Latest news with #ForbesWomen
Forbes
16-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Why Selena Gomez Is Not A Billionaire. Plus: Stop Overthinking
This is this week's ForbesWomen newsletter, which every Thursday brings news about the world's top female entrepreneurs, leaders and investors straight to your inbox. Click here to get on the newsletter list! Late last week, the FDA granted approval to something that could change the paradigm for cervical cancer screening in the U.S.: It greenlit the Teal Wand, an at-home HPV screening device from Teal Health. Following the announcement, I spoke with Kara Egan, the cofounder and CEO of Teal Health, about what exactly this means for how women get screened for cervical cancer—and when her device will be available commercially. 'The clinical study results show we have the same accuracy as the doctor-collected samples,' Egan explained. Plus, she said, '94% of women in our clinical trial said they prefer this to the standard of care.' (AKA, the invasive and often painful pap smear.) Egan said that she and her team at Teal are getting ready to launch commercially in June, starting in California, and she hopes other states quickly follow. Gallup data shows that some 72 million women have skipped or delayed a preventative healthcare test, and Egan's own research through Teal had similar findings. 'While there are definitely populations that are less likely to be screened—uninsured are near 40% less likely to be on top of their screenings—what we found was it was near-universal: One in four women are behind on their screenings.' Egan and I also talked a bit about the entrepreneurial inspiration behind Teal, and how her background in healthcare investing helped her build the company with her cofounder. You can check out the full conversation here! Cheers! Maggie BEVERLY HILLS, CA - MARCH 2: Selena Gomez attends the 2025 Vanity Fair Oscar After Party Arrivals ... More on March 3, 2025 at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Robert Smith/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images) In September 2024, Bloomberg reported Selena Gomez' net worth to be $1.3 billion thanks to her makeup line, Rare Beauty, which was founded in 2019 and launched in 2020. Multiple media outlets have since called the 32-year-old Gomez a billionaire as well. Based on Forbes' reporting, Gomez is very wealthy, but estimated to be worth roughly $700 million. This figure still ranks the former Disney Star among the wealthiest self-made female entrepreneurs in the country—and one of the richest celebrities—but the breakdown of her fortune helps explain why she may be somewhat limited in how much money she can or is willing to sink into Wondermind, the mental health startup that in recent weeks has missed payroll and laid off two-thirds of its staff. American tennis player Coco Gauff during the Italian Open of tennis at Foro Italico. Rome (Italy), ... More May 14th, 2025 (Photo by Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images) Forbes released its annual list of the world's highest paid athletes on Thursday, and for the second consecutive year, no woman lands among the world's top 50. Serena Williams was the last to do it, in 2023—her sixth appearance on the list in nine years—but she has settled into retirement and is no longer eligible. Here's why not even Coco Gauff made this year's final cut. Touchland, a buzzy hand sanitizer and body spray brand founded by Andrea Lisbona and launched in 2018, announced Monday that it has been acquired for up to $880 million by personal care conglomerate Church & Dwight. The deal includes $700 million at closing and another $180 million contingent on Touchland's 2025 net sales. (Trailing twelve month sales as of March 31 hit $130 million, the company says.) 'Everything would be better if we blew open the model of what good leadership looks like,' says founder and executive Amanda Litman, whose new book, When We're in Charge: The Next Generation's Guide to Leadership, came out this week. Litman spoke to ForbesWomen contributor Marianne Schnall about the book's launch and how the next generation of leaders can transform outdated leadership models and workplace cultures to lead in new ways. A last-minute proposal on the sale of public land from House Republicans during budget negotiations could have negative ramifications for the communities nearest the parcels that could be privatized, says Jennifer Novak, an environmental lawyer. Novak spoke to ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath on "Forbes Newsroom" about the proposal and what it could mean for communities near public land in the long term. 1. Break free from over-thinking. Opportunities to overthink are endless. The good news is that there are some strategies we can all use to break the cycle of over-thinking. One that sounds particularly intriguing? Schedule your 'worry time.' 2. Own the power of your own brand. Melissa Ben-Ishay, cofounder and CEO of cupcake chain Baked by Melissa, didn't initially want to be the CEO of her own company. She spoke to ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath about how she tapped into her inner confidence and built the skills she needed to become not just founder and creative, but chief executive. 3. Make friends in your 40s. Some 53% of American adults report having between one and four close friends, and 8% say they have no close friends. If you want to build a stronger inner circle, here are some proven strategies that work. More than a decade of air traffic control staffing issues have been coming to a head recently, particularly at Newark Liberty International Airport where hundreds of flights were disrupted following multiple communications outages between air traffic control and pilots. Which major U.S. airport also reported communications issues this week? Check your answer.
