Do you know America’s 10 wealthiest self-made women? Keep reading to find out.
Many women in the U.S. have reached top positions in companies and started their own businesses. Today, more women have become millionaires and billionaires independently than ever before. However, there is still a gender wage gap. In 2024, women earned 84 cents for every dollar a man made.
A report from Wells Fargo at the beginning of 2024 showed that women-owned more than 14 million businesses. These businesses earned about $2.7 trillion in revenue and employed nearly 12.2 million people.
The following are America’s 10 wealthiest self-made women, based on Forbes’ 2024 report on the richest self-made women in the U.S.
10. Eren Ozmen
Eren Ozmen moved from Turkey to the U.S. in 1981. She later became the leader of Sierra Nevada Corporation, a company that builds space and airplane technology. Her company is known for its advanced work in space travel and aviation.
In addition to running the company, Ozmen and her husband, Fatih Ozmen, manage the Ozmen Foundation charity and the Ozmen Ventures business investment fund. Today, she is worth about $3.7 billion.
9. Johnelle Hunt
Johnelle Hunt is one of the richest women in the world, with a fortune of $4.3 billion. She made her wealth through JB Hunt Transport Services, a major company in the logistics industry. The company deals with moving goods from one place to another.
However, Hunt did not start out rich. Many years ago, she and her husband had to sell their home and take out loans to start their business, which focused on transporting rice. Over time, their company grew into a massive business worth billions of dollars. Today, Johnelle Hunt owns 18% of the company, making her its biggest individual shareholder.
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8. Gail Miller
Gail Miller is a billionaire with a net worth of $4.4 billion. She co-founded Larry H. Miller, an automobile company that has also owned sports teams and other businesses.
After her husband passed away in 2009, she led the company for five years as its chair. As of 2025, she is the chair of the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation. She also oversees the Larry H. Miller Education Foundation, which supports education.
7. Marian Ilitch
Marian Ilitch is a billionaire with a net worth of $4.6 billion. She and her late husband, Mike Ilitch, founded Little Caesars in 1959. The company has grown into one of the biggest pizza restaurant chains in the world. Little Caesars still belongs to Marian, bringing in more than $5 billion in sales annually.
Besides the pizza business, she owns sports and entertainment companies under Ilitch Companies. She owns the Detroit Red Wings, a professional hockey team. Marian also owns the Detroit Tigers, a Major League Baseball team.
6. Lynda Resnick
Lynda Resnick is a billionaire businesswoman with a net worth of $5.6 billion. She is the vice chair and co-owner of The Wonderful Company, a major food processing company known for selling healthy food products such as pistachios and special seedless lemons.
One of her most significant achievements was making POM Wonderful Pomegranate Juice extremely popular. Due to her smart marketing skills, she earned the nickname “POM Queen.” Her ability to promote and sell products has played a big role in her success.
5. Elizabeth Uihlein
Elizabeth Uihlein has a net worth of $6.7 billion. In 1980, she co-founded Uline with her husband, Richard Uihlein. Uline started in their house and is now one of North America’s largest companies selling packaging materials.
They offer more than 42,000 different products across the U.S. Elizabeth and her husband have donated tens of millions of dollars to support conservative political causes, including Donald Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign.
4. Thai Lee
Thai Lee is a very wealthy businesswoman with a net worth of $6.8 billion. She is the president and CEO of SHI International, a company that provides information technology (IT) services.
Thai Lee was born in Thailand and grew up in Korea and then the U.S. In 1989, she and her ex-husband Leo Koguan bought the company that later became SHI International. Today, Thai Lee owns 60% of the company. SHI works with big companies like Boeing and AT&T. According to Forbes, SHI International is the largest business in the U.S. that a woman owns.
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3. Judy Faulkner
Judy Faulkner is worth $7.6 billion. She is the founder and CEO of Epic Systems, which she started in 1979 in a basement in Wisconsin.
Epic Systems is a big company in the healthcare industry that makes software for hospitals and doctors. It helps them to manage patients’ information. Today, it is the largest company in its field in the United States. Judy Faulkner owns 47% of the company, making her a major part of its success.
2. Judy Love and Family
Judy Love and her family are worth $11.6 billion. Their main company is Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores, which is part of the multi-brand retail industry. This means they run businesses that sell various goods, such as gas and food, in one place.
Judy and her husband started their business with a small gas station in the 1960s. They borrowed $5,000 to open it. Now, their company has grown to have locations in nearly every state in the U.S. and makes about $25 billion in sales each year.
1. Diane Hendricks
Diane Hendricks is the richest self-made woman in America, with a fortune of $20.9 billion. She earned her wealth by building a successful company called ABC Supply, which is in the construction materials industry.
Nowadays, Diane is focused on helping struggling towns. For example, she is working to transform Beloit, a tough-times town in Wisconsin, into a place for new businesses. She wants it to be a place where entrepreneurs can grow and thrive.
In this context, “self-made” means that these America’s 10 wealthiest self-made women did not inherit their wealth from their families. However, the definition does not consider whether they had advantages, such as family connections or financial support, that may have helped them succeed. The data also assumes only two genders, male and female.