Since Chip and Joanna Gaines first appeared on HGTV in 2013 with their Magnolia home design, and lifestyle brand, Chip and Joanna have been making television work for them.
Wednesday, September 9, 9 p.m. ET: The launch of Discovery’s Magnolia-branded linear cable channel by the couple is a landmark moment for Oprah Winfrey.
Magnolia arrives as a rebrand of Discovery’s existing DIY network. A linear TV channel launch, even though it’s a rebranding effort, is very rare these days in media. Magnolia Network programming appeared as a brand mark on Discovery Plus’ streaming platform last year. It was a perfect timing for the couple, who live in Waco, Tex, and run their business empire.
The couple shocked HGTV in 2017 by choosing to take a break during their home renovation series. “Fixer Upper.”A wide-ranging conversation was had with VarietyThe couple discusses why it was the right time for them to return to TV, how Discovery Chief David Zaslav made Magnolia Network possible, and how they hope viewers will be inspired. “live the life that you were meant to live,”Chip explained it with plain-spoken eloquence.
Why is Magnolia important in this age of streaming and TV on Demand?
Joanna Gaines: We love being where the people are. So obviously, streaming — that’s happening. Everything changed last year, with streaming becoming the first and then moving to linear. All worked out. Now that we look back, we’re like, that’s exactly how it needed to work out. It’s because we were able to get the streaming platform online. But there’s still tens of millions of people still on the linear side. We believe that many of our viewers are still on the linear side. We want to be there. We believe in the power to get around the TV as a family, all of us watching the same program together. Right now, I feel like many people are on their devices and watching their own shows. It reminds me of six year ago, when we said yes. [creating Magnolia Journal quarterly] magazine. This was what we had been imagining. Everyone was saying it’s all going to digital, print is dying. We support the idea of spending an hour in your favorite chair reading a magazine and doing this kind of back to basics thing. The same applies to television. It’s weird to think of it as nostalgic, but being around the television set feels like back to the basics all over again. For us, it’s a blessing to be able have it both on the streaming and linear sides so that everyone can enjoy it.
Chip GainesNo one knows what the future holds. But we’re here to definitively announce that television is not dead yet.
What’s it been like for you two to evolve from being TV personalities to curating an entire network of content under the Magnolia banner?
CG: We’re thrilled about it. That’s been the greatest joy in all this — finding new talent that maybe the world hadn’t heard of yet and reintroducing talent that the world had known, like [chef] Andrew Zimmern, who’s become a dear friend of ours. To see him represent our network and to see some of the new, up-and-coming talent blossoming right in front of our eyes, it’s been really the joy of lifetime. That’s really the reason that Jo and I were so interested in this opportunity when [Discovery chief]David Zaslav, a former Magnolia network manager, visited Waco years back and offered us the chance to rebrand the network. Our eyes were just like — we were overwhelmed with the possibility of introducing the world to people and stories that we just believed were dying to be told. As we see it starting to come to fruition, it’s the honor of a lifetime.
How do you manage the development and curating of other content for Magnolia Network.
JG: We don’t do it the typical way. We’re not the network that says, “Send in your casting tapes.” For us, it’s been this really authentic way of finding talent. It’s either talent that we’re just completely enamored with as far as what they do, what they’re passionate about. It’s been a little harder, honestly, because it takes a lot of time on the phone and hours of talking them into even wanting to do television. I’d say most of our talent didn’t come to us and say, “I want to do a show.”We came to them with the following words: “Can we highlight what you’re doing? It’s so amazing and inspiring.”
CGOur main job is to convince people that TV is going to be great for them, their families, and their futures.
What qualities do you look for when looking for talent on the air? What makes someone a good fit for Magnolia Network
JG: I think one of the things we’ve seen is that thread of vulnerability. People need to speak up. “I’m willing to put myself out there. I don’t even know how to be on TV.” We’re like, “Hey, it doesn’t matter. Forget the cameras are there, we just want to highlight what you are doing authentically in your life.”You see all of our talent being vulnerable and beautiful. And I think when you do that, and the guard is down, there’s no act, there’s no “Hey, this is your script.” It truly is the life that they’re living. You can’t help but be inspired. You can’t help but go “What is it that I need to be doing?” We’ve had so many people write us letters, and even connect with us on social media just saying, “After watching the show, I’ve been really inspired to go do the thing that I was meant to do.” So it’s amazing to see the trickle effect of when people put themselves out there how inspires others to do the same.
CG: This is a wide range of hats. Today, half of our meetings are focused on the retail side and e-comm. The curation of this information is the second half. The third half is focused on talent and network. It really continues to challenge and stretch our minds. And I think that’s why we love coming to work every day. We’re learning new things, trying our hardest and hopefully people are being inspired by it.
How can you coordinate all activities in your life? What is social media?
JG: It’s kind of amazing how the [Magnolia Journal quarterly]The magazine has been pivotal. Our compass, the magazine, has been there since we were children. It’s like the theme of that season. And then with that theme, if it’s, you know, delight, or whatever that is, then that’s how I choose the product for that season. It’s funny how it trickles down to everything. Stories we’re telling in the magazine could be potential stories we tell on the network. We want people to feel that not only in the magazine but on the network, on social, on the blog, it really does feel like there’s this beautiful through line, where we’re not just talking about 100 different things. We’re really talking about the seasonal moments of being present in the here in the now and celebrating that.
