Fame
& Fortune: Suzanne SomersTV contract gaffe -- the last
one she's made | | |
| Bankrate:
For many actresses, the kind of white-hot celebrity that you enjoyed is often
the high point of their careers, not to mention their income. But for you, "Three's
Company" was just the starting point. How and when did you realize you would
shift gears and diversify into the entrepreneurial endeavors that have made you
a financial powerhouse?
Somers: I have always followed my
heart and my instincts. They have never disappointed me or let me down. I also
have a husband who is a visionary who sees way down the road and is very good
at creating the architecture for our business that we work on together. He also
has a good feeling for what my core customers want and makes it happen. Bankrate:
From the ThighMaster to "Ageless," you've been more successful than
Madison Avenue at tapping into what women want. How do you do it? Somers:
We have over 1,000 products and continue to develop more all the time in fashion,
cosmetics, skin care, fitness, jewelry, fresh and packaged foods, and service
organizations like Suzanne.com,
our new direct selling organization. It's like Avon or Tupperware or Mary Kay.
We also opened two more businesses this year, Suzanneskitchen.com,
a fresh food prep store, and menopauseinstitute.com,
which provides bio-identical hormone treatment for women and men. Bankrate:
What has been your investment strategy? Do you take a personal interest in how
your money is invested? What part of your financial success has given you the
greatest joy? Somers: Financial
success only gives me one thing: freedom. The freedom to only work with nontoxic
people with great ideas who are highly motivated. Other than that, I still only
eat three meals a day and wear one outfit at a time. As for investments, I like
land a lot. If I see a piece of land that I fell in love with and can buy, I know
that a few years down the road, someone else will fall in love with that piece
of land and we will sell it. Bankrate:
You've become the new role model for sexy seniors as the standard bearer for bio-identical
hormone replacement therapy. Are there similar health and aging breakthroughs
on the horizon that you are exploring, both personally and as an entrepreneur? Somers:
I believe that nanotechnology is our future in almost every area I can think of.
Certainly, nanotechnology is and will continue to change the face of medicine.
We are now practicing 50-year-old protocols that are not making us well; in fact,
we are the sickest people on the planet with all our resources and abundance.
So with nanotechnology and a visit to our menopause clinic in San Diego, a patient
will be able to maximize their future health status. Bankrate:
What is the best piece of advice you've ever received, and from whom? Somers:
I have had many, many pieces of advice about our business and they always come
from my husband, Alan. The one I take very seriously is to never lie to the public
and always give them their money's worth, or more than their money's worth, and
they will become your best customer. | 
