Sara Blakely

Sara Treleaven Blakely (born February 27, 1971) is an American businesswoman and philanthropist. She founded Spanx, an intimate apparel company with pants and leggings, in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2024, Blakely created the footwear brand, Sneex.

In 2012, Blakely was named in Time magazine's "Time 100" annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In 2014, she was listed as the 93rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.

Early life and education Blakely was born on February 27, 1971, in Clearwater, Florida. She is the daughter of Ellen (née Ford), an artist, and personal injury lawyer John Blakely. She has a brother, artist Ford Blakely.

Early career Although Blakely planned to become an attorney, she reconsidered after scoring very poorly on the Law School Admission Test; she instead accepted a job at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, where she worked for three months. She also occasionally worked as a stand-up comedian during this period. She was quite successful in sales and was promoted to national sales trainer at the age of 25.

Spanx At age 27, Blakely relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, and while still working at Danka, spent the next two years and $5,000 savings researching and developing her hosiery idea.

Blakely then drove to North Carolina, the location of most of America's hosiery mills, to present her idea. She was turned away by every representative; these companies were used to dealing with established companies, and did not see the value of her idea. Two weeks after arriving home from her North Carolina trip, Blakely received a call from a mill operator based in Asheboro, North Carolina, who offered to support Blakely's concept, as he had received strong encouragement from his three daughters. Blakely further explained in 2011 that the experience of developing her idea also revealed to her that the hosiery manufacturing industry was overseen solely by men who were not using the products they were producing. Following the submission of the online application, she then worked on the packaging of her product.

Blakely used her credit card to purchase the "Spanx" trademark on the USPTO website for $150. Blakely's product was sold in seven Neiman Marcus stores as a result of the meeting;

In October 2013, Blakely explained that her ambition is to design the world's most comfortable high-heel shoe prior to retirement. She was listed as the 93rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.

In October 2021, The Blackstone Group acquired a majority stake in Spanx, Inc. The company was valued at $1.2 billion. Blakely retained her position as Executive Chairwoman. Forbes estimated her net worth after the deal at $1.3 billion. To celebrate the transaction, Blakely gave each of her 750 employees $10,000 in cash and let them purchase two first-class plane tickets to any destination they desired.

Sneex In 2024, Blakely created Sneex, a footwear brand focused on high-heeled sneakers.

Television In 2005, Blakely attained second place as a contestant on The Rebel Billionaire,

She was a guest investor on several episodes in seasons 9 and 10 of Shark Tank.

She also appeared in a very brief cameo, as herself, on "Elmsley Court," episode 12 of Billions Season 3.

Philanthropy In 2006, Blakely launched the Sara Blakely Foundation to help women through education and entrepreneurial training. Richard Branson acted as a mentor to Blakely and, at the conclusion of The Rebel Billionaire, surprised Blakely with a $750,000 check to start the Foundation.

Since its launch, The Sara Blakely Foundation has funded scholarships for young women at the Community and Individual Development Association City Campus in South Africa

In 2019, Blakely paid $162,500 at an auction for the black pants worn by Olivia Newton-John in Grease; the proceeds from which benefited Newton-John's cancer treatment center in Melbourne, Australia.

The next year, Blakely pledged to give $5 million to support female-run small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

In 2026, Florida State University awarded Sara Blakely with Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters to commemorate her work as an inventor and philanthropist.

Personal life In 2008, Blakely married Jesse Itzler, the co-founder of Marquis Jet. Together, they have four children. She is a convert to Judaism.