From $5,000 and a Pair of Cut-Off Pantyhose to a Billion-Dollar Empire
The Inventor Who Hated Panty Lines (1998-2000)
Sara Blakely was a 27-year-old fax machine saleswoman living in Atlanta, Georgia, when she cut the feet off a pair of control-top pantyhose before a party. She wanted the smoothing effect under her white pants without the visible seams of traditional hosiery. Standing in front of her mirror, she realized she had stumbled onto something.
With $5,000 in personal savings — her entire life savings at the time — Blakely spent two years developing her prototype. She wrote her own patent (spending nights at the Barnes & Noble legal section because she could not afford a lawyer), cold-called hosiery mills across North Carolina (all initially rejected her), and eventually convinced a manufacturer whose daughters persuaded him to give this persistent young woman a chance.
The Oprah Moment (2000-2001)
Spanx launched in 2000, initially sold through Neiman Marcus after Blakely personally demonstrated the product to a buyer by putting on the shapewear in the bathroom of the retailer's headquarters. The buyer ordered them immediately.
Then came the moment that changed everything. In November 2000, Oprah Winfrey named Spanx one of her "Favorite Things." The endorsement was not paid — Oprah had genuinely discovered the product. Orders exploded. Spanx sold $4 million in its first year and $10 million in its second.
Creating a Category
Blakely did not merely create a product — she created an entirely new category of apparel. "Shapewear" as a term barely existed before Spanx. The brand gave women an alternative to the rigid, uncomfortable girdles of previous generations: lightweight, comfortable undergarments that smoothed and shaped without restriction.
The product line expanded strategically: higher-waisted styles, bras, leggings, and eventually the blockbuster "Faux Leather Leggings" that became a fashion staple. Each product followed Blakely's core principle — solve a real problem that women actually have.
The Billion-Dollar Milestone
In 2012, Sara Blakely became the youngest self-made female billionaire in history, according to Forbes. She had never taken outside investment. She owned 100% of the company. She had no debt.
This fact alone made Blakely a business legend. In an era of venture-capital-fueled startups burning through hundreds of millions before turning a profit, Blakely built a billion-dollar brand with $5,000, zero investors, and relentless hustle.
Investment and Evolution (2021-Present)
In October 2021, Blakely sold a majority stake in Spanx to Blackstone for $1.2 billion, valuing the company at approximately $1.2 billion. To celebrate the deal, Blakely gave every Spanx employee two first-class plane tickets and $10,000 spending money — a gesture that went viral and cemented her reputation as one of the most admired founders in American business.
Spanx proved that a single frustration — a visible panty line under white pants — could become the seed of an industry-defining empire.