Mary-Kate & Ashley Take Over

Fri., Jan. 28, 2005 10:20 AM PST by Sarah Hall

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have taken their latest step toward their apparent goal of total world domination.

On Thursday, the teen tycoons announced they were assuming full control over Dualstar LLC, their billion-dollar media enterprise that pushes all things Mary-Kate and Ashley on a target audience of young girls.

The move came after the twins bought out the company's CEO, Robert Thorne, who has headed up Dualstar for the last 15 years and helped make the mini-moguls into international superstars.

"The decision was to respect their desire to take the helm perhaps a few years earlier than I had anticipated," Thorne told Reuters. "But I didn't want to stand in their way provided that I was taken care of, as I was handsomely."

Thorne declined to report how much he was paid by the teen stars for his "very substantial minority stake" in the company.

With the Olsen twins taking over the reins of their empire, Thorne will be turning his attentions to other business ventures, though he will stay on to act as consultant to the newly minted CEOs for several months.

"I couldn't imagine having more talented, gracious and dedicated partners as Mary-Kate and Ashley for such a substantial part of my career," Thorne said in a statement.

Dualstar currently hawks everything from Olsen-themed undies to mary-kateandashley-brand shampoo, as well as a wide selection of videos and games starring the teens.

Thanks to highly lucrative brand marketing, the New York University freshmen are worth an estimated $137 million each, per Fortune magazine.

The Full House alums waxed enthusiastic about stepping up their responsibilities.

"I am truly excited to continue the Dualstar legacy we built with Robert and work hand in hand with Mary-Kate to push the company to even higher heights," Ashley said in a statement.

"We are very thankful that we are able to enjoy our college experience, run a business and live our lives," said Mary-Kate.

The twins are already showing signs of business savvy and, dare we say it, ethics.

Last month, the twins pledged to ensure that their clothing line, which retails at Wal-Mart, would not be produced in sweatshop conditions and that all female workers would be granted paid maternity leave.

In September, the duo signed a 10-year-distribution deal with Warner Brothers Home Video that netted them a tidy eight-figure advance.

It's lucky for them that their business is riding high, because the Olsens have not exactly won rave reviews for their acting chops as of late.

Earlier this week, each of the New York Minute stars picked up a pair of nominations (Worst Actress and Worst Onscreen Couple) for the 25th annual Razzie Awards, which "dishonor" the year's worst films and performances.