Marie Adler began singing at the age of three and performing on stage in the third grade, and even in those days she was using both sides of her brain. She was the latest generation in a clan of entrepreneurs and entertainers, although at that tender young age she did not realize that she would have to temporarily put aside her dreams of show business glory to aide her family. She finished high school and entered college well ahead of her peers, but when her father was assaulted and left for dead by a robber Marie had no choice but to come home and take over the family business during the long recovery process.
Following her father's recovery, Marie entered into the mortgage loan business, becoming a self-made entrepreneur at the age of nineteen and founding one of the leading financial institutions in California. Starting in 2000, with a small team of seven employees and big vision, she quickly filled a five thousand square foot office, and under her innovative leadership the firm soon had similar offices nationwide. The company became formidable player in the lending industry within its first year, generating an impressive loan volume of $172 million. Three short years later it would have an astounding total volume of $38 billion and employ nearly five hundred people. Marie would go on to expand her operation into thirty-two separate branches doing business in forty-two states, and develop a highly successful internal training regimen for up-and-coming financiers and for realtors through her real estate company Liberty Properties, Inc.
It wouldn't stop there. "After a few bad experiences with marketing companies I saw no need for the middle man. It simply made more sense and cents [laughs] to start my own marketing company," Marie remembers. Relentlessly working to stay ahead of the pack and stay on the cutting edge, her integrity and loyalty to her colleagues and clients would long be remembered by all that worked with her or for her.
A California business empire may sound like an unlikely prospect for a North Carolina native and a former biochemistry major, but Ms. Adler loved every moment of it. "Never judge a book by its cover," she said. She held the reigns of the company until 2009, having successfully transformed the company from a simple mortgage broker to a full mortgage lender. In addition to her mortgage business and real estate ventures she also entered into investment banking during this period. With the paperwork in hand Marie was ready to take the company public, but the turbulent market of 2009 forced her to make some tough decisions. As a privately held mortgage bank there were no government bailouts,and so she bailed the company out herself as she once did for her family, determined to keep afloat and weather the storm with the last five banks. Ultimately realizing that such a task was impractical even for her, Marie realized it was time to conquer her ultimate dream: the entertainment business! "I want to make movies that change the world for the better" she explained. But her troubles didn't stop there, while dealing with the heartbreaking task of closing her firm and founding Adler & Associates Entertainment, Inc., she would be given another heartbreaking challenge when she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.
Despite the seriousness of her diagnosis, this would not hold her back either. "God has a time and reason for everything, and this might have been his way of slowing me down, allowing me to learn the business carefully from the ground up," she remembers. She continued to work and research as much as possible, keeping the story under wraps finally beat the disease in 2014.
Learning the differences between the mortgage and the film business was a simple task for a hands-on CEO like Ms. Adler, who soon found that many of her previous business talents made it seamless for her new enterprises. Determined and excited to pursue her dreams, she jumped at the chance to work on every film she could and in every position. Like she did with American Financial Lending, Inc. and Liberty Properties, Inc., she strategically planned and built a firm foundation in a very short time. Except this time she had the worldly experience from her past and a global client base.
Where is Ms. Adler today? Conquering her dreams as an actor and entrepreneur, while making time for family, charities and friends.
