BY: CASEY KAPLAN

Photos: Julia Dags

Hair & Makeup: Jean Neubohn

Susan was ‘leaning in’ before Sheryl Sandberg got out of college, and has been a major influencer since long before influencers were even a thing.

Susan shattered the glass ceiling of the previously male-dominated world of public relations, and she’s been the model of a powerful, positive, and successful business woman ever since. …And Susan is a New Canaanite!

Magrino grew up and went to public school in West Orange, New Jersey, then went to Skidmore College, focusing on English and Art History. As Magrino recalls, “It was the beginning of the boom-boom 80’s, junk bonds were the new thing and the stock market was going wild, and there was a sense – or at least I had a sense – that a lot of the old constraints were off, and that you could do bold things and achieve great success. I’ve always been a big believer that you have to be yourself fully, and apply yourself fully…and you can make anything happen. I recognized that just about everything I would do in business would be a first-woman-this or first-female-that milepost, and that my generation of young women would be defining the new post-Gloria Steinem workplace, but I really have always just thrown myself into it – without really thinking about being a woman doing it.”  Magrino landed a job at Crown Publishing, and spent nearly a decade there, learning the ins and outs of the public relations trade. “It was really a special time. Nancy Kahan at Crown was a true leader, and gave me tremendous responsibility right out of the gate. One of my first assignments, in 1986, was running the national book tour for Patti Davis’ not-too-flattering portrait of her parents, the President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, and First Lady Nancy Reagan. Patti had gone rogue and had no secret service protection, and we were swamped at every stop by eager reporters and an angry mob. I learned early on that a lot of the business of public relations was ultimately going to be based on the relationships I had to build and earn with book editors, the media, news rooms, and, well, just about everybody involved in getting out your message.”

Committed to owning her own business before hitting the age of 30, Magrino took a $10,000 loan from her father, a successful Wall Street lawyer turned successful commodities trader, got her sister Allyn to join her, and started the Susan Magrino Agency – now simply called MAGRINO PR (with Susan as CEO and Allyn as President). “I had Martha, who gave me the plain-and-simple Martha-like advice about naming my business to ‘just call it your name’, 

Magrino and her sister, Allyn

It requires experience, confidence, perspective, preparation, patience, knowing the reaction before it comes, and, sometimes, self-sacrifice. As Instagram becomes more and more a vehicle for short blasts by and about people and products, Magrino remains the kind of traditional, no-nonsense, unflappable, one-stop-shop influencer, who never stops having your back, can best bring about epic long-term results, and who you want in your corner when the going gets tough.

and a supporter of their athletic programs. James has two sons from a previous marriage, who were raised in New Canaan and attended the New Canaan Country School and St.Luke’s, before heading off to boarding school. (And, his son, James III, now lives in New Canaan, with his wife Katie and their 3 children.)

Susan pulled-out one such item and reminisced, “I went to a book party for Slim Aarons at Kaufmann de Suisse on Madison Avenue. I was invited by Sirio Maccioni, the famous restaurateur of Le Cirque, and I had purchased this vintage first edition copy of A Wonderful Time – Slim Aarons’ very first photobook after becoming well known as the photographer for Town & Country. His tagline was: attractive people, doing attractive things, in attractive places. I brought the book to the party and Slim signed it for me, and it’s one of the things that I really treasure.” 

 “I wanted everything to be open. If I can’t see it, I don’t know what I have and just don’t wear it. There are no bulky doors, I have closet sticks so I can easily move things around, and I get to look at all of these amazing pieces that each bring me joy. I worked with California Closets to customize every aspect of the space; they have such knowledgeable professionals and they customize everything and make it fit your needs and your wardrobe. Working with them was a joy, and all their work turned-out to be beyond my expectations. From the vintage Heywood Wakefield vanity painted a high gloss white, to the showcase hanging racks, the cupboards, and of course, the massive island filled with drawers for undergarments, casual clothes and jewelry – I love every inch of the room.” The closet is clearly one of Susan’s happy places, and every item in the closet has a story of its own just like the momentos around the rest of the house – from the Gucci skirt suit that Susan was eyeing at Roundabout in Greenwich for months, to the linen dress that she got on vacation in Italy with Jim, or the tweed Chanel coat that she says was her first major splurge piece after starting MAGRINO – Susan lights up talking about every piece. In fact, Susan is known for her fabulous clothes and impeccable looks. Her personal Instagram @susanmagrino7 boasts a following of almost 8k, where she regularly posts photos of her daily outfits – always styled to the nines from head to toe.

And, ironically, three of Susan’s top-four most admired people in business are also locals! Of course there’s Martha Stewart, about whom Susan declares, “Very few people get to grow up in business with a mentor like Martha. She’s been in my corner 30+ years and counting, and I’m eternally grateful for her friendship and support.” Then there’s Ralph Lauren, because, Susan says, “No one is more clear and disciplined in their vision than Ralph, and it’s been an honor over the years to have worked with him and his family.” And Philip Johnson, who Susan admits to admiring from across the dining room at the Four Seasons Restaurant, when she took her power seat at her power table and he took his, back in the day when lunch in the iconic dining room was the citadel of big movers and big moves in the business world. “Johnson achieved incredible success in business, and was lucky to live long enough to see most of his designs and projects realized. He changed our view of architecture and was the original modernist and minimalist. Although, I don’t think I could ever have the discipline to live in The Glass House! …And I bought my table and chair from the Four Seasons at the auction when the restaurant closed, and now use it for my own power lunches and as my desk – where it sits in my office in New Canaan!” The only out-of-towner in Susan’s group of four most admired businesspeople would be Sacha Lichine, the Creator of Chateau d’Esclans and Whispering Angel Rose, who Susan admires for singularly redefining the meaning of rose wine – with the validation of LVMH acquiring a majority stake.

Though she’s nowhere near the end of her career, and in fact probably just hitting her stride as MAGRINO prepares to celebrate its 30th Anniversary, Magrino has herself reached a point of accomplishment which warrants comment. In 2019, Susan was honored by New York Women in Communications with their prestigious Matrix Award, recognizing women in the media in support of their mission of female empowerment. More recently, Squawk Box on CNBC dubbed Magrino, the ‘Queen of Public Relations’. And it’s important, and right, to take note of the barriers Magrino has broken as a female, her female perspective of the business community, the world’s view of her as a woman in business, particularly useful lessons particular to being a woman in business that she may wish to impart, and the great things Susan is doing to pay it forward with a focus on things she does for women. Magrino is indeed a vanguard of female corporate chiefs.

But as and when Magrino’s real measure is taken, it may be that she has so smartly and successfully performed, as to transcend being judged as a business woman versus a business man, and instead become one of the first of a newest generation of women who’ve come to be seen only as a business person, and evaluated absent gender-based criteria. And it’s interesting that Susan’s champion, Martha Stewart, would be one of the other premier women who might be similarly viewed. By any and all standards…it should and must be simply said that Magrino is a giant, a titan, on top of her game, and does it all with confidence and grace