I am a Patriotic Millionaire because I want the American Dream to work for future generations the same way it did for me.
Never in a million years did I think that a poor kid like me from the swamps of south Georgia would make it big by becoming “The Gift Card Guy,” but here we are. In 1993, my wife, Carol, and I had been in the printing industry for ten years when we decided to start our own company, Card Market, Inc. (formerly Card Marketing Services). In the late 90s, when the company was bleeding financially thanks to some less-than-brilliant decisions of mine, we decided to go for broke and transition our focus exclusively to gift card production. The rest is, as I like to call it, Stephen’s history. In less than two years, Card Market, Inc. went from bankrupt to booming and my family and I moved from Main Street to Easy Street.
I make no apologies for my success in life and have no issue with others being just as wealthy or wealthier than me. In our capitalist system, folks need financial incentives to work hard, innovate, and create new businesses that benefit the common good. Were it not for the opportunity to make a boatload of money, Carol and I wouldn’t have started Card Market, Inc., which would have deprived our thousands of customers of moments of joy giving gift cards to loved ones.
But the sad reality is that, in America today, “rags to riches” stories like mine are becoming increasingly hard to come by. Over the last half century, as inequality has skyrocketed and the rich take home increasingly larger shares of the nation’s wealth, social mobility has declined dramatically. Research has found that over 90% of children born in the 1940s grew up to earn more than their parents, but only half of kids born today can expect to do the same.
In other words, over the years, the American Dream has become just that: a dream. To improve your lot in life, it’s no longer enough to just have a good idea, work hard, and take risks like Carol and I did with our company. In most cases, you have to already have a significant head start in life, be willing to shamelessly and ruthlessly game the system, or just be the fortunate recipient of a random stroke of luck.
Several years back, I was determined to do something meaningful to fix America’s economic mess and bring the American Dream back to life. I actually was planning to organize other millionaires to this end when, as luck would have it, I discovered that such a group already existed in the form of the Patriotic Millionaires. After many thoughtful conversations and due diligence, I ultimately decided to join as a member, with a firm belief that the group’s three simple priorities – taxing the rich, paying the people, and spreading the power – held the key to getting America back on track.
As I mentioned, I have no issue with people being rich. But what I do have an issue with – and a big one, at that – is rich people failing to pay their fair share in taxes to keep the lights on in the United States. Some say that millionaires and billionaires shouldn’t have to pay taxes because they “deserve” to keep every penny of their hard-earned wealth, but they’re totally off the mark. No rich person made it big all by themselves – and that includes help from the government. Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk would be nowhere without the government-funded roads that allow for the transportation of their products, the public schools that educate their workers, the courts that protect their contracts, and so on. That said, it is only right that wealthy people like me pay back into the system that enabled our financial success and, in so doing, put the government on a path where it can properly invest in the working and middle classes again.
I also want to stress that, if we want to reinvigorate the American Dream, we also have to make sure our wage system is fair. Americans are told to pull themselves up by the bootstraps to improve their lot, but how can they be expected to do that if they can’t even afford bootstraps, let alone boots? It comes down to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: people can’t create the next Amazon or Microsoft or Card Market, Inc. if they’re too busy worrying about affording rent, groceries, or gas. That’s why businesspeople like me need to be required to pay our employees wages that actually meet the cost of living.
I’ve been rich and I’ve been poor, and let me tell you – being rich is a whole lot better. But there’s no good in being a rich person in a country where poor kids from Georgia like me don’t stand a chance. I believe I owe it to my county to be part of the solution, and that is why I’m a proud Patriotic Millionaire.
Stephen Prince is the Vice-Chair of the Patriotic Millionaires. In 1993, he founded National Business Products – now known as Card Market, Inc. – as a gift card and in-store marketing material production company. Since selling the majority of his company in 2019, Stephen has focused on his real estate investments, political engagement, and traveling.
Stephen is available to speak to the media about the Patriotic Millionaires’ general work and mission.
To get in touch with Stephen, please contact Emily McCloskey, Deputy Communications Director, at emily@patrioticmillionaires.org.