Dolly Parton’s Business Legacy Offers Lessons for Entrepreneurs

Following Dolly Parton’s death at age 80, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth anchor and TCU alumna Deborah Ferguson spoke with TCU Neeley entrepreneurship professor Kelly Trager about the strategy behind the entertainer’s decades-long business success. Trager pointed to Parton’s authentic personal brand, ownership of intellectual property and patience in pursuing growth as lessons for entrepreneurs.

Parton expanded her career far beyond music, building a portfolio that included the Dollywood theme park and ventures across hospitality, food, fashion and consumer products. Trager identified Parton’s authenticity as a key element of her personal brand.

“We talk a lot about building your own authentic brand, and if it's not authentic, then people will not believe it,” said Trager, an associate professor of professional practice in entrepreneurship and innovation in the Neeley School of Business.

Parton’s approach to intellectual property offers another important business lesson. Trager told NBC 5 that Parton understood the value of owning her work early in her career, giving her greater control over her creative assets and the ability to build on them over time. Her career also demonstrates the importance of patience, Trager said, particularly for entrepreneurs whose ideas may not attract immediate investment or support.

“You have to be patient sometimes with that growth, with the expansion. Not every call is going to be a great call. Not every investor is going to buy what you're pitching, but you have to stick with it,” she said.

Trager, who also serves as the academic director of Neeley Fellows, brings experience as an attorney, entrepreneur and educator to her work at Neeley. Her areas of expertise include business strategy, legal issues in business, arts and cultural law, and business management.

 Read the full story from NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth.