# Spanx: Sara Blakely

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2016-09-12
- Length: 26m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely

## Summary

Sara Blakely, founder of Spanx, explains how she used $5,000 in savings to launch a footless control-top pantyhose after struggling to find undergarments that eliminated panty lines under cream-colored pants. She details her DIY approach to prototyping, patenting the product herself, and securing her first major retail account at Neiman Marcus by demonstrating the product's effect in the store's bathroom. Blakely also discusses her unconventional marketing strategies, including paying friends to buy the product to create buzz, sending items to Oprah Winfrey, and appearing on QVC to drive massive sales volume.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely#t=0) Introduction: Sara Blakely and Spanx
- [2:32](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely#t=152) The Idea: Cutting Feet Off Pantyhose
- [5:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely#t=315) Prototyping and Patenting
- [16:35](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely#t=995) Securing Neiman Marcus
- [19:28](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely#t=1168) Marketing and Scaling

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch

## Mentioned

- Spanx (product)
- Neiman Marcus (company)
- QVC (company)
- Oprah (other)
- USPTO.GOV (other)
- Bergdorf Goodman (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [002: Prototyping, Manufacturing & Selling a Men's Shirt Accessory](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2016-03-09-002-prototyping-manufacturing-selling-a-mens-shirt-accessory) (Product Startup)
- [006: Customizable swimwear with Kelsey Duffy of Versakini](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2016-04-19-006-customizable-swimwear-with-kelsey-duffy-of-versakini) (Product Startup)
- [Founder Feature: Sean Knecht of Tantos!](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-05-08-founder-feature-sean-knecht-of-tantos) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Founder Feature: Becca Wright of Piedmont Pennies](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-01-17-founder-feature-becca-wright-of-piedmont-pennies) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Founder Feature: Nikki Seaman of Freestyle Snacks](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-01-10-founder-feature-nikki-seaman-of-freestyle-snacks) (The Startup CPG Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2016-09-12-spanx-sara-blakely. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.