Winter 2011 - 65° Magazine

The Long Way Home
by Lisa Gunther
Photography by Hemali Acharya
At the impressionable age of 15, Michigan native Heather Hartle traveled to
California with her parents to visit her older brother in Carmel. From there, the
family drove north up the winding coast, stopping in Big Sur, Monterey, and finally
San Francisco. The visit marked a moment of revelation in the young woman’s life,
and years later she would return to help create 7x7, a local magazine dedicated to
celebrating the unique culture and natural beauty of the City by the Bay.
granddaughter of the famous American investor, Warren Buffet—speaks to her
sense of style.
Hartle has always had a passion for art, fashion, and photography. As a girl, she
even built her own dark room in the basement of her parent’s house, and dreamed
of someday taking pictures for famous fashion magazines.
Raised in Bloomfield, an affluent suburb of Detroit, her upbringing was traditional,
if not conservative. Hartle is the youngest of three children, and after 54 years
her parents are still married. Besides photography, her interests included riding
horses and listening to Frank Sinatra. In fact, when she was six years old she
was taken to a Sinatra concert in Chicago. “He winked at me,” she remembers, a
touch giddy. “We were in the second row.”
With such an ingrained appreciation of arts and entertainment, it isn’t surprising
that Hartle eventually became involved in media. After working for an ad agency
doing marketing and PR for major film studios such as Disney, MGM and
Paramount, she co-founded HOUR Media in Detroit with then husband, Tom.
In 2000, the two moved to San Francisco, where they launched 7x7—named for
the city’s 7x7 mile radius—within one year of their arrival. They also purchased
and revamped California Home and Design, though she is no longer affiliated
with the publication. “I remember people were like, oh you won’t be able to do
this, because you aren’t from here—you don’t know the city,” Hartle grins. “But I
looked at that more as a challenge that I was going to embrace. I thought it was
kind of wonderful that I was looking at it with fresh eyes.”
For Hartle, embracing the city also meant giving back to the community. In 2004,
she was named Woman of the Year for her work with the Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society, and she served on the board of directors for the Yuerba Buena Center for
the Arts from 2008 to 2010.
“There was something that just clicked inside of me, and I knew I was going to end
up here,” Hartle says of her first experience in the city. “I didn’t know how. I didn’t
know when. I didn’t know why. But I knew I was going to end up here.”
Today, nestled between the sharp, sloping hills of San Francisco’s Cow Hollow
district, Hartle’s dream has come full circle. Her cozy apartment boasts breathtaking
views of both the bay and the Palace of Fine Arts. The stunning panorama reflects
not only Hartle’s love of the city, but her appreciation of aesthetics. Lined along
the walls of her stylish abode are dozens of artfully stacked photography and
fashion books, and the abstract painting above her couch—by Nicole Buffet,
Though she has recently stepped down from her dual role as editorial and creative
director of 7x7, her passion for the city is as strong as ever. “The entrepreneurial
spirit here is just so incredible,” Hartle explains. “People are drawn here, and they
don’t even know why. Like me—it was almost like a magnet.”
For now, the media whiz is focusing on a new digital start-up, spending quality
time with her two dogs, entertaining friends, cooking, and of course, having the
time of her life raising her 14-month-old daughter.
In a city that sees millions of people come and go, Heather Hartle has truly found
a home.