Karen Stern had never truly been a natural when it came to managing the vast wealth of the Stern family. While she possessed the name and the initial capital, her business ventures often felt like a series of expensive hobbies rather than a calculated empire. Her Billion-funded portfolio had primarily focused on two things: high-end department stores and her own vanity projects.
For a long time, the department stores were her saving grace. She had poured massive investments into securing sprawling locations, building state-of-the-art production lines, and obsessing over customer flow. Eventually, the stores began to thrive. They were turning a respectable profit, and other high-end retailers began to lease space within her malls, drawn in by the consistent foot traffic.
