Sara Blakely

Blakely spent years selling fax machines door to door before cutting the feet off a pair of pantyhose to solve her own wardrobe problem, then turned that fix into Spanx, funding the company's launch herself and retaining full ownership as it grew into a billion-dollar business. Time named her one of its hundred most influential people in 2012, and Forbes ranked her among the world's most powerful women; in 2024 she extended the brand into footwear with Sneex. She has since committed much of her fortune to funding women-led businesses.