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Spanx history
Spanx company history timeline
The inspiration for Blakely’s first product came in 1998, when she sought a slenderizing hosiery to wear with a pair of close-fitting, cream colored pants and open-toed shoes.
Footless Body-Shaping Pantyhose is placed on "Oprah's Favorite Things" list for 2000.
Four months of sales produced $400,000 in revenue in 2000, garnering a pretax profit margin of 25 percent.
In 2000, Blakely launched the Spanx brand from her apartment, undertaking all initial calls and marketing herself.
Sara Lee, maker of L’eggs and Hanes brands of pantyhose, launched Smooth Illusions in the spring of 2001, and leading designers, such as Donna Karan and Calvin Klein, responded with comparable products.
Other new products introduced in 2002 included Topless Trouser Socks, in which band-free chins prevented the formation of deep crevices in the skin.
The company grew to employ a staff of 11 by the end of 2002.
Goldman was specifically looking for a Spanx product, and the pair exchanged contact details—Goldman became the CEO of Spanx in 2002.
In October 2003, QVC became a launching pad for international expansion when Blakely appeared on QVC UK and QVC Germany, with a potential audience of 11.6 million viewers in the United Kingdom and 34 million viewers in Germany.
In 2003 Spanx followed with Turbo Tights, footless tights designed to provide warmth in the winter as well as slimming effects.
Also, in 2004, Spanx introduced the first all hosiery bra under the name Bra-lleluja.
Hence, in March 2005, Spanx introduced the Hide and Sleek line of body-shaping undergarments, with a half-slip, full slip, strapless full slip, camisole, and strapless camisole.
Conti, Samantha, “Sara Blakely Plays Hide & Seek in London,” WWD, September 19, 2005, p.18.
Ribatt's appointment generated discussions about a potential footwear expansion by Spanx according to a statement Blakely made in October 2013 explaining her ambition to design the world's most comfortable high-heel shoe prior to retirement.
Writing for Fortune magazine in February 2014, Colleen Leahey identified Goldman as a key aspect of the company's successful growth:
In July 2014, Jan Singer, formerly of Nike, joined Spanx as CEO.
In April 2020, Spanx owner Sara Blakely partnered with longtime friend and restaurant owner Justin Anthony to feed frontline workers to fight the coronavirus.
It was announced on October 20th, 2021 that Sara Blakely, owner of Spanx, had sold a majority stake in business to Blackstone.
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Spanx competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| STORMS INDUSTRIES | 1932 | $1.6M | 10 | - |
| Chico's FAS | 1983 | $2.1B | 18,500 | 1,987 |
| Abercrombie & Fitch Co | 1892 | $4.9B | 44,000 | 2,572 |
| Vera Bradley | 1982 | $372.0M | 2,490 | 93 |
| Bonobos | 2007 | $20.0M | 551 | - |
| Lane Bryant | 1915 | $1.4M | 25 | 5 |
| Hanesbrands | 1901 | $3.5B | 61,000 | - |
| Team Connection | 1991 | $83.0M | 3,000 | - |
| E. Gluck | 1956 | $75.0M | 200 | - |
| Prep Sportswear | 2003 | $750,000 | 25 | - |
Spanx history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of Spanx, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about Spanx. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at Spanx. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by Spanx. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of Spanx and its employees or that of Zippia.
Spanx may also be known as or be related to Spanx and Spanx Inc.