Sara Blakely is an American Businesswoman and entrepreneur famously known as the Founder and CEO of Spanx, which is a popular American Underwear maker with a focus on Pantyhose, Leggings, Shapewear, and other underwear for women. In 2012, she was named in the Times 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. Scroll down to know about Spanx CEO Sara Blakely Biography, Wiki, Education, Career, Networth, Family, Family, Boyfriend, Husband, etc.
Early Life
Sara Blakely was born on 27th February 1971 in Clearwater, Florida, USA. She was born to John Blakely and Ellen Blakely and grew up with her sibling brother Ford Blakely. Her mother is an artist while her father worked as a trial attorney. She wished to follow in her father’s footsteps and become an attorney herself.
Sara completed her high school education at Clearwater high school and later for her college education, she attended Florida State University and completed her degree in Communication. She had initially wanted to pursue law, however, she reconsidered that choice after she could not score well in the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) exam.
Sara Blakely Career
She started her career as a regular employee in Walt Disney World in Florida and also simultaneously as a stand-up comedian. She also worked in the supply department of Danka and was later promoted as the national sales trainer at the age of 25. Blakely was forced to wear pantyhose in the hot Floridian climate for her sales role. Not fully satisfied with the existing pantyhose designs, Balekely started making some designs herself and experimented with them.
At age 27, while working at Danka in Atlanta, Georgia she made some pantyhose designs to her satisfaction and presented them to various hosiery manufacturers in Noth Carolina. Almost all of them turned down her idea and turned her away. Two weeks after she drove back from North Carolina, she received a call from a male mill operator based in Asheboro, North Carolina, who offered to support Blakely’s concept, as he had received strong encouragement from his three daughters. In the next year, Blakely patented her idea and also trademarked her brand name as Spanx.
Spanx CEO Sara Blakely
Blakely presented pitched her products to the Neiman Marcus Group, which accepted to sell Spanx products in their stores. Soon Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdales, Saks, and others followed. Blakely initially handled all aspects of the business, including logistics, marketing, preferring the location of Spanx alongside shoes in retail outlets, rather than in hosiery sections.
In 2005, she appeared on the contest The Rebel Billionaire where she stood second after which she also got the opportunity to appear as a judge on the American Investor show.
In 2012, Blakely landed on the cover of Forbes magazine for being the youngest self-made female billionaire in the world. In 2013, she was also listed in the Times 100 most influential people at the 93rd position. Recently, after her company was valued at $1.2 billion she surprised each of her employees with two plane tickets to their dream destinations and $10,000 each as perks to celebrate the event.
Sara Blakely Wiki / Biography
| Real Name | Sara Treleaven Blakely |
| Birth Date | 27 February 1971 |
| Age (as of 2021) | 50 Years |
| Birth Place | Clearwater, Florida, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession | Businesswoman |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Sun sign | Pisces |
| Physical Statistics | |
| Height | in feet inches – 5’ 9” – in Centimeters – 175 cm |
| Weight | in Kilograms – 60 kg – in Pounds – 132 lbs |
| Shoe Size | 8 (U.S.) |
| Hair Color | Blonde |
| Eye Color | Hazel |
| Body Type | Slim |
| Family | |
| Father | John Blakely |
| Mother | Ellen Blakely |
| Brother | Ford Blakely |
| Qualification/Education | |
| School | Clearwater High School |
| College | Florida State University |
| Relationship Status | |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Who is her husband? | Jesse Itzler |
| Children | 4 Children, Lazer Blakely Itzler and 3 others |
Sara Blakely Personal Life
Sara is currently married to Jesse Itzler, co-founder of Marquis Jet. They first met at Net Jet Poker Tournament and got engaged within a year. The wedding was attended by actor Matt Damon and featured a surprise performance by singer Olivia Newton-John. Together, they have four children. She is a convert to Judaism.
Earlier, Sara dated her former boyfriend whose details have not been shared but it is known that he quit his career as a healthcare consultant to help her with her business.
Sara Blakely Net Worth
Sara Blakely is a highly successful businesswoman and is known for her wealth all over the country. Her wealth was recently valued at $1.2 billion by her successful hosiery and shapewear brand-Spanx.
Social Media
Sara currently has 573k followers on her Instagram account and has 1.4 million followers on her Linkedin profile. She does not have any other social media profiles like Twitter or Facebook.
Trivia about Sara Blakely
- In 2013, Sara has expressed her wish to design the world’s most comfortable heeled shoes before she retires.
- She has been a guest investor on several Shark Tank episodes.
- Sara also gave a cameo appearance in Elmsley Court in an episode.
- She launched Sara Blakely Foundation to help with education and Entrepreneurial training for women.
- Richard Bradson provided a check of $750,000 initially to start her foundation.
- Sara decided to give $5,000,000 support to female-operated businesses during Corona Virus.
