Building Hobby Lobby’s Legacy—One Leader at a Time

This article summarizes the leadership insights and life philosophies of Mart Green, founder of Mardel Christian & Education Supply and the Ministry Investment Officer of Hobby Lobby. In an interview with Craig Groeschel, Green shared his journey from starting a business at 19 to overseeing a business legacy that includes over 40 Mardel locations with 800+ employees and contributing to the success of Hobby Lobby’s 1,000+ stores. His success is rooted in unwavering personal growth, an extreme commitment to relationships, and a consistent focus on eternal impact.

I. Early Entrepreneurship: Learning Through the Fire

Mart Green’s entrepreneurial journey began at age 19 when he called his father, who had an entrepreneurial spirit, about the possibility of opening a Christian bookstore. Green’s father had started Hobby Lobby in their home when Mart was nine, using child labor (Mart and his siblings glued frames for 7 cents each).

The Unexpected Launch

Green was attending college, working one semester, and studying the next. When his father offered to help him get a loan if he came home, Mart agreed. At 19, he quickly realized that, as the founder, “everybody’s looking to you for all the questions, all the answers”.

The first Mardel location in Oklahoma City was 6,000 square feet, which Mart initially thought was too big for a Christian bookstore. His father suggested adding office supply to the store, forcing the 19-year-old Mart to learn both the Christian industry and the office supply industry simultaneously.

Core Lessons Learned Early:

• The Importance of People: Mart quickly learned the importance of getting the right people. When you’re 19, it’s easy to hire people close to your age, but Mart had to learn how to attract and empower people with more maturity and experience than himself.
• Empowerment as Necessity: Because Mart had less experience than nearly everyone he hired, it was easy for him to empower others and learn from them.
• Never Burn Bridges: A major lesson learned was that when you burn bridges, the consequences last for a long, long time. Mart learned to “never to burn that bridge,” recognizing that maintaining relationships, even with those who feel like enemies, can lead to healing and a “huge advantage” years later.

II. The Critical Error: Tolerating Underperformance

One of the most significant early mistakes Mart Green admitted was not letting people go as early as he should have, even when he knew he had hired incorrectly.

• The Hope Trap: He kept “just hoping it would work out” or struggled with the disappointment of having to tell someone they didn’t have a job because he had hired them.
• The Double Negative: Mart learned that retaining someone who is not the right fit or is unable to do the job is a “double negative”.
  1. The organization retains an unproductive employee.
  2. The employee is prevented from moving on to their “next opportunity”.
• It’s a Favor: Mart stressed that when an employee is not the right fit, letting them go is actually a favor to them as well as to the leader. Groeschel highlighted that tolerating underperformance or a bad attitude hurts the organization, frustrates other team members who observe the tolerance, and ultimately hurts the person who is being unfairly held in the wrong role.

III. The Growth Strategy: Lifelong Learning and Unique Systems

Mart Green’s ability to operate successfully across multiple ventures stems from his disciplined approach to personal growth, which he defines as being a “lifelong learner”.

Learning by Seeing the Best

In the early days of Mardel, Mart had no clue about the Christian or office supply industries. His growth strategy involved working really hard to understand these industries.

• He would call his reps and ask: “Who’s the best in the country?”.
• He would fly all over the country to visit these top Christian bookstores to look and learn, actively trying to “stretch my brain” and see the best practices.

The Symbolic Power of Documentation (The “Weird” System)

Mart Green is an introvert who learns easier through books than through people. He has developed a unique, detailed system for processing information and maintaining relationships:

1. Book Processing: He reads a book, highlights it, goes back to mark his favorite quotes (sometimes up to 20% of the book), and has his executive assistant compile these quotes into five copies in a binder. He has gifted his four children 13 binders containing quotes from over a thousand books.
2. Relationship Documentation: Mart documents details about the hundreds of people he meets, including when they met, the occasion, and two or three personal facts (e.g., married for 30 years, three kids). This overcomes his lack of a photographic memory.
3. The “Why”: The motivation behind this documentation is to honor people and be a trusted friend, recognizing that friendship is one of the greatest gifts that God gives us. He values personal and genuine gifts, often choosing things that are symbolic and connect to the person’s heart, rather than just expensive.

IV. The Multifaceted Leader: Transformational Unifier and Generosity

Mart Green is known for his ability to have multifaceted impact across retail, ministry, and media, including starting Mardel, serving Hobby Lobby, involvement with Every Tribe Every Nation, producing movies, launching the Museum of the Bible, and strategic partnering with the YouVersion Bible App and “The Chosen” series.

Identity as a Transformational Unifier

Through a long process of self-identification, Mart narrowed his identity down to two words: “Transformational Unifier”.

• Transformation: The work must “transform something” or do things differently than before.
• Unification: He seeks to “unify” by bringing two sides together (like a bridge) to accomplish something that would not get done separately.
• Working Himself Out: He often goes into projects, even those with long-term oversight, with the mindset of “working myself out of a job” so he can remain available for new missions and empower others.

The Strategy for Success: Empowering the Right People

To manage this complex workload, Mart Green relies on surrounding himself with good people. Professionally, he has only one prayer based on Luke 10:2: “Pray for harvest hands”.

• Empowerment: He loves empowering people and realized long ago that he doesn’t have to do everything himself. Micromanagement is not his natural personality.
• The G.H.I. Character Filter: When looking for trusted team members and friends, Mart uses three character traits that serve as antidotes to the “tricks of Satan”:
  1. Generosity (G): Defeats the lust of the eyes (lusting after the things of this world).
  2. Humility (H): Defeats the pride of life.
  3. Integrity (I): Defeats the lust of the flesh.

Stewardship and Eternal Return on Investment (EROI)

Mart Green sees business excellence as a good thing, especially since it allows them to give more money away. The family’s mission is driven by this generosity; they have not taken raises for 10 or 15 years.

• Compound Generosity: Citing Albert Einstein’s recognition of compound interest as the “eighth great wonder of the world,” Mart argues that believers should pursue “compound generosity”.
• Eternity Focus: Since people are eternal beings, he encourages “kicking as much stuff as I can to eternity” by storing treasures on the other side. His focus is on Eternal Return on Investment (EROI): what will matter 10,000 years from now.
• Stewardship Framework (3 H’s): When determining which ideas or organizations are worthy of investment (time or finance), the family uses three guidelines:
  1. Heart: Being generous, seeing a need, and wanting to meet it.
  2. Head: Being discerning, recognizing that some stories aren’t true, and applying logic (e.g., if an organization is in trouble seven years in a row, they’ll likely be in trouble again).
  3. Holy Spirit: Believing the Holy Spirit can prompt them regarding where to give.