Forbes
09-05-2025
- Health
- Forbes
A New Probiotic Could Help Pregnant Women Safely Eat Fish. Plus: Should You Actually Wake Up At 4am?
This is this week's ForbesWomen newsletter, which every Thursday brings news about the world's top female entrepreneurs, leaders and investors straight to your inbox. Click here to get on the newsletter list! With Mother's Day fast approaching, motherhood is at the forefront of our brains here at ForbesWomen. We recognize this holiday can provoke a range of emotions for people, depending on your life circumstances; for some, it is celebratory, while for others, the day can feel complicated, melancholy, and even frustrating. For those who might be grieving the loss of a mother, mother-like figure, or child, I'd like to share this article about navigating grief. ForbesWomen contributor Cheryl Robinson spoke to sources about what people can do to honor the memories of those we've lost—and also how we can support those in our lives who might be grieving right now. For those who are not yet mothers, ambivalent about motherhood or otherwise curious about the healthcare technology enabling parenthood later in life, I'll refer you to today's Morning Joe segment on the growth of egg freezing in the U.S. As Mika Brzezinski, Huma Abedin and I discussed in the segment, more women than ever before are freezing their eggs, but access to this technology remains a challenge, and it's also important that every person educate herself about what 'fertility preservation' means as it relates to her own body and potential outcomes. And finally, for those who might be marking the day as a single mother, you are not alone! Roughly 21% of all moms are solo parents. This article from ForbesWomen contributor Michelle Stansbury has good advice on how you can celebrate yourself—or, conversely, skip the celebration entirely, which is entirely okay! Take care of yourselves, Maggie P.S.: Don't forget that nominations for the 2025 U.S. 50 Over 50 list are open! Head to this link here to tell us about a woman you think should be on this year's list. Full nominations criteria are on that page but the two most important bits to remember: We're looking for people who were born in 1974 or earlier, and we're looking for women who have never been on the list before, because we don't allow repeats! NEW YORK - CIRCA 1930: Blues singer and pianist Gladys Bentley poses for a portrait circa 1930 in ... More New York City, New York. (Photo by Michael) This week marked the annual Met Gala, a star-studded and fashion-forward fundraiser that draws the attention of millions (and attendance of some of the world's most famous people). This year's Gala theme was 'Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,' which paid homage to the art of fine tailoring and the enduring style of Black men—from the 18th century through the Harlem Renaissance of the Roaring Twenties to present day. While the Met Gala primarily highlighted this tradition through a lens of masculinity, it's important to recognize the often-overlooked contributions of women, particularly masculine-presenting lesbians, who were also pioneers of this style. Dr. Joyce F. Brown speaks onstage at FIT's Annual Gala (Photo byfor ... More Fashion Institute of Technology) Speaking of powerful Black women in fashion: For more than 26 years, Dr. Joyce F. Brown has been a transformative leader at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), shaping the future of fashion education and the industry itself. As the first Black woman to become FIT's president, she broke ground and redefined the institution's role in a rapidly changing world. Dr. Brown recently sat down with ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath to talk about her work and legacy. A newly-engineered probiotic can help reduce levels of mercury and make it safer for pregnant women and children to eat fish, according to new research from UCLA and UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography. It's been nearly three years since the Supreme Court's Dobbs v. Jackson ruling overturned Roe v. Wade and upended abortion access in the U.S., and new research from the Institute for Women's Policy Research finds that Americans wish companies were doing more on behalf of women's healthcare access. In fact, more than half of employed adults wish corporate America would do more to speak up for reproductive healthcare access. When Stephanie Liu set out to build Nourish with cofounders Sam Perkins and Aidan Dewar, the business model was clear: Hire licensed dietitians, connect them with patients through a virtual platform, and bill insurance companies directly. Customers and investors agree: Since launching in 2021, Liu says Nourish has helped hundreds of thousands of patients across all 50 states and built a network of more than 3,000 dietitians. Last week, the company announced it raised $70 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total funding to $115 million. It may be 2025, but old-fashioned views about who should be the higher earner in a male-female marriage are still firmly entrenched. New research reveals that romantic relationships often suffer when women outearn their male partners. Even outsiders view these partnerships as less stable, less satisfying, and more likely to end in divorce. 