{
  "id": 14631957,
  "title": "Sara Blakely put $5,000 into Spanx; 21 years later, it was valued at $1.2bn",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/sara-blakely-put-5-000-into-spanx-21-years-later-it-was-valued-at-1",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-15T06:05:54.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Times of India",
    "slug": "times-of-india",
    "url": "https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/sara-blakely-was-selling-fax-machines-door-to-door-when-she-put-5000-of-her-savings-into-spanx-21-years-later-blackstone-bought-a-majority-stake-in-the-company-at-a-1-2-billion-valuation/articleshow/134958489.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Sara Blakely founded Spanx in 2000 with $5,000 in savings while working as a door-to-door fax machine salesperson. Despite having no formal business training or outside investment, she built the company into a global womenswear brand. In 2021, Blackstone acquired a majority stake in the company at a $1.2 billion valuation, with Oprah Winfrey and Reese Witherspoon joining as investors.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}