Famous Entrepreneurs

Anita Roddick - Redefining Business

2008-09-16T04:08:00.000-07:00

Anita With its strong environmental flare and popular demand of the products, Roddick had already opened a second shop before her husband’s return of being gone 10 months. Customers wanted to sell the products, and in 1984 the company went public and spread franchises all over England. Today The Body Shop has over 1,980 stores and more than 77 million customers in 50 different markets serving customers in over 25 different languages. Its success put Roddick's net worth at more than $200 million. In 2006, the company became an independently managed subsidiary of the L'Oréal Group

story of Body Shop: While her husband was away, Roddick gave birth to The Body Shop. 0ut of desperation, she created cosmetics out of every ingredient that she stored in her garage. She opened her first shop in Brighton, England, with only fifteen products and was able to finance the store using her hotel as collateral. Her products contained ingredients that women used in cleansing rituals that she had witnessed in her travels. She describes a woman’s body as a canvas to paint stories on.

Harvey Mackay - "Mr. Make Things Happen"

2008-09-16T04:00:00.000-07:00

Mackay didn't start completely from scratch. At age 26, he purchased a failing small envelope company, which 40 years later has grown to an $85 million business employing over 500 people. Mackay's philosophy is engrained in the company, beginning with its motto: "Do what you love... love what you do... and deliver more than you promise." Outstanding customer service is the cornerstone of Mackay's business, and was the basis for his first book, Swim With the Sharks (Without Being Eaten Alive).

Family Values for him : In spite of his hectic schedule (Mackay speaks on average once a week to corporations and organizations), he still finds plenty of time for family and fun. He is an avid golfer (11.4 handicap) and recently won the Super Senior Men's championship at his home club in Scottsdale. He and his wife, Carol Ann, have been married over 40 years, and enjoy spending time with their nine grandchildren. They are avid travelers, taking an annual trip to Italy, and planning upcoming tours of China and Africa

Dig Your Well Before You're Thirsty (his logic) : Mackay is a master of networking. He believes that most people make the mistake of only turning to their network when they need it, for example, when they're looking for a new job. Mackay says that networking is a lifelong practice that provides you with new knowledge and experiences, job security, expanded financial reach, and the strength of the group. The secret to maintaining a great network is, above all, knowing the value of the personal touch.

Swim With the Sharks for him : Central to Mackay's business, and to his books, is the ability to stay competitive in the often cutthroat world of business, to "swim with the sharks", without sacrificing one's personal integrity or doing it at the expense of other people. He does this by focusing on building strong relationships with both customers and employees, giving Mackay envelope a reputation for being a great place to work, as well as a great place to do business with. Key to this is the effective use of information.

Bestselling Author: Mackay's easy and entertaining style, combined with practical insights, have struck a chord with business readers all over the world. He is one of the best-selling business authors of all time. Swim With the Sharks[, topped the New York Times bestseller list for more than a year! Understandably, his second book, Beware the Naked Man..., earned him the largest advance in publishing history, and was a #1 seller within two weeks of publication. He has written five best-sellers, and #6 is on the way.

Giving Back: Mackay is well known for giving back to his community, in a variety of ways. Swim With the Sharks tells the story of how his exceptional efforts kept the Twins in Minnesota. He is also a great supporter of the arts, serving as a director on Robert Redford's Sundance Institute and the Minnesota Orchestral Association, and of entrepreneurial education, serving on the board of the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management and speaking frequently at business schools around the country.

The Mackay 66: The Mackay 66 is a tool he uses and recommends for gathering information about customers: personal information, business background, special interests, lifestyle, their business needs, and the nature of your relationship with them. His approach to using this information is both practical and ethical: it is not used to deceive customers into thinking we care about them more than we do, but rather to allow us to treat them like we would want to, if only our brains could handle the information.

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2008-09-12T15:04:00.000-07:00

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2008-09-12T06:04:00.000-07:00

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Adam Osborne- first portable computer

2008-08-06T21:28:00.000-07:00

Adam Osborne was born in Thailand March 6, 1939 to British parents where he spent most of his childhood in India. He attended school and graduated from the University of Birmingham in 1961 and received his PHD from the University of Delaware. Adam’s career started out as a chemical engineer working for Shell Oil and then left in the early 1970’s to pursue his interests in computers and technical writing.

Osborne Computer Corporation: In 1981 Adam introduced the first portable computer the Osborne 1. The computer weighed 23.5 pounds and cost $1,795, just over half the cost of a computer from other manufacturers with comparable features. The computer ran the popular CP/M operating system and featured a full keyboard and a tiny 5" built-in monochrome monitor. The company shipped over 10,000 computers a month and was considered a huge success, earning $6 million in 1981 and by the next year into the $68 million range.

The Fall of Osborne Computer: One version of the story says that Osborne Computers collapsed when Adam bragged to the media about two advanced computers the corporation was working on and destroyed the consumer demand for the Osborne 1. The result was inventory glut and the company was forced to file bankruptcy. But later research turned up that the machine Osborne had boasted of shipped and put the company back on track until a single executive built up massive debt trying to complete the assembly of older inventory.

Books: After the fall of the Osborne Computer Corporation, he wrote and published several best selling books about his experience, including Hypergrowth: The Rise and Fall of Osborne Computer Corporation.

Adam was a pioneer in the computer book industry. He founded Osborne Publishing in 1972, specializing in easy-to-follow computer manuals. By 1977 Osborne had over 40 titles in its catalog. In 1979 he sold his company to McGraw Hill for a rumored $3 million, using the money to launch Osborne Computer.

Software Publishing: In 1984 Adam founded Paperback Software International, which specialized in inexpensive computer software. The company's ads featured Osborne himself arguing that if telephone companies applied the same logic to their pricing as software companies, a telephone would cost $600. Lotus Corporation sued Paperback for copyright infringement in 1987, sending consumer and investor confidence spiraling downward. Lotus won the suit in 1990 and Osborne stepped down from the company shortly thereafter.

