Women have been setting the way for entrepreneurs in every profession for many decades. Women entrepreneurs have been able to overcome economic and business demands to be the greatest, from Estée Lauder, who established her cosmetics company in the 1940s, to Ruth Fertel, who aimed to create the best steak restaurant (Ruth’s Chris Steak House). Currently, the list of famous black female entrepreneurs encompasses numerous industries. The following is a list of the most successful black and female entrepreneurs who have had a big impact in many industries in recent decades, along with their grants and association. This list is not in any particular order and is far from exhaustive, but it aims to honor women who have built a world-renowned brand through their own hard work and determination.
Famous Female Entrepreneurs
Who are the most well-known female entrepreneurs in the world? The majority of entrepreneurs used to be men. Yet, the number of famous female entrepreneurs has increased globally in recent years.
Some of these wonderful women have many amazing success stories to share. Check out this list of the world’s most famous female entrepreneurs if you’re interested in learning more about some of the most successful women in business.
Real Estate
#1. Zhang Xin
Zhang Xin is a co-founder of SOHO China, a Chinese real estate development company that went public in 2007. She was originally a factory worker before graduating from Cambridge University with a master’s degree in economic development. Zhang worked for Goldman Sachs before founding her company; she has subsequently built a $2.8 billion fortune.
Biotechnology
#2. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw
Biocon, a multinational biopharmaceutical corporation, was founded by Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw. She started Biocon in a rented shed and expanded it to become India’s largest publicly traded biopharma enterprise in terms of revenue. Biocon went public in 2004 and became only the second Indian firm to surpass $1 billion in revenue on its first trading day. According to Forbes, Mazumdar-Shaw is India’s second wealthiest self-made woman (after Nykaa creator Falguni Nayar), with a net worth of $2.1 billion as of February 2023.
Workforce Management
#3. Janice Bryant Howroyd
Janice Bryant Howroyd is the founder and CEO of ActOne Group, the first Black female-led corporation with more than $1 billion in annual revenue. ActOne is primarily a Los Angeles-based employment agency and consulting firm with over 17,000 clients in 33 countries. Howroyd, like several of her contemporaries on this list, began her business with a meager $1,500 in 1978. She is ranked in Forbes’ America’s Richest Self-Made Women for 2022.
Media and Entertainment
#4. Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey, a media magnate, continues to expand her empire. TV personality turned entrepreneur Winfrey co-founded cable network Oxygen Media. She continued to host her chat program until 2011, when she founded OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network, which she now oversees as CEO. In 2015, Winfrey purchased a stake in Weight Watchers International and became a spokesperson for the renowned subscription weight loss program. According to Forbes, Winfrey has a net worth of $2.5 billion as of February 2023.
#5. Beyoncé
The singer-songwriter, who debuted as a member of Destiny’s Child in the mid-1990s, has subsequently established herself as a hugely successful female solo artist and a global brand. Beyoncé inked a $50 million endorsement contract with PepsiCo in 2012. Beyoncé creates movies, music, and clothes through her firm, Parkwood Entertainment. She inked a $60 million contract with Netflix in 2019 to supply programming to the streaming giant. According to Forbes, her net worth as of February 2023 was $450 million.
#6. Arianna Huffington
Arianna Huffington established the news website The Huffington Post in 2005. She gave it to AOL in 2011, but she still runs it and is building the Huffington brand around the world. In the same year, Time magazine named her one of the world’s 100 most influential people. In 2016, she left The Huffington Post to build Thrive Global, a health and wellness company that she now runs as CEO. Huffington has written 15 novels.
Beauty and Fashion
#7. Tory Burch
Tory Burch, the founder of her namesake company, started the U.S.-based clothing and fashion line in 2004. The brand currently brings in $1.5 billion in sales annually. In 2022, she was named to Forbes’ 50 Over 50 (Lifestyle) and America’s Self-Made Woman lists. Burch is also a philanthropist who established the Tory Burch Foundation to assist female entrepreneurs.
#8. Sara Blakely
Blakely, the inventor of Spanx underwear for men and women, began with $5,000 of her own money, an idea, and pure determination. Nowadays, the brand is offered in more than 50 countries. Blakely, like Tory Burch, has a charity that helps women all around the world. To support women entrepreneurs during the 2020 economic crisis, she teamed up with GlobalGiving to launch the Red Backpack Fund, which awarded more than a thousand $5,000 awards to women business owners.
#9. Kathy Fields and Katie Rodan
The co-founders of Rodan + Fields were so determined to get rid of acne for people of all ages that they worked together to make Proactiv, their main product, in 1995. The producers have since applied the dermatologic knowledge that helped them conquer the acne business to the anti-aging skincare sector. Each has a net worth of $530 million and is on Forbes’ 2022 list of America’s richest self-made women.
