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Condé Nast (businessman)

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Condé Montrose Nast was a major American publisher and business magnate.

Condé Montrose Nast
Condé Montrose Nast

He founded the mass media company known as Condé Nast. This company became famous for owning many high-quality magazines. His work changed how the magazine industry operated. Most publishers at the time tried to reach as many people as possible. Nast chose a different strategy for his business. He targeted specific groups of readers based on their interests or income levels. This approach allowed him to build a diverse collection of famous titles.

Nast's early life was shaped by a family with many different professional backgrounds. He was born in New York City on March 26, 1873. His father, William F. Nast, was an inventor and a U.S. attaché in Berlin. His mother, Esther A. Benoist, came from a prominent French family of bankers. Nast attended Georgetown University for his higher education. He served as his class president and joined the Philodemic Society, which was a debating organization. He earned a master's degree from Georgetown in 1895. Later, he earned a law degree from Washington University in St. Louis in 1897.

Despite his legal training, Nast did not enjoy a career in law. He began his business career working for Robert Collier. He served as the advertising manager for Collier's Weekly. During his ten years with Collier, he was incredibly successful. He increased the advertising revenue for the publication a hundredfold. He also worked with Robert M. McBride to publish books and Lippincott's Monthly Magazine. These early successes provided him with the experience needed to enter the magazine industry.

Nast's most significant work involved transforming existing magazines into premier publications. He first bought Vogue, which was then a small society magazine in New York. He turned it into one of America's top fashion magazines. He also took over Vanity Fair and made it a sophisticated general-interest publication. He worked closely with his friend Frank Crowninshield for over 20 years. Crowninshield served as an editor and a major influence on the magazine. Under their leadership, Vanity Fair published high-quality writers and featured reproductions of modern art.

As his empire grew, Nast managed a large stable of different magazine titles. His collection included House & Garden and the magazine Glamour. He also expanded Vogue into international markets. He published British, French, and Argentine editions of the fashion magazine. He also owned Le Jardin des Modes. His staff included notable figures like Edna Woolman Chase, who was the editor-in-chief of Vogue. Other famous staff members included writers Dorothy Parker and Robert Benchley.

Nast's personal life included two marriages. He married Clarisse Coudert in 1902, and they had two children. They separated in 1919 and eventually divorced in 1925. His second marriage was to Leslie Foster in 1928. They had one child together before divorcing around 1932. Between 1932 and 1936, he was accompanied by Helen Brown Norden, a writer for Vanity Fair. These personal changes occurred alongside significant shifts in his professional fortune.

The Great Depression brought massive challenges to Nast's business empire. The economic downturn nearly ruined him financially. He spent his final years working hard to regain his former prosperity. Condé Nast died on September 19, 1942.

Conde Nasts Headstone
Conde Nasts Headstone

He is interred at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne, New York. His grave is located in Section 25 of the cemetery. Interestingly, his resting place is near the graves of famous figures like Babe Ruth and Billy Martin.

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