Women entrepreneurs continue to reach unprecedented heights. The top 60 richest self-made women are worth a combined $71 billion, a 15 percent jump from 2017, according to a Forbes.
This explosion in wealth has made landing a spot on the list more difficult: The minimum net worth of top earing women is now a record $320 million, up 23 percent from last year. Of the 60 richest women entrepreneurs, 24 are billionaires, another record, and up from 18 women billionaires on last year's list.
Some of the stories behind the women on the list demonstrate how business savvy and hard work can lead to riches. Eren Ozman, who is the majority owner of aerospace and defense business Sierra Nevada Corporation, is a native from Turkey who arrived in the U.S. in her 20s. She juggled multiple part-time jobs while in business school. She sold baklava at a bakery, and held even held a job as a janitor at Sierra Nevada before later buying the company with her husband.
Fashion and retail was a particularly popular industry among the Forbes list of richest self-made women. Seventeen women built their wealth in these industries. Billionaire Anastasia Soare is the founder of Anastasia Beverly Hills, a company best known for eyebrow enhancing make-up. She’s the richest of seven newcomers on the list, with an estimated net worth of 1.5 billion, according to Forbes.
Several notable women have dropped off the list. For example, Diana Von Furstenberg, fashion designer and founder of DFV fashions, experienced a decrease in sales, resulting in store closings, a drop in valuation.
In ascending order, here is Forbes' top 10 list of the richest self-made women:
10. Lynda Resnick
$2.4 Billion
Lynda Resnick is the marketing guru behind The Wonderful Co., a privately held $4 billion holding company of healthy brands including FIJI Water and JUSTIN Vineyards. With her husband Stewart, Resnick owns thousands of acres of orange, pomegranate, almond and pistachio orchards in California, Texas and Mexico, according to the report.
9. Elaine Wynn
$2.6 Billion
Elaine Wynn is the largest shareholder of Wynn Resorts, a resort company she and her ex-husband founded in 2002. Prior to that, the then couple launched Mirage resorts in 1973 in Las Vegas after she graduated from college. She served on the board of Wynn Resorts for 13 years until 2015 and is largely known as the “Queen of Las Vegas,” according to the report.
8. Doris Fisher
$2.8 Billion
Doris Fisher and her husband founded the retailer the Gap in 1969. The original stores sold jeans and music in San Francisco. Doris served as the merchandiser for the company for decades until 2003 and remained on the board until 2009.
7. Judy Love
$3 Billion
Judy Love is the executive secretary of the Love Family Fund, whose revenue grew 19 percent to $19 billion in 2017. Judy and her husband Tom Love started as entrepreneurs in 1964, after purchasing a gas station with a $5,000 loan from their family. The couple later founded Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores, a brand that merged self-service gas stations with convenience stores. There are currently 400 locations in 41 states, according to the company’s website.
6. Oprah Winfrey
$3.1 Billion
Oprah Winfrey turned her career in media as a news anchor into a 25-year syndicated talk show that has generated profits in excess of $2 billion. Winfrey leveraged her influence to later build a business and media empire. She serves as brand ambassador for Weight Watchers and signed a multiyear deal with Apple for a series of original programming.
5. Johnelle Hunt
$3.2 Billion
Johnelle Hunt is the co-founder of Hunt Transport Services, which went public in 1983. Today, it is one of the largest transportation companies in the U.S., accumulating $7.2 billion in sales annually. Today, she remains the company’s largest shareholder with a 17 percent stake in the company.
4. Meg Whitman
$3.3 Billion
Meg Whitman is the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard (2011-2015) who oversaw the company’s split into HP Inc. and Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Whitman is well known for her efforts in taking eBay from $5.7 million to $8 billion in sales between 1998 and 2008. She currently sits on the boards of Proctor & Gamble and Dropbox . Most recently, she became the CEO of the mobile media start-up NewTV.
3. Judy Faulkner
$3.5 Billion
Judy Faulkner founded a leading medical-record software provider in 1979 in a basement in Wisconsin. She still serves as CEO of the company’, which generated $2.7 billion in sales in 2017. The software is used today by leading medical centers, including Johns Hopkins and the Mayo Clinic.
2.Marian Ilitch
$4.3 Billion
Marian Ilitch is the co-founder of Little Caesars Pizza, which produces $4 billion in sales annually. She owns the Detroit Red Wings hockey team, Motor City Casino Hotel and the Detroit Tigers baseball team.
1. Diane Hendricks
$4.9 Billion
Diane Hendricks co-founded ABC Supply, one of the largest wholesale distributers of roofing, siding, and windows in the U.S.,with her late husband Ken 36 years ago. She’s independently run the company since 2007. She has led the company through two major acquisitions, acquiring rival Bradco in 2010 and building materials distributer L&W supply in 2016.