#10. Rihanna
Rihanna, who is only 35 years old, is the youngest lady on this list. The majority of her $1.7 billion fortune comes from Fenty Beauty, a cosmetics company she co-owns with luxury goods conglomerate LVMH. She also co-owns the lingerie line Savage X Fenty alongside investors. Her nonprofit, the Clara Lionel Foundation, raised $47 million for climate change, racial justice, COVID assistance, and other causes in 2020. Rihanna headlined the Super Bowl LVII halftime show in 2023, announcing her second pregnancy. She has a net worth of $1.4 billion as of February 2023 and is included in Forbes’ 2022 Power Women and America’s Richest Self-Made Women lists
Black Female Entrepreneurs
Black female entrepreneurs founded a variety of businesses. Beginning a business was not easy – nothing is ever easy! Here are brief descriptions of famous black female business entrepreneurs who paved the way for other Black female entrepreneurs to follow in their footsteps.
#1. Sheilisa Burgess
Black women aren’t the only ones celebrating the launch of Fria, one of the fastest growing female-owned businesses. Burgess designed a jewelry collection that combats hot flashes using cutting-edge technology (thermal heat transfer and evaporative cooling).
#2. Maya Penn
Penn joins other Black female business entrepreneurs in producing a fashion line using sustainable fabrics, including organic cotton, hemp and bamboo. Penn’s line, named Maya’s Thoughts, expanded her effort into the fashion sector to incorporate global advocacy, and she is often sought as a speaker. Her book You Have This motivates kids and young adults.
#3. Natalie M. Cofield
Cofield is the founder and CEO of the Walker’s Legacy Foundation, a resource and support organization for black and Latina businesswomen. The charity also conducts an online business accelerator to help women of color advance in their careers.
#4. Essynce Moore
This young black entrepreneur is a clothes designer who started her business at the age of six. Moore is also an actress and author. Her Essynce Couture collection now includes teen clothing and body items.
#5. Tiffany Aliche
Aliche is the creator and CEO of Budgetnista and The Live Richer Academy. Aliche was homeless at one time in her life and moved in with her parents. Her mission is to deliver life-changing financial education to women all around the world.
#6. Asmau Ahmed
Ahmed started her profession as a chemical engineer. She also graduated from Columbia Business School with an MBA. After 8 years of research, these two domains provided her with a solid foundation for launching Plum Perfect.
#7. Swivel Beauty
Swivel Beauty was cofounded by lawyer Jennifer Lambert and editor Jihan Thomas. Both women were frequent travelers who were frustrated by the difficulty of finding proper hair care in foreign towns and cities. They created Swivel Beauty, an app that links women of color with hair professionals.
#8. Nathalie Walton
Walton is the CEO and cofounder of Expectful, a company that provides holistic care to mothers. Women can participate in meditations and events through the Expectful website. They can also participate in support groups. Expectful employs professionals in a variety of fields, including nutrition and post-partum care.
#9. Mikaila Ulmer
Ulmer became interested in bees after being stung twice by them. She entered a local business competition by manufacturing flaxseed lemonade. She tweaked a 1940s recipe from her great grandmother, substituting honey for sugar. Also, she provides a portion of the income from her Me and the Bees Lemonade business to help rescue honeybees.
#10. Kimberly Bryant
Bryant is the founder and CEO of Black Girls CODE, a nonprofit that teaches young Black women computer programming and technology skills. By 2040, Bryant hopes to train 1 million young black women. Google has committed more than $2 million to the cause, while Nike recently partnered with Black Girls CODE to sponsor an event.
#11. Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey, one of the most well-known and widely recognized public characters in the country, is a must-have on any list of inspiring Black Female Entrepreneurs. Her commercial prowess and extensive charity in the social services sector are renowned. She has provided long-term funding for numerous underprivileged organizations.
Female Entrepreneurs Association
The Female Entrepreneurs Association, founded by entrepreneur and international bestselling author @CarrieGreen, is a platform for ambitious women looking to build wildly successful businesses and turn their ideas and dreams into reality.
Every TUESDAY, they release a new EPISODE of the SHE MEANS BUSINESS SHOW on YouTube and their podcast, in which they interview INCREDIBLE female entrepreneurs from around the world to learn more about how they built their business empires.
With over 600,000 fans, their community exists to spark conversations about the challenges, breakthroughs, impact, and success of female entrepreneurs worldwide.
Through their Members’ Club, they bring together industry leaders, mentors, and experts to teach, coach, and motivate their members to overcome self-doubt and achieve remarkable achievement in their life and career.
- Website: http://www.femaleentrepreneurassociation.com
- Industries: Technology, Information, and Internet
- Size of the company: 2-10 employees
- Headquarters: Worldwide.
