Working side by side in their new sunlit premises in Oakland, California, making custom-made books in leather and cloth, everything seemed to be coming together for husband-and-wife team Ivar Diehl and Danya Winterman, co-founders of The Key Printing and Binding. But their marriage was in difficulties and last year they separated. But first they made a vow: “We promised that if we split up we would try to keep our business partnership going. It would have been too great a shame to destroy something we had built together,” says Mr Diehl.
Co-founder couples who remain wedded to their business after ending their marriage may not be common but they are becoming less rare. Abba, the double-couple band that became double-divorced, continued to record hits after Agnetha Fältskog and Björn Ulvaeus split, although the next divorce brought the curtain down. Eighteen years after separating from the hairdresser Nicky Clarke, Lesley Clarke still directs the business side of the eponymous salon and haircare brand. The restaurateur Rick Stein and his former wife Jill divorced eight years ago but continue to open new ventures together, with Ms Stein designing the interiors.
And in start-up land, couples who go into business together and fall out of love are a recognised phenomenon. “It’s an archetype we see more and more because succeeding at marriage is hard enough without the added stress of running a business together,” says Michelle Crosby, co-founder of Wevorce, a San Francisco-based business that helps couples in business divorce amicably.