Forbes is celebrating some of America’s most successful women with its second Richest Self-Made Women issue. Their cover features nine women aged between 32 and 69 who are worth a combined $9.7 billion.
Some of the richest women are already well-known; Taylor Swift regularly tops lists after conquering the music industry. But other female entrepreneurs have more unusual paths to building their staggering fortunes over years.
Here are five who have amassed their fortunes in surprising ways.
Diane Hendricks
Hendricks co-founded a roofing business with her late husband Kenneth in 1982. As a distributor, it grew rapidly and sales have doubled in the past 10 years to nearly $6 bn. Hendricks is now worth an estimated $4.9 bn, making her the richest woman on their self-made list.
Sophia Amoruso
At 32, the author Nasty Gal founder is still a millennial but has made it onto Forbes’ list with a net worth of $280 million. Unlike many newly-wealthy people, Amoruso was careful not to spend money after making her first $1m in 2010. A “big no-no is increasing your spending as soon as your income increases,” she told Business Insider. ”I have always been careful to avoid this pitfall.”
Sara Blakely
The CEO of shapewear brand Spanx began as a door-to-door fax salesperson before founding the business aged 29 with just $5,000 savings. She is now worth $1bn.
Kathy Ireland
After enjoying a successful modeling career and appearing on numerous Sports Illustrated covers, Ireland lent her name to a variety of products ranging from handbags to branded office furniture. She now has a net worth of $360m.
Meg Whitman
In 1998, eBay was making $5m in revenues. By the time Whitman left in 2008, the online auction site was making $8bn. She is currently the President and Chief Executive of Hewlett Packard Enterprise and worth $2.1bn.
