Episode
893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
1:07:01
Published: Wed Dec 25 2019
Description
NOTHING SHOULD STAND IN THE WAY OF YOUR STORY. We've had some pretty amazing women on The School of Greatness. I've learned a lot from each of them. In fact, I learn a lot from all the women around me (almost my whole team is women). Today's guest is no exception. Male, female, old, young - we could all learn from this incredible businessperson. Not only is she the youngest self-made female billionaire in America (wow, right??), she is also the mother of four young kids, the wife of another podcast guest, Jesse Itzler, and the founder and CEO of the massively popular women's apparel brand SPANX. In this episode, I got to sit with and learn from a legend among entrepreneurs: Sara Blakely. During this interview, I kept finding out new things to admire Sara for. She struggled a lot in school (me too!). She sold fax machines door to door FOR 7 YEARS before she had the idea for Spanx. She was rejected by every manufacturing company she took her idea to. But she didn't let any of that stop her. Sara's hustle and can-do attitude is just one thing I learned about her in this interview. We dive into dealing with grief, how to scale companies the right way, what it's like to be mentored by Richard Branson, and much more. Welcome to an inspiring interview with a powerhouse in Episode 893. Some Questions I Ask: How did you meet your husband Jesse? (30:12) How do you stay so grounded and calm with everything you have going on? (32:00) What did you learn from being mentored by Richard Branson? (44:47) What is more challenging for you – running a billion-dollar brand or being a mom? (49:46) In This Episode You Will Learn: What happened in Sara’s life to prepare her for entrepreneurship before she had her big idea (7:12) The list of possible product names Sara considered before she decided on Spanx (11:46) The hardest part of getting her company off the ground (15:55) How Sara guerrilla-marketed her first order of Spanx in Neiman Marcus (20:01) Why being kind to yourself is so important (32:15) How Sara got Warren Buffet to paint his belly for her new book (36:32) What grief and loss can teach us (43:01) Plus much more… If you enjoyed this episode, check out the video, show notes and more at http://www.lewishowes.com/893 and follow at instagram.com/lewishowes
Chapters
Sarah Blakely shares her inspiring story of overcoming challenges and experiencing multiple failures before becoming the world's youngest self-made female billionaire and establishing a philanthropic organization that empowers underserved women and girls.
00:00 - 05:53 (05:53)
Summary
Sarah Blakely shares her inspiring story of overcoming challenges and experiencing multiple failures before becoming the world's youngest self-made female billionaire and establishing a philanthropic organization that empowers underserved women and girls.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Founder Sara Blakely tells the story of how she turned an unconventional idea into a booming business by convincing hosiery manufacturers to create undergarments using the material meant to be seen on legs.
05:53 - 09:03 (03:09)
Summary
Founder Sara Blakely tells the story of how she turned an unconventional idea into a booming business by convincing hosiery manufacturers to create undergarments using the material meant to be seen on legs.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The speaker recalls having difficulty retaining information while reading, similar to experiences with a Scantron test where they couldn't recall what they had just read.
09:03 - 11:25 (02:21)
Summary
The speaker recalls having difficulty retaining information while reading, similar to experiences with a Scantron test where they couldn't recall what they had just read.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, shares the backstory of how she started the company and the inspiration behind it.
11:25 - 15:33 (04:08)
Summary
Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, shares the backstory of how she started the company and the inspiration behind it.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
A podcast guest shares her experience with patenting her invention and the challenges she faced in finding a patent lawyer and funding the process.
15:34 - 18:02 (02:28)
Summary
A podcast guest shares her experience with patenting her invention and the challenges she faced in finding a patent lawyer and funding the process.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Sarah shares her experience of creating a product name and how to make up words for better marketing and trademarking.
18:02 - 20:38 (02:35)
Summary
Sarah shares her experience of creating a product name and how to make up words for better marketing and trademarking.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Breaking into the manufacturing industry can be challenging for newcomers, as manufacturers may not be willing to slow down their operations or take a chance on an inexperienced individual.
20:38 - 23:01 (02:23)
Summary
Breaking into the manufacturing industry can be challenging for newcomers, as manufacturers may not be willing to slow down their operations or take a chance on an inexperienced individual. The speaker offers an anecdote about a questionable product that made it to the market with little testing.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Sarah's friend expected her to give birthday presents for years, but she only had one machine meant for the crotch area.
23:01 - 24:20 (01:18)
Summary
Sarah's friend expected her to give birthday presents for years, but she only had one machine meant for the crotch area. They had a miscommunication, leaving Sarah clueless in the rental car.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The founder of Spanx started the company with the help of her boyfriend shipping out the products all night and eventually found a man that worked for a crotch company who helped manufacture the product.