Michael Dell-- Master of Personal Computer Industry

2008-08-06T21:27:00.001-07:00

Michael Dell, born February 1965, started the road to success out of his University of Texas dorm room in 1984 with just $1,000 and an idea to provide affordable personal computers to college students. Dell is now Chairman and CEO of his company with a net worth of over $30 billion. Dell sells primarily direct to the customer to avoid middleman mark-ups.

Dell Computer Corporation: Dell is the world's largest PC manufacturer, growing from $6 million annual revenue to over $40 billion in only sixteen years. It employs over 40,000 people in over 170 countries worldwide. Dell’s product line has diversified to includes not only PC’s and network servers, but storage systems, printers, hand-held computers, MP3 players, and televisions, plus a wide selection of computer services. Dell is the largest online computer retailer, selling an average of $30 million a day.

Recognition: In 1992 Dell became the youngest CEO ever to earn a ranking on the Fortune 500. Dell has also been recognized "Entrepreneur of the Year" by Inc. magazine, "Man of the Year" by PC magazine, "Top CEO in American Business" by Worth magazine, and "CEO of the Year" by Financial World and Industry Week. Dell Computer is also Fortune’s "America’s Most Admired Company" and #3 globally.

Michael Dell is the author of Direct from Dell: Strategies That Revolutionized an Industry. The book includes the story about his rise to the top and also his business philosophy. Not even the age of forty and Michael Dell is one of the richest people in the world

Bill Gates - Windows on Wealth

2008-08-06T21:25:00.000-07:00

William Gates III was born in 1955. The son of an attorney and a teacher, Gates grew up in Seattle with his two sisters. He began dabbling in computer programming at age 13 and sold his first program to a school for about $4,000. As a teenager, he befriended Paul Allen, and the two both left Seattle to attend Harvard University. While at Harvard, they formed a company specializing in computer software, which they named Microsoft. They trademarked the name in 1976.

College Dropout: Gates did not finish his education at Harvard. He dropped out in his junior year to devote himself to Microsoft. Gates and Allen saw huge growth potential in the personal computer industry and thought Microsoft could write the necessary software to run personal computers. The company made its first big strike in 1980, when IBM agreed to let Microsoft write the operating system for its new personal computer. This language became known as MS-DOS.

Microsoft's Growth: The early years of Microsoft were much like that of any startup firm. Everyone wore multiple hats – from answering phones to writing code. In fact, there are reports that in the early years Gates insisted on proofreading every line of code that was used in a finished project and would often change his colleagues’ work.

Much of Microsoft’s growth can be attributed to a contractual clause Gates included in his 1980 deal with IBM. The stipulation allowed him to license MS-DOS and sell it to other personal computer companies. MS-DOS spread quickly throughout the personal computing arena. Allen left the company in 1983 after a serious illness, although he remained a member of Microsoft's board of directors for many years. In 1985, Microsoft Windows 1.0 was introduced. A year later, Microsoft was listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with Gates attaining billionaire status.

Format Wars: When MS-DOS was released, it was one of three operating systems available on the market, but it quickly became the leader, partially because of Microsoft’s relationship with PC heavyweight IBM. It was seen as very basic. When rival Apple Inc. released the first Macintosh computer in 1984, its operating system was seen as more sophisticated and user-friendly. The operating system format wars between Microsoft and Apple began.

Network Effects: Ultimately, Microsoft would become the ruling system because of a condition known as “network effects.” Originally, computers needed to use the same operating system to communicate across a network. The value of MS-DOS increased with every additional MS-DOS user, and decreased with every new Apple user. MS-DOS was entrenched, and the switching costs for users too high. Microsoft, with its Windows system, would continue to win the format wars with Apple during the 1990s.

Innovative or Lucky?: While the success of Bill Gates can’t be denied, the creative genius of Bill Gates has been challenged. Computer Science Professor David Gelernter of Yale University wrote in Time magazine in 1998 that he believes Gates is overrated as a pioneer and entrepreneur. Gelernter contends that Microsoft often makes products by combining ideas that already exist in the marketplace. Gates was criticized in the 1990s for not recognizing the power and potential of the Internet. Even Gates admits he did not embrace the Web until 1996, two years after browsers debuted.

Microsoft Antitrust Litigation: The U.S. Justice Department brought an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft in 1998, in which it was alleged Microsoft engaged in anticompetitive behavior by bundling Windows with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser. The company contended the two items were essentially the same product. The court initially ruled against Microsoft and ordered the company to be broken up into an operating system division and a browser division. However, this sentence was changed on appeal, and the company settled with provisions that some code be made available to outside parties.

Current Position and Philanthropy: Gates stepped aside as CEO of Microsoft in 2000 with Steve Ballmer, another Harvard friend, taking over that role. Gates remains the chairman of Microsoft, although in 2006 he announced he plans to back away from day-to-day Microsoft operations by 2008.

Gates has taken a considerable amount of his wealth and funneled it into philanthropic causes. His post-Microsoft plans include devoting more time to charity. His most well-known project is the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which he started with his wife. The foundation was formed in 2000 and aims to reduce global poverty, improve global health and increase technology awareness in American schools. Gates also donated the proceeds from books he authored to nonprofits that work to improve the application of technology in educational settings. The Gates Foundation is reported to be worth more than $30 billion.

Donald Trump-Billionaire Real Estate Tycoon

2008-08-05T21:30:00.000-07:00

Early Life: Donald Trump was born June 14, 1946, into a very privileged upbringing. He attended New York Military Academy and Fordham University before transferring to the Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania, where he received a bachelor's degree in economics in 1968. From there, he joined his father's real estate business in Brooklyn. "My father was my mentor and I learned a tremendous amount about every aspect of the construction industry from him," says Trump.

Real Estate Boom: In the early 1970s, Trump shifted from his father's focus on middle-class rental housing and turned toward commercial real estate development. The city of New York was offering sizable tax breaks to willing investors. Trump's dealmaking skills allowed him to secure loans with little collateral. This was a powerful combination, which allowed him to build an empire in real estate and entertainment, becoming somewhat of a celebrity in the process.