1. Make it easier for your employees to 'fess up to AI shortcuts. Recent research shows that nearly one-third of employees using AI tools at work keep it a secret from their employers. This occurs for a variety of reasons, but could ultimately result in a security risk for your company—so here's what you need to know about fostering a culture of transparency around AI tools. 2. Build a personal brand that boosts your small business. Whether you're running a boutique fitness studio, a digital marketing agency, or a family-run bakery, customers want a human connection. They want to know your "why." Sharing your journey, how you got started, the values that drive you and the lessons you've learned not only builds authenticity but creates a relationship. 3. Consider whether you should *actually* wake up at 4am. We hear a lot about hard-charging founders and CEOs who get up well before the sun. But do those pre-sunrise alarms lead to peak productivity? Here's what you need to consider as you set your morning alarm.
Forbes
02-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
This Founder Wants To Help Alzheimer's Patients Restore Memory. Plus: Stop Spinning Your Wheels
This is this week's ForbesWomen newsletter, which every Thursday brings news about the world's top female entrepreneurs, leaders and investors straight to your inbox. Click here to get on the newsletter list! When was the last time you really embraced imperfection? This newsletter talks pretty regularly about how perfectionism can be bad for our wellbeing and even our workplace culture, but it can feel far easier to read and write about the power of imperfection and failure than it can be to actually live it. I was reminded of this during an event for Ms. President US Wednesday night. The organization is one that prepares young girls (fourth through eighth grade) for civic leadership, and the New York City Ms. President chapter leader and founder, high school junior Sofia Sahai, had invited me to interview entrepreneur Reshma Saujani about her career and the ways she's taken action even after significant career setbacks. In recounting the political losses that preceded her founding of Girls Who Code, Moms First, and PaidLeave AI, Saujani talked about how publicly losing two Congressional races liberated her to fight even harder for women's equality without fear of messing up or looking stupid. For Sahai—and I think for a lot of us, which is why I'm writing about it here—it's an important reminder that a setback isn't necessarily the end of a story. In many cases, it's the beginning. 'I think a lot of times, with girls, once a girl faces rejection—I'm speaking from personal experience—it's really hard to keep going, because you feel like one shutdown can be the end of the world,' Sahai told afterwards. 'But really, a no is just opening so many doors to other yeses.' Cheers to that! Maggie P.S.: Last week, we reported on President Trump's comment that a $5,000 'baby bonus' to encourage more people to have children could be a 'good idea.' Today for a Know Your Value segment on 'Morning Joe,' Mika Brzezinski, Huma Abedin and I analyzed whether such a policy is actually smart—and I also gave an update about 50 Over 50 nominations. Tune in here to see our discussion! Stella Sarraf founded drug discovery company Spinogenix in 2016 with a goal of finding a better way to treat neurodegenerative disorders—particularly Alzheimer's Disease. Her approach looks at the brain's synapses, which are the structures that allow our neurons to, effectively, talk to each other. 'We have a small molecule drug in clinical development working at restoring those synapses, those connections that can stop working,' Sarraf told ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath in a recent interview. 'When you restore those connections, you can regain function. So our hope is that we can restore memory.' Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai. (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty ... More Images) Since 2013, the Malala Fund has distributed $65 million through more than 400 grants across 27 countries. Now, as gender equality and girls' rights backslide around the world, the fund has announced that it is accelerating its impact and committing to distribute another $50 million over the next five years. For the third year in a row, Forbes scoured the country to determine the richest person in every state across the country. In Wisconsin, ABC Supply cofounder Diane Hendricks (net worth: $21.9 billion) is one of 10 women who are the richest residents of their respective states, up from nine last year. Last year, women's health startup Midi Health became one of the fastest-growing companies in its space by reaching some $100 million in funding, earning a spot on Forbes' Next Billion Dollar Startup list. ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath recently caught up with Midi cofounder and CEO, Joanna Strober, to hear about why she's hiring 'an army of nurse practitioners' and how she plans to increase Midi's reach. We're not monkeying around with this one: Two new studies, one focused on bonobos, the other on professional women, underscore that female alliances can be game-changers. In the wild, researchers found that female bonobos form coalitions to suppress male aggression and maintain social power. Women in the workplace are doing something remarkably similar: By building supportive networks, they're pushing back against gender discrimination. The lesson from both studies is that when females back each other, they gain power. 1. Move beyond a period of stagnation. Working nonstop but feeling like you're going nowhere? In order to stop spinning your wheels, it might be time to reevaluate your priorities—and put deeper, more creative work on your to-do list. 2. Figure out when you're being gaslit. Gaslighting is a form of emotional and psychological manipulation, and it can occur in personal, professional, political, and medical situations. Not sure whether you're being gaslit by someone? Here are seven warning signs to consider. 3. Understand your employees' empathy expectations. A recent Deloitte study finds that Gen Z workers consider empathy one of the top two most important qualities in a boss. But what does this mean practically? Here's everything you need to know. In the latest online discourse about men and animals, social media users this week began debating which side would 'win' in a fight between 100 men and one gorilla. The last time a similar debate arose, women debated whether it's safer to encounter a man in the wild or a… A. Snake B. Lion C. Bear D. Tarantula Check your answer.
Forbes
25-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
How Whiskey Founder Fawn Weaver Tariff-Proofed Her Business. Plus: Stop Decision Fatigue From Sabotaging Your Career
This is this week's ForbesWomen newsletter, which every Thursday brings news about the world's top female entrepreneurs, leaders and investors straight to your inbox. Click here to get on the newsletter list! Jamel Toppin for Forbes Two weeks ago, I wrote here about some entrepreneurs who were already feeling the pinch of President Donald Trump's tariffs. Today, I want to tell you about someone who saw the writing on the wall—and who has been spending the last several quarters preparing for the market volatility that has been unfolding all month. Fawn Weaver founded Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey to honor the formerly enslaved master distiller who taught Jack Daniel the secret to making great whiskey. She's turned the company into the most successful Black-owned liquor empire, worth $1.1 billion, and she and I recently got to talk about her strategic approach in taking capital, why she's expanding her company beyond whiskey—think vodka and cognac, the first two stops towards what Weaver envisions as a drinks conglomerate—and of course, tariffs. Weaver told me that she was listening to what Trump said on the campaign trail and even in his first term in office and planned for 2025 based on those comments. 'We should have taken [Trump] at his word: 'I am going to come in here and disrupt everything,'' Weaver said of the business community. What this meant for her business: 'From Q1 of 2024 to Q1 of 2025, we cut our expenses by 40%,' Weaver said, explaining that she also sought to ensure that the glass and cork she needed for Uncle Nearest's products were in America—and that she had access to enough to cover the next two years. She also said that when it came to forecasting Uncle Nearest's 2025 revenue, she instructed her team to take a conservative approach: 'When we forecasted for 2025, by October of last year, we had pulled out all numbers that were in relation to international sales. ALL revenue, because we didn't anticipate any would come in. So for us, if we get international revenue this year, woo hoo, it's a fun bonus.' To see my full conversation with Fawn Weaver, click through here! Cheers! JOSHUA PULLAR VIA BETTERMENT Since the longtime Viacom exec took the reins in 2020, digital investing firm Betterment's been on a buying spree, acquiring four companies over the course of five years. Then the market crashed—but Sarah Levy's approach to business strategy is the same as the advice her firm gives to customers. 