What makes you think this is?
CG: I wonder how many people struggle with these ideas. It makes me wonder if those who are raising families feel the same way. People come in droves when Jo talks about it. It’s been an honor to watch people connect with Jo and the family and the life that we live here in Waco, Texas. It’s been incredible.
How do you decide whether to accept or decline opportunities to partner with Magnolia?
JG: “no”There is so much more to life than what we think “yes.”
CG: Very early on “yes”Although it was so much fun to say, it always cost us something. Jo and I are passionate about the fact that we’re going to make it through this experience, and obviously these circumstances are difficult at times on a marriage, on a family. Jo and I are very particular about the order in which our universe is ordered. Our family and our marriage come first. Everything else finds its way to the second and third places in the ecosystem. For Jo and I, it’s fascinating to say “no”To something that is really hard to say “no”In some cases, it is, but then we start to see the fruits in our marriage, in our families, and in our Waco, Texas community. These aren’t our taglines. This is what we truly are.
JG: Even though we didn’t know what was going to happen, the people were supportive from the beginning. “Can you do it in other cities?” We’re like, “no.” We can’t. We have a business here that we’re operating. We can’t leave. Then, these partnerships started to appear. It was almost like this: “You got to come to us, right?” We’ve got kids, and we’ve got a business. And so all our partnerships come here, everything’s designed and done here in Waco, Texas. Even with the saying “no”The fifth season of “Fixer Upper,”It was as simple as that “This is kind of wearing on us.”We base every decision on how it will impact our time with our children and our time together. We have found that it is important to start this early.
Why was Discovery the right fit?
JG: David Zaslav visited us to ask questions and to speak with us. “What do you want?”He said he would fly to our home to see us at 3 a.m. “What works for you and your family and your business?”
CG: He’s given us the creative control, which is what made us get to this really great place. The more we’ve gotten to know him, he really does represent the guy next door. He’s powerful, he’s energetic, he’s incredible. He’s brilliant, all the things that you would hope that he would be, but by the same token, he’s so relatable. And he’s quick to roll up his sleeves when things get complicated and god knows after years of trying to put this thing together — the cart kept switching places between the horse and the cart. Discovery, as a whole, has proven to be a great partner. We are very excited about the future. [pending WarnerMedia] merger because I think it’s just going to give all the ships the ability to rise as the tide rises with it. David Zaslav, if anyone can do it. We are his biggest cheerleaders, and we do so honestly and legally.
JG: [Magnolia Network chief] Allison Page’s experience in the world of unscripted television is unparalleled and we knew immediately that she was the perfect choice — the only choice, really — to collaborate and lead this venture with us. We are thankful to have her as a trusted partner. But more importantly — our friend.
According to my understanding, you have a unique level of control over the media venture through your business relationship with Discovery. What were the most important conditions for you?
JG: Discovery was the only option where we didn’t have to actually sign on the dotted line to have a show, or two, which was really telling. David had listened to us enough to know that going in, maybe it’s not being on television that’s the answer. It was [Discovery]Following their instincts and following them. The contract did not require us to do any shows or anything. He believed in us and what we would do with it. And that’s given us the ability to just really feel it out and see what works best for us every season. It’s possible to be a “Fixer” works best, great, but if it doesn’t in this season, there’s no strings attached. This makes it feel like we can create something truly special.
What is the Magnolia brand? What makes a show, personality, or subject matter suitable for air?
CGWe want to make sure you leave feeling inspired, refreshed and genuinely happy that your time was spent with us. I gained something. I was inspired by the way I engaged. I was encouraged. And those are our passions; we want to give that opportunity to anybody who’s willing to spend the time with us. We want that investment to pay dividends…What we do is not “Keeping up With the Joneses.” We’re not trying to create this opportunity for you to compare your lives to our lives. What we’re hoping to do is to light a fire so that you can go out and create the life that you were meant to live. And that’s really, really the bottom line for us.
What direction do you see your business going in 2022?
CG: We’re so excited, we’ve got literally a countdown clock that leads us to the exact second. We hope that when that channel conversion happens that it’s a beautiful spark in the universe that really inspires millions of people. We hope 2022 will be a chance for us all to break free from what has felt like a very stagnant few years due to circumstances beyond our control. But even when you think about politics and the ecosystem as it relates to the world as a whole — we’re ready for there to be a hopeful, fresh new start. And so the fact that this happens to be happening on January 5, 2022 — we think that it’s happening for a reason and at a perfect time.
JG: What we’re hoping for this new year is that we all we stay learners, whether that be learning about the other person next to you, and widening your mind and your heart to them, or being learners just in ways that you were built to do. What are your goals? What kind of life do you want to live? We can hopefully travel along with many people who are connecting with and for us. We don’t have any surprises or anything. It’s more just, hey, we’ve got this network off the ground. We’ve got it in streaming, we’ve got it in linear. Now let’s really build this. We’re just getting started. The sky’s the limit.