“How to Grow From Lost Business”

During her first four years running her public relations firm, Terrie Williams could proudly claim Eddie Murphy as her client. As founder and president of the Terrie Williams Agency in New York, she built her business around Murphy.But one day Murphy’s manager told Williams that another publicist would be joining the team and asked her to call the new publicist and “work it out.”

“I could tell she would be dealing with the mainstream press, and I would be relegated to the ‘black press,’” says Williams. “I wasn’t going to take a step backward. My professional integrity was at stake.” She resigned, even though Murphy represented 25% of her revenues.

Three months later she ran into Murphy. When he asked why she quit, she told him what happened. He agreed that he didn’t like the way his manager acted, and he invited her back.

“The experience was good for me,” she says. “For four years, everyone knew me as Eddie Murphy’s publicist. During those three months, I couldn’t say that anymore. I had an identity crisis at first, but then I realized I didn’t need one client to make me a success.”

Writer: Morey Stettner