'By having a balanced portfolio, you weather the storm,' she says. When expectant fathers face hostility or subtle exclusion at work, the consequences can extend beyond their own careers: A new study finds that the more workplace discrimination an expectant father perceives and experiences, the more likely the mother is to exit the workforce or switch jobs. Fewer women are adopting AI tools at work, even as generative AI products like ChatGPT are rapidly transforming how work gets done. The adoption gap may leave women behind, exacerbating the AI leadership crisis and limiting firms' ability to fully leverage GenAI's productivity potential. A $5,000 'baby bonus' is one of several proposals the White House is reportedly considering amid declining birth rates in the U.S. as it looks to incentivize Americans to have more children. (It's worth noting that this is a fraction of the $20,000 in baby-related expenses families pay, on average, during their child's first year.) Kim Ng made history in 2020 when she was named general manager of the Miami Marlins, becoming the first woman and first Asian-American GM in MLB history. Now, Ng has notched a new leadership role: she's been tapped as the first commissioner of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League. Pope Francis died earlier this week, at the age of 88. What does this have to do with ForbesWomen? As pontiff of a religion practiced by some 1.4 billion people around the world, Francis elevated more women to Vatican leadership than any of his predecessors. Whether this legacy continues with the next pope remains to be seen. As Massimo Faggioli, a professor of theology at Villanova University, told ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath in an interview this week, the role of women in the church is an important issue to the cardinals, but not the only factor they will consider when they go into the conclave. 1. Stop decision fatigue from sabotaging your career. From budget approvals and hiring calls to strategy pivots and culture questions, leaders are expected to make high-stakes choices day after day. But what happens when your sharp decision-making starts to slip—not from lack of skill, but from sheer mental overload? 2. Trust your intuition. Bea Dixon, cofounder and CEO of feminine care company The Honey Pot, last year secured a $380 million majority stake in her company from Compass Diversified. But as Dixon shared in this recent ForbesWomen interview, she walked away from offers that were even higher—because to take them would have felt like 'selling her soul.' 3. Ask yourself these 20 questions before beginning a job search. If you're job hunting, one of the biggest missteps you can make is jumping straight into cold applications before taking the time to reflect. Here are the 20 most important questions to ask yourself. April is Financial Literacy Month, and in these uncertain economic times, it's worth following a few key principles when it comes to estate planning. While intricacies like estate and gift taxes are typically only of concern to less than 1% of households, which of the following tips can help any family optimize how they pass on hard-earned wealth?
Forbes
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
This AI Founder Is The World's Youngest Self-Made Female Billionaire. Plus: The Surprising Fact That Boosts Women's Competitive Spirit
This is this week's ForbesWomen newsletter, which every Thursday brings news about the world's top female entrepreneurs, leaders and investors straight to your inbox. Click here to get on the newsletter list! In 1941, Indian artist Amrita Sher-Gil died, mysteriously, at the age of 28. An accomplished painter who helped pioneer modern Indian art, Sher-Gil has been mostly lost to history. But she serves as the inspiration for a new novel from Alka Joshi, the bestselling author of the Henna Artist trilogy and someone you may recognize from her time on the Forbes 50 Over 50 list. 'I got a B.A. in art history and I'd never heard of this woman before,' Joshi said in an interview about her new book, Six Days in Bombay, with me and Mika Brzezinski for Morning Joe earlier this week. 'I think if she'd lived beyond the age of 28, we *would* know who she is.' Joshi and I continued talking after the cameras stopped rolling and she told me that she wants the ForbesWomen audience, in particular, to understand that Sher-Gil 'was a woman who was so convinced of her own value, that she didn't care what other people thought' She had 'something to say about the empowerment of women in the south of India who do not get a chance to make their own decisions in life. And she conveyed all of that through her art.' Six Days in Bombay is a fictional take on Sher-Gil's life, but like most of Joshi's work, the book contains very real themes of female independence and financial power. 'It's always intentional on my part to say that if a woman makes a decision—good, bad, whatever we feel about it— we have to think about the decision she made for herself' and why she made that decision, Joshi said of how she considers depicting her female characters and their choices. When I told her that it felt like a lot of the women in her books are seeking financial independence, Joshi said this, too, is intentional. 