Gywneth versus Blake: Battle of the Branded Blondes

If Martha Stewart is your prim, nervy aunt with a past, then what to make of the gooplets she has spawned, the would-be high priestesses of lifestyle porn Gwyneth Paltrow and—new to this arena in 2014—Blake Lively? Actresses selling curated versions of their ‘lifestyle’ online isn’t new. Since Paltrow founded her newsletter Goop in 2008, the space has exploded with everyone from Lauren Conrad to Jessica Alba getting in on the action (LC has a venture called The Little Market; Alba’s highly profitable diaper and home products line The Honest Company is very much connected to the celebrity’s eco-loving persona.) And apparently Reese Witherspoon isn’t far behind in launching a “multi-channel lifestyle brand” called Draper James in 2015. But Paltrow and Lively—who introduced her site Preserve this July—are the first two starlets to hawk 360 degree lifestyles. Selling everything from self-help books to $22 salts and Native American-inspired woolens, the business model can seem puzzling, even to the original maven of good taste, Martha, who wondered this fall, “Why would you want to be me if you could be an actress?” No matter what mighty Martha might think, the actress-lifestyle guru model looks like it’s here to stay, like it or not. So here’s how the battle of the branded blondes played out this year.