Bankruptcy: Though Trump is known for turning bad real estate into lots of money and understands the psychology of making deals, he still fell victim to the recession of the late 1980s. Unable to meet loan payments, he declared business bankruptcy in 1990. Rather than risking a court fight, his creditors agreed to a debt restructuring. He managed to stay out of personal bankruptcy, even though he had accumulated some $900 million in personal debt.

Turnaround and Turnaround Again: Trump was forced to relinquish his new airline, Trump Shuttle, and to sell off his largest Manhattan real estate parcel. He did, however, oversee the construction of the buildings placed on the site, in exchange for a cash fee and a portion of future profits. By 1994, Trump had repaid much of his personal debt and some of the $3.5 billion in business debt. But the rollercoaster continued. In November 2004, Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts filed for Chapter 11, but emerged from it in May 2005.

"The Donald": Nicknamed “The Donald,” Trump is popular for his extravagant, flamboyant, arrogant, cocky personality. Part of his business tactics is media exposure. He stands out from the others as he speaks his mind and will refuse your handshake as he sees it as a barbaric gesture to hand out germs. He criticizes others publicly and exploits his “know it all” intellect. He is a consummate self-promoter who understands the power of branding. The name "Trump" always appears in the name of his buildings.

The Apprentice: Trump is host and producer of NBC’s new reality series The Apprentice, where several lucky candidates fight to become part of his organization. Each week one contestant is asked by Trump to leave with the now-familiar, "You're fired!" (Trump has filed a trademark claim on the phrase). Trump was paid a mere $50,000 per episode for the first season, but is now paid a reported $3 million per episode. He has expanded The Apprentice with an additional series featuring Martha Stewart.

Just How Much Is Trump Worth?: The Forbes 400 lists Trump's net worth as $2.7 billion. Trump himself claims to be worth over $5 billion. But an October 2005 New York Times Magazine article says that both of these claims are exaggerated, and that most likely he is not even a billionaire (I'd trade balance sheets with him, wouldn't you?).

Family Life: In 1977 Trump married fashion model Ivana Zelnièkova and they have three children: Donald, Jr. (1977), Ivanka (1981) and Eric (1984). They were divorced in 1992. In 1993 he married actress Marla Maples, and together they have one child, Tiffany (1993). They divorced in 1999. In 1999, he began dating model Melanija Knavs, and they were married in 2005. Knavs gained some notoriety after a tell-all about her sex life with Trump on the Howard Stern show, followed by a nude layout in GQ magazine.

Books and More: Donald has written several best-selling books detailing his career and the business wisdom he has acquired, including:

He has also created Trump University, which offers online courses, audio courses and boot camps in marketing, real estate, entrepreneurship, wealth creation, and personal development. He also contributes to The Trump Blog, featuring "ideas and opinions from Donald Trump and his circle of experts".

In a recent post saying that he had declined an invitation from Senator Joe Bruno to run for governor of New York, he said:

"I've always told people that to be successful you have to enjoy what you're doing and right now I really enjoy what I'm doing. I'm having too much fun with my life. Why would I want to do something else? Why would I want to run for governor? ... I have absolutely no interest in running for office at this time. I've got too many other fun things to do."

Simon Cowell Music Mogul Millionaire

2008-08-05T21:27:00.000-07:00

Cowell was born on October 7, 1959 and was raised most of his early life by nannies before being sent off to a boarding school. He acted up constantly in school and was consequently transferred sixteen times before finally leaving it all together at the age of sixteen.

Early Years: Cowell then began work as a modest mail room clerk for EMI Music Publishing where his father worked. He soon moved up to become a record producer but left to form an independent music company, E&S Music, which didn’t quite make it, forcing Cowell to return to EMI. He was not content being back and left again shortly to form Fanfare Records with partner Iain Burton. From 1985 to 1989, Fanfare did well thanks to a string of minor hits from its artist, Sinitta.

Moving On Up: Seeing Cowell’s potential early on, in 1989, BMG offered the position of A&R Consultant to Cowell when he was only 30 years old. After that, his career took off as he signed several successful artists such as the boy band Westlife and Robson & Jerome.

Idol Mania: Cowell first appeared on television in 2001 as a judge on the first season of Pop Idol and then American Idol in 2002. His brutally honest comments helped him to be everyone's favorite to hate. His popularity rose as the both show's ratings rose and his sardonic and biting comments were mocked by millions around the world. Pop Idol's first season attracted over 11 million viewers and American Idol drew 22 million viewers for the first season finale.

Idol Maker: Cowell set up another record label named S Records in 2002 which signed the top two finalists of the first season of Pop Idol who both went on to have number one hits in the UK. The winner, Will Young, brought in 1.8 million sales with his debut single, and Cowell was able to cleverly manage to gain a share of the royalties. Cowell also sold his half-share in S Records to BMG for $42 million, making Cowell an instant multi-millionaire.

Il Divo: In 2001, detecting a worldwide trend of a growing appreciation for classical music, Cowell embarked on a project to assemble a multinational quartet of young, attractive male singers who would perform classical and other lyrical music. Cowell conducted a 2-year worldwide search ultimately to find David Miller (USA), Carlos Marín (Spain), Urs Bühler (Switzerland) and Sébastien Izambard (France). They have achieved 26 #1 chart positions internationally, sold over 13 million albums, and received over 100 gold and platinum awards around the world.

After Idol: In December 2003, Cowell's catchphrase was turned into the title of his new book, I Don't Mean to Be Rude, But... He shares about his life, experiences working his way up the music industry and about being on the Idol shows. Cowell also began producing shows right and left under Syco, his production company. Although not all his shows did well, e.g., Cupid, others had a fairly large audience, including X-Factor, America’s Got Talent, Celebrity Duets and American Inventor.

Family Cowell: Cowell has one sister (Lindsay Elizabeth), a younger brother (Nicholas), three half-brothers (John, Michael, Tony) and one half-sister (June). While he hasn’t married yet, he was known to have dated singer Sinitta, an artist with his record company, and is now dating television presenter Terri Seymour, with whom he shares homes in London and Los Angeles.

