Linda Rice: Pride of Afro-American Executives

In 1987, Linda J. Rice became the youngest publishing executive. At 29 years old, Rice was named president and COO of Johnson Publishing Co. She was instrumental in a number of Johnson products such as the “E-Style” Catalog and the Ebony Cosmetics. These are products designed to reach the Afro-American women markets. Rice is decided to usher her company into the 21st century with the development of her video series Ebony/Jet “Guide to Black Excellence”.

Rice was born on 22 March 1958 in Chicago, Illinois. Her father, John Johnson, was the founder of the Johnson Publishing House. Her father used to bring her to office beginning at six years old. Rice said, she was exposed to publishing this early. As a child, Rice would spend time with Ebony magazine’s fashion department where her mother, Eunice, was the fashion editor.

From her teenage years through her college, Rice was accompanied by her mother to fashion shows as far as Paris. She learned a lot on the intricate fashion industry. While enrolled at the University of Southern California, Rice would spend her summers working as an intern. In 1980, Rice earned her degree in journalism and thereafter, worked at Johnson Publishing as fashion coordinator and vice president.

While traveling to Europe with her mother, she took an active part in her mother’s work by selecting the models for the couture shows. At 23, she was on her own, traveling to other countries to find new clothes for the Ebony Fashion Fair of Johnson Publishing. Rice said these moments helped her develop self-confidence which later contributed to her success in business.

As the young vice president of Johnson Publishing, Rice worked closely with her father. She increased her knowledge of the company by following him around, attending meetings and reading his mails. She also learned circulation and advertising. She attended the graduate school at Northwestern. Rice said her father’s tutelage and her learnings from the graduate school prepared her for a successful career as president and COO of Johnson Publishing. The $337 million revenue that the company earned in 1997 showed that she was indeed the right person to handle the job.

Rice is married to S. Andre Rice. They have a daughter named Alexa Christina.