Andrew “Andy” Stewart is best known as Martha Stewart’s former husband, but his own career was established in law and publishing. He was a senior figure at illustrated-book publisher Stewart, Tabori & Chang and had previously led Harry N. Abrams Inc.
Andrew and Martha Stewart married in 1961, had one daughter, Alexis, separated in 1987, and finalized their divorce in 1990. Their relationship received renewed attention after Martha Stewart discussed the marriage and its breakdown in the 2024 Netflix documentary Martha.
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Who is Andrew Stewart?
Andrew Stewart is an American lawyer and publisher. His public profile is largely tied to his marriage to Martha Stewart, but he had a publishing career of his own before and during the period when Martha was becoming known as a cookbook author and lifestyle personality.
Biographical records associate him with the University of Virginia, Yale Law School, and Columbia University. Reports identify him as holding a law degree from Yale and a Master of Laws from Columbia, although detailed, authoritative information about his education is limited.
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Andrew Stewart’s publishing career
Andrew moved from law into book publishing. In a 1985 report, the Los Angeles Times identified him as president of Stewart, Tabori & Chang, a New York publisher known for illustrated books covering subjects including art, photography, and cooking.
He had previously been president of Harry N. Abrams Inc. Andrew co-founded Stewart, Tabori & Chang with Lena Tabori and Nai Chang. The company was later acquired and ultimately became associated with Abrams.
His work gave him a professional connection to Martha’s early publishing career. A NASA oral-history interview described Andrew as a principal of Stewart, Tabori & Chang and said that he helped publish one of Martha’s books while they were married. That connection should not be confused with creating Martha Stewart’s career. The available evidence supports a publishing and professional relationship, not the claim that Andrew was solely responsible for her success.
When did Martha and Andrew Stewart marry?
Martha Kostyra and Andrew Stewart married in 1961. Martha was 20 at the time, while Andrew was already pursuing his professional career. They had one child together, daughter Alexis Stewart, who was born in 1965.
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| Event | Year |
|---|---|
| Marriage | 1961 |
| Birth of daughter Alexis Stewart | 1965 |
| Separation | 1987 |
| Divorce finalized | 1990 |
How many children did Martha and Andrew Stewart have?
They had one child together: Alexis Stewart. Later accounts of Andrew’s family life may refer to children in a blended family, but Martha and Andrew did not have six children together. Alexis later worked in media and collaborated with her mother on projects, including radio and television work.
Why did Martha and Andrew Stewart divorce?
Martha and Andrew separated in 1987 after approximately 26 years of marriage. Their divorce was finalized in 1990. Martha later described the split as particularly painful, noting that divorce had not previously occurred in her family and saying that she and Andrew had not spoken since the separation.
The precise circumstances of the breakup have been described differently by the former couple and people speaking on their behalf. In the 2024 Netflix documentary Martha, Martha discussed infidelity and the emotional impact of the marriage’s end. After the documentary’s release, Andrew and his wife at the time, Shyla Nelson Stewart, issued a statement through Shyla’s Facebook page. The statement characterized the first marriage as “painful and abusive” and objected to the relationship being revisited publicly.
Those are competing personal accounts. The description of the marriage as abusive comes from Andrew and Shyla’s statement and should not be presented as an independently established finding. Likewise, Martha’s comments represent her account of the relationship and its breakdown.
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What does the documentary Martha reveal about Andrew?
Netflix’s Martha, released in 2024, examines Martha Stewart’s life and career through her own reflections and archival material. The film brings attention to her marriage to Andrew, the couple’s separation, and the personal experiences Martha associates with that period.
Andrew does not appear to have participated in the documentary in the same way as Martha. His later response came through a public statement issued with Shyla Nelson Stewart. Because the documentary focuses on Martha’s life story, viewers should distinguish between what the film presents as Martha’s recollection and independently verified facts about Andrew.
Who was Andrew Stewart married to after Martha?
Reports say Andrew later married Robyn Fairclough, who had worked as Martha Stewart’s assistant. That marriage ended. He was later identified as married to Shyla Nelson Stewart, including in the couple’s public response to the 2024 documentary.
Coverage published after that statement has not been consistent about Andrew’s current marital status. It is therefore more accurate to describe Shyla as his later wife or as the wife identified in the 2024 statement, rather than make an unqualified claim about whether they remain married today.
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What is Andrew Stewart doing now?
Reliable public information about Andrew’s present-day professional activities is limited. The 2024 statement described him as a publisher, an “avocational naturalist,” and a nature photographer. Earlier reporting clearly documents his work in publishing, but there is not enough authoritative current information to provide a detailed account of his present career.
Was Andrew Stewart a billionaire or the founder of Martha Stewart Living?
No reliable evidence supports describing Andrew as a billionaire. He is primarily documented as a lawyer and publisher, while Martha built her own media and lifestyle business and became the public face of that brand.
There is also no sound basis for saying that Andrew founded Martha Stewart Living. His publishing work intersected with Martha’s early career and he helped publish one of her books, but that is different from founding or building Martha Stewart’s lifestyle company.
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Who was Martha Stewart’s first husband?
Martha Stewart’s first and only husband was Andrew “Andy” Stewart, a lawyer and publisher. They married in 1961, separated in 1987, and finalized their divorce in 1990.
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Did Martha and Andrew Stewart have children?
Yes. They had one child together, Alexis Stewart, born in 1965.
What did Andrew Stewart do for a living?
Andrew trained as a lawyer and later worked in publishing. He was president of Harry N. Abrams Inc. and co-founded Stewart, Tabori & Chang, a publisher of illustrated and specialty books.
What did Andrew Stewart say about the Netflix documentary?
Andrew and Shyla Nelson Stewart issued a statement in November 2024 through Shyla’s Facebook page. They criticized the documentary’s treatment of the former marriage and characterized it as painful and abusive. That was their account and should not be treated as an independently proven finding.
The Bottom Line
Andrew Stewart was Martha Stewart’s husband from 1961 until their separation in 1987; their divorce was finalized in 1990. He was a lawyer who became a prominent book publisher and had a professional connection to Martha’s early work, but he did not create her career or found Martha Stewart Living. Their only child is Alexis Stewart. The 2024 documentary Martha reopened discussion of the marriage, producing sharply different accounts from Martha and Andrew’s later public statement.
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