The Business of Being Simon Cowell: Currently, Cowell has signed on for five more seasons of American Idol making about $36 million a year from the show alone. Including everything else, Forbes predicts his total pay is about $43 million. For being the man America loves to hate, we do pay him awfully well.

In a BusinessWeek interview, he said that to be a successful entrepreneur you have to: "Work hard, be patient, and be a sponge while learning your business. Learn how to take criticism. Follow your gut instincts and don't compromise."

He considers himself a entrepreneur rather than a music man: "I've always treated the music business as a business. Whether I'm making TV shows or signing artists, you have to do it by the head and not the heart -- and I run my businesses that way."

Wise words from the man who started in the music business as a mail clerk.

Richard Branson - The Rebel Billionaire

2008-08-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Born in England in 1950, he was an entrepreneur from the start. With two failed endeavors (growing Christmas trees and raising budgerigars) already under his belt, by the age of 16, this serial entrepreneur had begun his first successful company (a student magazine) and was on his way to extraordinary success. By the age of 20, he had founded a small mail order record retailer called Virgin, and shortly thereafter, he opened a record shop on Oxford Street in London.

Virgin Tops the Charts: By 1972, Virgin had signed their first artist, Mike Oldfield. 5 million copies later, Virgin Music had made a name for itself, later signing household names such as the Sex Pistols, Culture Club, The Rolling Stones, Phil Collins, Genesis, and Janet Jackson. Crafty yet controversial, provocative yet memorable, Virgin was soon to be a world renowned brand name.

Virgin in the Air: Formed in 1984, Virgin Atlantic Airways was profitable in its first year. Its three classes of service - Economy, Premium Economy and Upper Class – include free in-flight drinks and meals, often including ice cream, and seat-back personal TVs, which was pioneered by Virgin. Upper Class passengers can request complimentary limousine service to and from the airport and have access to Virgin’s Clubhouse Lounge at London’s Heathrow Airport, where massage and grooming services are available.

Other Virgin Conquests: With an appetite for broken industries, Virgin has continued to diversify its interests. In 1997, Virgin attempted to redefine the railway industry with high-tech trains and an advanced level of service. In another move, the company launched Virgin Mobile. Appealing to the younger demographic, the company does not require contracts and puts a hip spin on the traditional cell phone business. Virgin even has its own soft drink and vodka, although neither has been a tremendous success.

And Finally, the Coolest Virgin Endeavor: At $200,000 a pop, Virgin Galactic plans to take customers into suborbital space, offering customers the chance to experience weightlessness for seven minutes on a scaled up version of SpaceShipOne. Richard Branson and some of his closest family members will be on the inaugural flight some time in 2008.

The Thrill-Seeker: Richard Branson has attempted several world record-breaking feats. In 1986, he crossed the Atlantic Ocean in a boat, in the fastest recorded time ever. The following year, he crossed the Atlantic in the Virgin Atlantic Flyer at speeds in excess of 130 mph. In 1991, at speeds of up to 245 mph, he crossed the Pacific, traveling 6,700 miles. Finally, in 1998, he made a record-breaking flight trying to circumnavigate the Earth that was cut short by bad weather, traveling from Morocco to Hawaii.

Philanthropy: Having started his first charity at the age of 17, Richard has continued to be generous throughout his life. He is currently a trustee of multiple charities, including the Virgin Healthcare Foundation, a charity focused on AIDS and health education. Most recently, he pledged $3 billion over the next ten years to fight global warming in which he will invest all profits from his train and airline divisions in renewable or clean energy initiatives.

Luck or Skill?: Benjamin Franklin once said, "The harder I work, the luckier I get." This surely holds true for Sir Richard Branson, who has worked tirelessly throughout his career. Even Sir Richard Branson himself agrees and has been quoted as saying, "We were lucky to sign Mike Oldfield and we were lucky to get hold of the Sex Pistols in 1977. We've also been lucky that people liked Virgin Atlantic's unique airline service across the Atlantic, and I was lucky to survive all my balloon and boat trips!" So, it is probably some combination of the two, but without skill, all the luck in the world would not result in one of Sir Richard Branson's greatest accomplishments – knighthood.

As impressive as his portfolio, his bank accounts, and his list of accomplishments may be, though, perhaps Branson's greatest accomplishment is in creating an absolutely fabulous life for himself. He travels the world, spending winter holidays with his fmaily at his South African game preserve and summers at his private island in the Caribbean. As he put it in a 2003 interview with Fortune, "I don't think of work as work and play as play. It's all living."

Lorenzo Borghese: The Bachelor Prince

2008-08-05T21:21:00.000-07:00

Borghese's ancestors include Pope Paul V and Cardinal Scipione Borghese. His family has had an influence on Italian art, helping create St. Peter's Basilica. His family's name can be found throughout buildings in Italy, including the famed Villa Borghese, Rome's largest public park. Though Italian by birth, Borghese claims to only be able to speak "menu Italian." The Bachelor producers reportedly enrolled him in intensive Italian lessons before filming began.

Growing Up: Although Borghese was born in 1972 in Milan, he only lived in Rome and Italy until he was five, when his family moved to Connecticut. He has lived in Manhattan since 1997. Borghese graduated from Rollins College in Winter Park, FL, and later received an MBA from Fordham University in New York.

The Family Business: Borghese's ancestors created homemade cosmetics in their Italian gardens. His grandmother, Marcella Borghese created her own cosmetics, the Princess Marcella Borghese Cosmetics Line, which was eventually incorporated into cosmetics giant Revlon then later sold off to a group of Saudi investors in 1991.

The Royal Treatment: When Belle, his black lab, did not respond well to other pet products, Borghese created his own, using all-natural ingredients in the family tradition. In 2003, Borghese started Royal Treatment, a line of luxury pet care products. Today, the company offers nearly 100 products ranging from shampoos and treats to beds and odor removers. The product development office remains in Italy but Borghese works from New Jersey. His products can be purchased from GetRoyalTreatment.com and other outlets.