24:20 - 27:39 (03:19)
Summary
The founder of Spanx started the company with the help of her boyfriend shipping out the products all night and eventually found a man that worked for a crotch company who helped manufacture the product.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The undershirt was invented in 1918 and has remained a timeless staple for men's fashion since then.
27:39 - 29:10 (01:31)
Summary
The undershirt was invented in 1918 and has remained a timeless staple for men's fashion since then. In addition, men's Spanx underwear is a new and innovative product that has become popular due to its great quality.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Sarah discusses how her father instructed her to promote her product by giving out demos and explaining what it was to customers in stores for eight hours a day, even when she had no staff to help her.
29:10 - 31:42 (02:32)
Summary
Sarah discusses how her father instructed her to promote her product by giving out demos and explaining what it was to customers in stores for eight hours a day, even when she had no staff to help her.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The founder of a successful company shares how her company's growth led to customer service problems and the importance of learning from mistakes.
31:42 - 34:26 (02:44)
Summary
The founder of a successful company shares how her company's growth led to customer service problems and the importance of learning from mistakes.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The founder of Spanx, Sara Blakely, shares her experience of growing her business with the help of the founder of Marquis Jet, Jesse Itzler, who talks about the importance of being prepared for success.
34:26 - 37:08 (02:42)
Summary
The founder of Spanx, Sara Blakely, shares her experience of growing her business with the help of the founder of Marquis Jet, Jesse Itzler, who talks about the importance of being prepared for success.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Sara Blakely, founder of Spanx, has finally released a book of belly paintings after seven years of gathering over a hundred women and their painted bellies from around the world.
37:08 - 41:14 (04:05)
Summary
Sara Blakely, founder of Spanx, has finally released a book of belly paintings after seven years of gathering over a hundred women and their painted bellies from around the world. She also shares about hiring moms and the guilt they often feel as mothers.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
During a lunch with Wes Welker, he expressed his desire to be included in a book and ended up being the only man with his belly painted in the book.
41:14 - 42:48 (01:34)
Summary
During a lunch with Wes Welker, he expressed his desire to be included in a book and ended up being the only man with his belly painted in the book.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The founder of Spanx shares how she started her business and became one of the few self-made billionaire women.
42:48 - 46:05 (03:17)
Summary
The founder of Spanx shares how she started her business and became one of the few self-made billionaire women. She also talks about how she has handled the fame that came with her success.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The speaker discusses their fear of losing friends due to statistical probabilities and the strong relationships they have developed through their podcast, while mentioning they were inspired to create a product that would make people feel good.
46:05 - 49:20 (03:14)
Summary
The speaker discusses their fear of losing friends due to statistical probabilities and the strong relationships they have developed through their podcast, while mentioning they were inspired to create a product that would make people feel good.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The reality TV show host, Richard, made his contestants perform adrenaline-pumping stunts instead of firing them, such as climbing the side of a hot air balloon at 9,000 feet, breaking world records, and other challenges that tested the contestants' limits both physically and mentally.
49:20 - 51:55 (02:35)
Summary
The reality TV show host, Richard, made his contestants perform adrenaline-pumping stunts instead of firing them, such as climbing the side of a hot air balloon at 9,000 feet, breaking world records, and other challenges that tested the contestants' limits both physically and mentally.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The speaker shares a poignant example of the importance of aiming high in life by narrating a story of an athlete who successfully made the jump while the other amazing athletes failed to do so.
51:55 - 55:21 (03:26)
Summary
The speaker shares a poignant example of the importance of aiming high in life by narrating a story of an athlete who successfully made the jump while the other amazing athletes failed to do so.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, discusses her journey as an entrepreneur and the amount of hustle it took to run her brand while being a mom.
55:21 - 58:01 (02:40)
Summary
Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, discusses her journey as an entrepreneur and the amount of hustle it took to run her brand while being a mom. She reflects on how the opportunity to create Spanx fulfilled a potential inside of her.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
In this podcast, the speaker acknowledges Sarah for being an inspiration and a leader for women.
58:01 - 1:00:38 (02:36)
Summary
In this podcast, the speaker acknowledges Sarah for being an inspiration and a leader for women. He asks her to list down three things she's learned in her life that she would like to pass on to listeners.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
An interviewee speaks about how failing can be fun and how taking risks can lead to finding greatness.
1:00:38 - 1:02:54 (02:16)
Summary
An interviewee speaks about how failing can be fun and how taking risks can lead to finding greatness.
Episode893 Sara Blakely: SPANX CEO on Writing Your Billion Dollar Story
PodcastThe School of Greatness
The podcast host encourages listeners to spread positivity, creativity, and adventure by sharing their experiences on social media and subscribing to motivational audio messages.
1:02:55 - 1:06:33 (03:38)
Summary
The podcast host encourages listeners to spread positivity, creativity, and adventure by sharing their experiences on social media and subscribing to motivational audio messages.