- Type: Self-Owned
- Founded: 2011
- Specialties: supporting female entrepreneurs, resources for female entrepreneurs, female entrepreneur, masterclass, and female membership
Female Entrepreneurs Grant
There are many grants available at all levels of government and in the commercial sector. In addition to those alternatives, keep an eye out for these grants. They’re among the best available, and if you qualify, they can make a significant difference in your company.
#1. FedEx Small Business Grant
FedEx gives prizes of up to $50,000 to many winners of their annual FedEx Small Business Program. There are gold, silver, and bronze winners, all of whom receive various FedEx business products in addition to their prize money. A business plan, business description, and images and video (optional) demonstrating your projected business goals are required for grant entry.
#2. The Amber Grant Foundation
The Amber Grant Foundation was founded in 1998 with the goal of providing grants to women-owned enterprises. Also, The Amber Grant Foundation now awards a $10,000 grant to a woman-owned business each month. One of the monthly grant recipients will get a larger grant amount (to the tune of $25,000!) at the end of the year to help fund her business.
#3. National Association for the Self-Employed Growth Grants
The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) is a nonprofit organization that provides tools and services to entrepreneurs who need help running their enterprises successfully. In addition to a wealth of member-only services, NASE offers up to $4,000 in company growth incentives called Growth Grants. These grants can be used for “marketing, advertising, personnel hiring, facility expansion, and other specialized business needs.”
#4. Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
The Cartier Women’s Initiative is an annual international entrepreneurship initiative launched in 2006 to empower female entrepreneurs. The initiative is accessible to women-run and women-owned businesses in any country or sector that are concerned with sustainability and/or the environment.
#5. Tory Burch Foundation
The Tory Burch Foundation hosts a Fellows program for female entrepreneurs each year. The 50 chosen fellows will get a one-year fellowship that includes a $5,000 stipend to further their business education, access to an online network where they can meet and cooperate with other startups, and a trip to the Tory Burch offices in New York City.
Who is the most famous female entrepreneur?
Oprah Winfrey is the world’s richest female entrepreneur, with a net worth of more than $3.5 billion.
Who are 10 successful entrepreneurs?
Successful Entrepreneurs You Can Learn From
- Oprah Winfrey.
- Bill Gates.
- Steve Jobs.
- Elon Musk.
- Janice Bryant Howroyd.
- Daymond John.
- Warren Buffett.
- Mandela Schumacher-Hodge Dixon.
Who was the most influential female entrepreneurs in history?
Business Women That Shaped The World
- Margaret Hardenbroeck (1637 – 1691)
- Rebecca Lukens (1794 – 1854)
- Lydia Pinkham (1819 – 1883)
- Anna Sutherland Bissell (1946 – 1934)
- Madam C. J.
- Annie Malone (1877 – 1957)
- Elizabeth Arden (1881 – 1966)
- Coco Chanel (1883 – 1971)
Who is the youngest female entrepreneur?
Neha Narkhede
Indian-American Neha Narkhede, the co-Founder of Confluent, a streaming data technology company, has been named the youngest self-made woman entrepreneur in the IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List 2022.
Who is the richest female entrepreneur?
As of June 2022, Diane Hendricks was the wealthiest female self-made billionaire in the United States. ABC Supply’s founder has valued $8 billion US dollars. The second richest self-made woman in the US was Judy Faulkner, with a net worth of 6.7 billion U.S. dollars that year.
What is a female entrepreneur called?
Many people prefer the term “entrepreneur,” while others prefer “fempreneur,” which refers to a woman entrepreneur, female business owner, businesswoman, or female founder.
Who is the youngest successful entrepreneur?
Mark Zuckerberg, who co-founded Facebook at the age of 19, is arguably one of the most famous and accomplished young entrepreneurs (now Meta). Dustin Moskovitz, co-founder of Facebook, and Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, co-founders of Snapchat, are also at the top of the list.
Who is the goat of entrepreneurship?
When it comes to entrepreneurs, Elon Musk is the “GOAT.”
Conclusion
So there you have it, a list of the most well-known black and female business owners. There are many, many excellent female entrepreneurs around the globe, and this list is only the tip of the iceberg, but perhaps it provides you all a good insight into the world’s wealthiest and most successful businesswomen.
Related Articles
- 2023 SMALL BUSINESS GRANTS FOR WOMEN: Best 37+ Grants (Updated!!!)
- WEBSITES FOR ENTREPRENEURS: The Best Top Options in 2023 (Updated)
- OPRAH WINFREY NET WORTH 2023: How Did She Get So Rich?
- 41+ BUSINESS TIPS FOR ENTREPRENEURS in 2023 (For Beginners & Pros)
- Indiana Small Business Grants: 17+ Best Funding Options for Any Business
References