Borghese believes the key to success is having a good product that stands out from the many other pet products available. As founder and president of the company, he plays a prominent role in the selection of products to be produced. His company says Borghese is very hands-on, reviewing all labels and colors and smelling the products for approval. Future plans for Royal Treatment include expanding into Asia, launching new fragrances, and creating private label products for various pet stores.

Other Ventures: Borghese's entrepreneurial side doesn't stop with pet cosmetics. Borghese is also a managing partner with his father, Francesco Borghese, at GT Partners, a private label Italian cosmetics company. This New Jersey company sells to major department stores. They have nine different cosmetics lines involving skin care treatment and bath and body products from Italy.

Borghese is also a director for Multimedia Exposure, Inc., a company that works with products for television shopping channels. His brother, Scipione (Skip), is the CEO of the company, which serves as an agent for Live and Taped DirecTV worldwide, specializing in television direct marketing, manufacturing and distributing of client products. MME is involved with manufacturing the raw products, managing the sales, and presenting them on air, both in infomercials and on the shopping networks.

Following in the Family Footsteps: Sure, he's a prince, and now a famous prince after his appearance on The Bachelor. But Lorenzo Borghese still remains very active in his companies. All of his Royal Treatment products go through his New Jersey office for approval before hitting the market. Borghese's grandmother started an internationally known cosmetics line, and it's clear Borghese takes after her. Borghese shows that being an entrepreneur doesn't have to involve an entirely new idea – sometimes business success simply involves twisting a familiar business. GT Partners ships cosmetics worldwide. Royal Treatment still creates its recipes in Italy, using natural ingredients much like his ancestors and grandmother. Prince Borghese may be a prince and may be relying on a TV show to find his princess, but he's using his cosmetics history to help create a pet product empire.

Coco Chanel

2008-08-03T21:26:00.001-07:00

Coco Chanel wasn't just ahead of her time. She was ahead of herself. If one looks at the work of contemporary fashion designers as different from one another as Tom Ford, Helmut Lang, Miuccia Prada, Jil Sander and Donatella Versace, one sees that many of their strategies echo what Chanel once did. The way, 75 years ago, she mixed up the vocabulary of male and female clothes and created fashion that offered the wearer a feeling of hidden luxury rather than ostentation are just two examples of how her taste and sense of style overlap with today's fashion

Sarah Breedlove McWilliams

2008-08-03T21:23:00.000-07:00

Sarah Breedlove McWilliams Walker, better known as Madame CJ Walker or Madame Walker, together with Marjorie Joyner revolutionized the hair care and cosmetics industry for African American women early in the 20th century.

Early Years

Madame CJ Walker was born in 1867 in poverty-stricken rural Louisiana. The daughter of former slaves, she was orphaned at the age of seven. Walker and her older sister survived by working in the cotton fields of Delta and Vicksburg, Mississippi. She married at age fourteen and her only daughter was born in 1885. After her husband's death two years later, she traveled to St. Louis to join her four brothers who had established themselves as barbers. Working as a laundrywoman, she managed to save enough money to educate her daughter, and became involved in activities with the National Association of Colored Women.

Inspired by Need

During the 1890s, Sarah began to suffer from a scalp ailment that caused her to lose some of her hair. Embarrassed by her appearance, she experimented with a variety of home-made remedies and products made by another black woman entrepreneur, Annie Malone. In 1905, Sarah became a sales agent for Malone and moved to Denver, where she married Charles Joseph Walker.

Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower

Changing her name to Madame CJ Walker, Sarah founded her own business and began selling her own product called Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower, a scalp conditioning and healing formula. To promote her products, she embarked on an exhausting sales drive throughout the South and Southeast selling her products door to door, giving demonstrations, and working on sales and marketing strategies. In 1908, she opened a college in Pittsburgh to train her "hair culturists."

The Walker System

Eventually, her products formed the basis of a thriving national corporation employing at one point over 3,000 people. Her Walker System, which included a broad offering of cosmetics, licensed Walker Agents, and Walker Schools offered meaningful employment and personal growth to thousands of Black women. Madame Walker’s aggressive marketing strategy combined with relentless ambition led her to be labeled as the first known African-American woman to become a self-made millionaire.

Having amassed a fortune in fifteen years, this pioneering businesswoman died at the age of 52. Her prescription for success was perseverance, hard work, faith in herself and in God, "honest business dealings" and of course, quality products. "There is no royal flower-strewn path to success," she once observed. "And if there is, I have not found it - for if I have accomplished anything in life it is because I have been willing to work hard."

Improved Permanent Wave Machine

An employee of Madame CJ Walker’s empire, Marjorie Joyner invented an improved permanent wave machine. This device patented in 1928, curled or "permed" women’s hair for a relatively lengthy period of time. The wave machine was popular among women white and black allowing for longer-lasting wavy hair styles. Joyner went on to become a prominent figure in Madame CJ Walker’s industry, though she never profited directly from her invention, the assigned intellectual property of the Walker Company.

Howard Hughes

2008-08-03T21:22:00.000-07:00

Howard Hughes was once the most talked-about entrepreneur in the world - legendary for his bold business tactics, his aviation accomplishments, and his outlandish personal life. The recent popular movie The Aviator has prompted a new interest in this fascinating entrepreneur.

Silver Spoon: Born to a wealthy family in Humble, Texas 1905, Howard was not one who enjoyed attending private school in Boston. At the age of seventeen he dropped out, but thanks to a donation by his father to Cal Tech, Howard was able to sit in on college classes. Later on, Howard moved back to Texas and attended Rice University. Shortly after his eighteenth birthday Howard's father died and Howard dropped out of Rice after inheriting most of the family estate, including Hughes Tool Company.

Aviation: Hughes wasn't merely an eccentric billionaire, but a genuinely accomplished aviator. He won the 1934 All-American Air Meet in Miami with a speed record of 352 mph in the experimental military plane the "H-1". Hughes also piloted around the world in 1938 with a small crew, and broke Lindbergh's New York to Paris record in half with a time of 3 days, 19 hours, and 17 minutes.

