiches on late nights. However, Stewart envisioned a different career path when she entered college, where she studied chemistry.

During this period, Stewart already had a career as a model. She began appearing in magazines and commercials in high school and continued accepting gigs in college to pay for her schooling. She later ditched chemistry for art and European and architectural history, which would prove more useful in the long run. In between college and modeling, Stewart also found time to settle down, marrying Andrew Stewart in 1961. The couple later welcomed a daughter, Alexis, in 1965.

After college, Stewart shifted her job focus again, working as a licensed stockbroker on Wall Street. But in 1976, she made a career-defining move when she left her job to launch a catering business, which laid out the foundation for her first best-selling book, "Entertaining," in 1982, and her subscription magazine, Martha Stewart Living, in 1990. Both provided Stewart with yet another path, this time as a television personality; by the time "The Martha Stewart Show" premiered on NBC in 2005, she had already become a sought-after homemaking guru.

Martha Stewart spent the next two decades cementing her brand through television and other media, as well as sharing her expertise in different homemaking areas. She authored many more books and produced content on everything from baking and organizing to saving (her money-saving tip for buying cooking oil is a must-follow). In 2023, she hit a milestone by releasing her 100th book, "Martha: The Cookbook," featuring her favorite recipes and never-before-seen photos.

Stewart's small-screen career has continued to expand via more lifestyle shows, such as "Martha Stewart's Cooking School" on PBS and her surprising and critically praised collaboration with rapper Snoop Dogg on the 2016 show, "Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party."  Stewart has also dabbled in reality TV, working as a judge in culinary competitions like "Chopped" and "MasterChef Junior."

Though her magazine, Martha Stewart Living, stopped printing in May 2022, the brand lives on as a digital media platform. Since then, her business ventures have included a home office solutions business, a meal kit service, a line of crafts and treats, and a wellness-focused line of CBD gummies. She also opened her first restaurant in Las Vegas, called The Bedford. And while she may have already established her reputation as a homemaking guru at this point, in a full-circle moment, Stewart stepped back into the first job she ever had when she graced the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue's 2023 cover.