Sara Blakely Net Worth

Sara Blakely has an estimated net worth of $1.4 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Sara Blakely profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $1.1 billion in 2017.

Sara Blakely is an American entrepreneur best known for founding Spanx. The brand grew from her idea for shapewear and expanded into undergarments, leggings, and apparel. Before that, she sold fax machines door to door and later became a national sales trainer at 25. She built her early product after experimenting with pantyhose under white slacks, then developed the concept while based in Atlanta.

Spanx made Blakely famous in business and turned her company into the main source of her wealth. The brand got a big boost in 2000 when Oprah Winfrey picked it as a Favorite Thing. Sales reached $4 million in its first year and $10 million in its second year. In 2021, Blackstone bought a majority stake in Spanx at a $1.2 billion valuation. In 2024, Blakely also launched Sneex, a high-heeled sneaker brand.

How Sara Blakely makes money

Most of Blakely’s wealth comes from Spanx, where she is the founder and still a part owner. The company sells shapewear, undergarments, leggings, and apparel. She started the business after working in fax machine sales and developing her first product idea on her own. Early retail wins at Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales, Saks, and Bergdorf Goodman helped the brand reach more shoppers, and a 2001 deal with QVC widened its audience further.

Her money story also includes newer ventures and investments tied to her business profile. In 2024, she launched Sneex, a line of high-heeled sneakers priced at $395 and up. She was also a guest investor on Shark Tank and had a cameo in Billions, which raised her public profile beyond retail. Outside her brands, Blakely owns a minority stake in the Atlanta Hawks, adding another asset connected to her portfolio.

Forbes net worth timeline

Forbes has tracked Blakely’s fortune for years, with estimates tied closely to Spanx. Its World’s Billionaires List placed her at $1.1 billion in 2017, $1 billion in 2018, and $1.1 billion again in 2019. Forbes returned to that same $1.1 billion figure in 2022, 2023, and 2025. The pattern shows a fortune that stayed in a narrow range for much of that period, even as her brand remained well known.

A major business event came in late 2021, when Blackstone bought a majority stake in Spanx in a deal valuing the company at $1.2 billion. After that, Forbes estimates moved higher in some years, including $1.3 billion in 2024. As of October 20, 2026, Forbes' real-time billionaires tracker put her at $1.4 billion. That current figure matches Forbes' 2026 World’s Billionaires List and its October 2026 real-time reading.