Innovation: In 1932 Hughes formed Hughes Aircraft, which produced several inventions in aerospace technology. Howard was presented the Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 for his achievements in advancing science in aviation. One of his greatest inventions was the H-4 Hercules, a military air-boat plane. Unfortunately, the plane flew only once for a mile just over the water's surface but never got fully airborne. Howard was widely ridiculed and the plane was nicknamed "The Spruce Goose".

Film Career: After the death of his father, Howard spent much time with his uncle Rupert, a writer for Samuel Goldwyn's Studios, which led him to a second career as a director, writer, and movie producer. His first film, Hell's Angels, combined his love for film and flying. Though the movie was a huge hit, the production of its towering flight scenes lost Howard $1.5 million (and several pilots). He later went on to produce the controversial Scarface (1932) and The Outlaw (1943).

Trans World Airlines (TWA): Hughes' wealth and power caught the attention of TWA president Jack Frye, who had been struggling to acquire new planes to stay competitive. Frye's influence led Hughes to purchase majority ownership, triggering a major turnaround for the company. Hughes himself directed ventures with Lockheed, including one of the most revolutionary planes, the Constellation (aka "Connie") for TWA. The plane was well liked for its attractive appearance and record speeds and helped TWA become competitive again.

Hands-On: Howard Hughes was very hands-on in every film and every aviation innovation. Hughes flew all the planes that he helped design including the XF-11, an experimental spy plane for the US Army. The aircraft almost caused Hughes his life when it crashed landed in a Beverly Hills neighborhood, ripping through three houses and then exploded into flames. Hughes also piloted a plane in Hell's Angels. His compulsive and controlling behavior is part of what made him a strong and powerful businessman.

Henry Ford

2008-08-03T21:21:00.001-07:00

Henry Ford was not the inventor of the automobile (actually, no one single person was - see The History of the Automobile for the whole story), but his innovations in assembly-line techniques and the introduction of standardized interchangeable parts produced the first mass-production vehicle manufacturing plant, paving the way for the cheap automobiles that turned the United States into a nation of motorists.

The Early Years: Ford was born the first of six children July 30, 1863 to prosperous farmers in Dearborn, Michigan. Not liking his farming life and his studies in school, Ford set off at the young age of sixteen to the nearby town of Detroit to work three years as a machinist’s apprentice. After his experience he went back to his home in Dearborn working only part time for Westinghouse Engine Company and spending his spare time working in a small machine shop that he put together on the family’s land.

Ford’s marriage to Clara Bryant in 1888 required him to get a better paying job. In 1891 he started as an engineer for Edison Illuminating Company and was promptly promoted to Chief Engineer. The job required Ford to be on call 24 hours a day. In his on-call time he began to experiment with internal combustion engines and created the Quadricycle, the first "horseless carriage", powered by gasoline and riding on four bicycle wheels. This invention led to the founding of Ford Motor Company.

Ford Motor Company: Ford made several attempts to establish his company. In 1903 with $28,000, eleven men, and Ford as Vice President and Chief Engineer, Ford Motor Company was incorporated. They produced only three cars a day and had up to three men working on each. In 1908 the company produced the famous Model T, a reliable and affordable vehicle for the mass market. Ford drove and raced this vehicle at every opportunity to prove how reliable it was. By 1918, half of all cars in the U.S. were a Model T.

Assembly Line Innovation: In response to growing demand, Ford built a new factory using standardized interchangeable parts and a conveyor-belt based assembly line. The factory was able to build a car in just 93 minutes, producing around 1 million vehicles a year (one every 24 seconds). With this advancement in production, Ford was able to market to the general public. The factory had everything it needed to construct the vehicles including a steel mill, glass factory, and the first automobile assembly line.

Management Style: Ford had a complex, conflicting and strongly opinionated personality. Most of the company's struggles were linked to his stubborn management style. He refused to unionize with the United Automobile Workers, and to prevent his employees from doing so he hired spies and company police to check in on his workers. When work on the assembly line proved overly monotonous and sent employee turnover rates to over 50%, he doubled the going wage to $5, buying back their loyalty and upping productivity.

Other Innovations and Inventions: Ford was responsible for cutting the workday from nine hours to eight hours, so that the factory could convert to a three-shift workday and operate 24 hours a day. He also continued his engineering innovations, patenting a transmission mechanism in 1911 and a plastic-bodied car in 1942. He also invented the first one-piece engine, the V-8. Ford fought and won a patent battle with George B. Selden, who was being paid royalties by all American car manufacturers for his patent on a "road engine".

Oprah

2008-08-03T00:04:00.000-07:00

n a recent poll, we asked readers, "Which entrepreneur do you admire most?" The winner, hands down, was Oprah Winfrey, with nearly double the votes of Bill Gates and four times Richard Branson. In a career filled with firsts and superlatives, Oprah has managed to amass a sizable fortune, become one of the most powerful people in the entertainment industry, and yet maintain a sense of humility and compassion we all should strive to achieve.

Broadcasting Pioneer: Born in a small town in Mississippi in 1954 and raised in Nashville, Tennessee, Oprah began her career in broadcasting at age 17 at radio station WVOL. By 19, she was anchoring the news at WTFV-TV, both the the first African-American woman and the youngest person ever to do so. In 1976 she moved to Baltimore, where she co-anchored WJZ-TV's Six O'Clock News. She soon made the switch to doing talk shows, hosting the local People Are Talking.

The Oprah Winfrey Show: In 1984, Oprah relocated to Chicago to host AM Chicago. Within just one month, it had surpassed Donahue as the #1 local talk show, and within a year it was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show. A year later, it entered national syndication and became the highest-rated talk show in TV history. It has remained the number one talk show for 18 seasons, has won dozens of Emmys, and is seen by an estimated 30 million viewers a week in the United States and is broadcast internationally in 111 countries.