'If we want financial independence for ourselves, we have to support other women who are trying to also obtain their own financial independence,' Joshi said, noting that these efforts are equally important in fiction and in real life. 'It's not just about us. We have to support the entire network of women who are trying to create that life for themselves.' Cheers to that! P.S.: Speaking of the 50 Over 50: Don't forget that nominations for the 2025 U.S. 50 Over 50 list are now open! Head to this link here to tell us about a woman you think should be on this year's list. Full nominations criteria are on that page but the two most important bits to remember: We're looking for people who were born in 1974 or earlier, and we're looking for women who have never been on the list before, because we don't allow repeats! Jamel Toppin for Forbes Lucy Guo is one of just six self-made female billionaires on the planet under the age of 40. She's also the only one who's made the bulk of her fortune from a company she left years ago. Guo cofounded artificial intelligence firm Scale AI in 2016; after leaving the company in 2018, she astutely held on to most of her stake while pursuing her next startup. Guo still owns an estimated stake of just under 5% of Scale AI worth nearly $1.2 billion. Add in her other assets—including her holding in her second startup, Passes—and she's worth $1.25 billion, Forbes estimates. 'I don't really think about it much, it's a bit wild. Too bad it's all on paper haha,' says Guo via text in response to her new billionaire status. Getty Images Speaking of new books, billionaire philanthropist Melinda French Gates is out with a new memoir that shares previously untold stories that she hopes will provide guidance for others on how to make the most of life's transitions. French Gates spoke with ForbesWomen contributor Marianne Schnall about what she wants people to learn from this memoir. This week we released the 2025 Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list, a collection of founders and game-changers who are building the future while navigating a global trade war, a live war in Ukraine, and the whiplash of generative AI ripping up rules of work, creativity, and capitalism in real time. Europe's U30 Class of 2025 includes actors like Ella Purnell, social entrepreneur Lisa Oberaigner and healthcare founder Felicia von Reden; check out the full list here! Elon Musk has long claimed civilization will collapse unless we raise the birth rate. Meanwhile, his 'DOGE' group is slashing billions in funding for pregnant and nursing mothers and their children. It suspended more than $27 million in grants to women's health centers, laid off federal workers running programs for expecting mothers on Medicaid, and cancelled $1.6 million in funding for maternal and postpartum care at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA. Read the full Forbes analysis here. When Commissioner Cathy Engelbert called Paige Bueckers' name with the first overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft earlier this week, there wasn't a surprised face in the room. The announcement came on the heels of Bueckers' winning the NCAA tournament less than two weeks ago, making her the first player since Breanna Stewart in 2016 to go No. 1 and win the national championship in the same year. 1. If you aspire to small business ownership, skip the MBA. That degree will cost you $300,000 or more, counting lost earnings. Worth it, if you want to climb the corporate ladder. Not so much, if you're looking to buy or build most small businesses. Here's why. 2. Talk about the gender gap and boost a friend's competitive spirit. Despite being just as qualified as their male counterparts, women are significantly less likely to compete at work—whether that means applying for executive roles, asking for promotions, or negotiating higher pay. The result is a persistent gender competition gap that keeps women from advancing at the same rate as men. However, new research reveals that simply informing women of this gender gap boosts their willingness to compete. 3. Learn to navigate loss in the workplace. We don't often talk about grief in professional spaces, but we should. Whether you're managing a team or building a business, your ability to sit with hard emotions, tolerate ambiguity, and stay grounded in uncertainty is the exact skill set you need to lead with empathy, clarity, and integrity. A likely sign of today's uncertain times, a TikTok trend #probablyneededahug currently making the rounds is actually based on endocrine science showing that physical hugs lead to an increase in the so-called 'cuddle hormone.' Which of these 'happiness' hormones is most associated with warm, social feelings?