Entertainment Entrepreneur: Not content to work for somoeone else, in 1988, Oprah founded her own production facility, Harpo Studios (in case you hadn't noticed, that's "Oprah" spelled backwards, not a Marx Brothers reference). Since then, it has grown into Harpo, Inc., which employs around 250 full-time people in television and film production, magazine publishing, and online media. She is also co-founder of Oxygen Media, which operates the Oxygen Network, a cable network for women reaching more than 54 million viewers.

Jenna Jameson's

2008-08-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

I was taking a look at the Forbes Celebrity 100, a list of the 100 wealthiest people in sports and entertainment, and their story about Jenna Jameson caught my eye. In case you don't know her name (or at least won't admit to it), Jameson is the world's most famous pornstar. While she has done only about 50 movies (not really very many by porn industry standards), she has managed to successfully cross over from her hardcore background into mainstream media. She has appeared over 30 times on Howard Stern's radio and TV show, has made numerous guest appearances on a variety of E! TV shows, has just completed a pilot for a new reality series, and her autobiographical How to Make Love Like a Porn Star spent six weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.

Jameson's holding company, ClubJenna, expects revenues of $30 million this year, at nearly 50% profitability! They plan to expand into Jenna-branded strip clubs, cosmetics, and an apparel line, as well as some racier products you might expect. You can even download a "moan tone" for your mobile phone. 40% of the company's revenue comes from web site membership fees and site management fees for other porn stars' Web sites, which they run for 16 other actors, including Tera Patrick and Briana Banks.

Now here's the punch line... She hasn't had sex on-camera with a male partner other than her husband in seven years. In fact, she plans to grow her business without ever again having sex on video with anyone--male, female or herself. She has shot enough footage with her husband to release two movies a year for the next decade. She has signed five new actresses to star in ClubJenna movies, offering them a rare deal that includes 3% residuals on any sales over 10,000 copies (most porn stars do not receive residuals on their films).

Jameson's story is full of lessons for entrepreneurs. Let's take her story out of context for a minute. This is a woman who was being underpaid in a dead-end job while other people made money off of her work. But she didn't just take it lying down -- she decided to leverage the exposure she received by branching out into other products and services, all while still keeping her "job". Her first contract with Wicked Pictures paid her barely $1,000 a picture, doing eight to ten a year. But as a headlining stripper, she was getting paid $5,000 a show. Add to that posing for pictures with fans, selling her latest movie, and tips, and she was making as much as $50,000 in a week while on tour.

In the Forbes interview, her husband, porn star/director/producer Jay G. Grdina, said, "This has developed from an individual star into a porn conglomerate. Her brand has been developed with the reputation of being the best, and now we are capitalizing on that and monetizing the name."

Not only that, they largely control the distribution channel. While their movies are distributed by Vivid Entertainment, much of their content is available exclusively through their web site.

This combination of a strong brand and a tightly controlled distribution allows them to diversify much more easily. When launching a new product, they already have both marketing and distribution channels in place, as well as a loyal established customer base who will buy the new products, helping with initial market penetration.

She has also made a successful leap to passive income. Shooting a feature film every month and then touring as a dancer makes for a pretty grueling schedule. Now the vast majority of her income comes from product sales, Web site subscriptions, and site management fees. If Jenna Jameson goes on vacation for a month, the money still keeps coming in.

Simon Cowell Music Mogul Millionaire

2008-08-02T23:59:00.000-07:00

He is best known as the obnoxious judge on the hit TV show American Idol whose cynical comments sent contestants running out the door in tears, but what most don’t know is that his work didn’t start there and most definitely won’t end there. His list of achievements is long and includes being a successful record producer and executive for the BMG UK record company to gathering wannabe entrepreneurs on his show, American Inventor.

Before The Fame: Cowell was born on October 7, 1959 and was raised most of his early life by nannies before being sent off to a boarding school. He acted up constantly in school and was consequently transferred sixteen times before finally leaving it all together at the age of sixteen.

Walt Disney

2008-08-02T23:57:00.000-07:00

Disney is one of the most recognized brands in the world, but few know as much about the man behind the Magic Kingdom, not to mention the hundreds of animated cartoons, countless feature films and endless toys that bear his name. An influential innovator and entrepreneur in the mid 20th century, Disney went from sketching a rabbit (yes, a rabbit) to running a multi-billion dollar empire.

Early Years: Disney was born in 1901 in Chicago and was an avid artist from an early age. At 16, he enlisted in the Red Cross and served in World War I, driving an ambulance that he customized with his own cartoon drawings. Upon his return, he worked as an advertising cartoonist in Kansas City, Missouri, but this soured quickly.

Disney then decided to move to California, where he joined forces with his brother, Roy. Walt handled the creative aspects of partnership, while Roy focused on the business and financial end. The Disney brothers borrowed a little money, set up a studio in their uncle's garage, and made some noise with a series of black-and-white cartoons featuring a rabbit named Oswald, which he produced for Universal Studios. When Walt asked Universal for a raise, however, they balked. Since the studio retained the rights to the character, Disney quit drawing Oswald after 1928, although the series continued.

Entrepreneurial Spirit: Disney went back to the drawing board, producing a silent cartoon called Plane Crazy that featured a new character named Mickey Mouse. But the advent of sound changed everything in Hollywood. To capitalize on the craze for "talkies", Disney delayed Plane Crazy and instead produced a second Mickey Mouse cartoon, this one with sound. Steamboat Willie, released in 1928, was the first animated film to feature synchronized sound. Despite the film's international success, Walt and Roy still needed cash, so they licensed Mickey Mouse's image for a fee of $300, to be used on a tablet of paper aimed at children.

Disney became fixated on using the newest technology for his films. He obtained exclusive rights to use Technicolor in animated films for two years, winning his first Academy Award in 1932 for the animated short Flowers and Trees, which was also the first full-color cartoon.

He would win 26 Oscars over the course of his career, the most awards given to any individual. During the next few years, Goofy, Donald Duck and several other memorable characters joined Mickey. But Disney believed the future of company was in feature-length films, and released Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937. It was the first feature-length animated movie to be produced in Technicolor, and cost nearly $1.5 million to make, an unheard of amount in Depression-era America.

Growth of the Company: Disney recognized his strength was in story design, not actually animating, and by the time the brothers built a studio in Burbank, Calif., they employed more than 1,000 people, including animators. Building on the success of Snow White, Disney released Pinocchio and Fantasia in 1940, Dumbo in 1941, and Bambi in 1942.

But the late 1930s and early 1940s were tough times for American businesses. Disney made it through the Great Depression and World War II by dedicating much of his new studio to producing health, education and propaganda films for the U.S. government. It also produced short comedies aimed at boosting national morale. To raise additional money, Disney took his operation public in 1940.

The company did not produce any new feature films during World War II, but in 1944 it did re-release Snow White into theaters, bringing in a significant amount of revenue for that year. This would begin a common strategy of re-releasing films about every 10 years, and later regulating the availability of Disney films on VHS and DVD. The next big animated film came in 1950, with the release of Cinderella.

Diversification: As the company grew, Disney diversified production beyond cartoons and animated movies. Treasure Island, released in 1950, was the studio’s first live-action film, and the company formed Buena Vista Distribution a few years later. With its own in-house distribution company, Disney could continue to churn out movies while significantly saving on distribution costs. Live-action hits such as Swiss Family Robinson in 1960 and Mary Poppins in 1964 followed.

Disney's TV debut came around the same time as Treasure Island, with the special One Hour in Wonderland. The popular Mickey Mouse Club debuted as a TV series in 1955.

But it was another TV program that began in 1954, called Disneyland, that showed Walt Disney had even bigger plans for the company. A few years earlier, Disney established WED Enterprises as a separate company and began drawing up plans for Disneyland, a giant theme park. Because the park was technically part of a separate corporation, Disney was able to develop it in secret, worrying about how shareholders would react. Disneyland opened in 1955 as a theme park unlike any other the world had seen.

Hugh Hefner

2008-08-02T23:50:00.000-07:00

He is the supreme bachelor of our time and the ultimate "lifestyle entrepreneur". He has forever changed our world by breaking the boundaries related to sexuality, age, and gender. He created a revolutionary magazine with naked women and great articles in a time when sexuality was not even appropriate to talk about.

Education: was born April 9, 1926 to conservative Nebraska farmers. Though Hef had a genius I.Q. of 152, he was still an average student. Hef enjoyed participating in extracurricular activities like the school newspaper, writing, and cartooning and was also president of the student counsel. He graduated in 1944 and joined the U.S. Army as an infantry clerk.

After his release from the Army in 1946 he enrolled in the Chicago Art Institute, and in the fall attended class at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where he received his bachelors degree in just 2½ years. Hef also took a graduate course in sociology for a semester at Northwestern. His interest was in individual freedom. He wrote a paper on U.S. sex laws during the time Kinsey was researching human sexuality.

Getting Started: Hef worked as an asst. personnel manager for the Chicago Cartoon Company and then as a promotion copywriter for Esquire magazine. When the company moved to New York and refused the five dollar raise Hef requested, he quit and tried to raise enough money to launch a new Chicago Magazine. After failing he worked as a news stand promotions director of Publisher’s Development Corporation. While working, Hef found that there was a demand for a gentleman's magazine.

Playboy Magazine: Between family and friends, Hef was able to raise $8,000 to start his magazine. The first issue featured Marilyn Monroe and sold over 50,000 copies. The original name was "Stag Party", but he was forced to change it as it was challenged as a trademark infringement by Stag Magazine. The name "Playboy" was suggested by a friend, and the famous bunny logo was picked for its humorous sexual connotation. With the bunny head wearing a tux, he was sophisticated, but also frisky and playful.

Playboy Enterprises: Playboy now is the leading men’s magazine in the world, circulating more than three million copies in the U.S. and 4.5 million worldwide. The magazine contains award-winning fiction and investigation articles, in-depth interviews with gorgeous women and celebrities, and of course women and sex. The magazine is now owned by Playboy Enterprises Inc., and Christie Hefner (Hef’s Daughter) is Chairman and CEO.

Playboy Diversification: Playboy is an international multimedia company with four income streams: publishing, licensing, online and TV. Playboy and Spice Television networks distribute programming of home video and DVD globally. Playboy.com is one of the leading male lifestyle web destinations providing entertaining articles and Playboy news, as well as subscription-based access to photos and videos. Playboy and Spice trademarks are licensed internationally for a range of consumer products such as clothing, toys, etc.

Mainstream Television and Film: Long before The Playboy Channel and Playboy videos and DVDs, Hef was involved in the production of several mainstream television series and motion pictures. Playboy produced The Tragedy of Macbeth (1971), Monty Python's first movie, And Now for Something Completely Different (1971), The Naked Ape (1973) and Saint Jack (1979), plus television movies Third Girl from the Left (1973), The Death of Ocean View Park (1979), The Cop and the Kid (1975) and A Whale for the Killing (1981).

Contributions: he has been honored in California by the Chamber of Commerce for helping pay for the repairs to the Hollywood sign. He now has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame. In 1996 he was honored in a formal ceremony by the University of California for his dedication and contributions to the film industry.

Personal Life: Hef was married to his first wife classmate Mildred Williams in 1949, and conceived two children (Christie ’52, and David ‘55). Hef’s second wife Kim Conrad was 1989’s Playmate of the Year. The two had two sons, Marston Gilen ’90, and Conrad Bradford ’91 (they are separated at this time). Hef, almost 80, is seeing three women known as the “G.O.F.” Holly Madison, who claims to be the No. 1 girlfriend, is 25, Bridget Marquard, 31, and Kendra Wilkinson, 20.

This unusual living arrangement is the subject of a new reality TV show on E! Entertainment Television, The Girls Next Door, which looks at life inside the Playboy Mansion. Hef says that he has lived most of his personal life very publicly, so living it on E! for all to see isn't a big deal.

is considered one of the luckiest men alive - the ultimate lifestyle entrepreneur.