Forbes - USA (2019-06-30)

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JUNE 30, 20 19 FORBES.COM

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41. MARY WEST
    $530 million
    AGE: 73 RESIDENCE: San Diego
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 8
    She and her husband Gary’s Thoroughbred Maximum Secu-
    rity finished first in the Kentucky Derby but was disqualified
    for interfering with other horses. State regulators denied their
    appeal. The couple’s fortune comes from telecom firm West
    Corp., which Mary founded in 1986. They sold most of their
    stake 20 years later for $1.4 billion. West and her husband
    have since given millions to improve healthcare for seniors.


42. CAROLYN RAFAELIAN
    $520 million
    AGE: 52 RESIDENCE: Providence
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 7
    Her core business, spiritual bangle brand Alex and Ani, has
    been affected by the recent struggles facing brick-and-mortar
    retailers. The company has been putting more emphasis on
    direct-to-consumer sales through its website and boutiques.
    Rafaelian also owns over 30 properties, most in her native
    Rhode Island, and has invested in Big3, a 3-on-3 basketball
    league made up primarily of former NBA players; it was
    cofounded by rapper and actor Ice Cube.


43. VICTORIA ZOELLNER
    $500 million
    AGE: 76 RESIDENCE: Alpine, New Jersey
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 8
    The former Wall Street analyst started hedge fund Alpine
    Associates with her husband Robert (d. 2014) in 1976. She
    focused on merger arbitrage, while Robert oversaw the
    trading activities. Today the firm, which was started with
    $400,000 from Zoellners’ friends, family and associates,
    manages $2 billion in assets. Zoellner is chairperson.
    44. SUSAN WOJCICKI
    $490 million
    AGE: 50 RESIDENCE:
    Los Altos, California
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 6
    YouTube’s CEO and the oldest
    sister of 23andMe founder
    Anne Wojcicki (No. 33) has
    been fielding criticism over
    the circulation of harmful
    content and misinformation
    on the popular video site.
    In late January, YouTube,
    which recently hit 2 billion
    monthly users, announced
    it would crack down on the
    spread of such information
    by tweaking its algorithm to
    help avoid recommending
    that content. Wojcicki sits on
    the board of Salesforce.
    45. VERA WANG
    $460 million
    AGE: 70
    RESIDENCE: New York City
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 7
    From Serena Williams (No.
    80) to Ariana Grande, Wang
    continues to dress some of the
    world’s most powerful women.
    (Grande wore a custom gown
    with an allover print of the
    Sistine Chapel to last year’s
    Met Gala.) The daughter of a
    wealthy Chinese American ty-
    coon, Wang had the idea to
    start a business in 1989 while
    planning her own wedding.
    She thought the gowns at up-
    scale stores like Bergdorf
    Goodman were pricey and not
    sophisticated enough.
    46. CÉLINE DION
    $450 million
    AGE: 51 RESIDENCE: Las Vegas
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 8
    The “My Heart Will Go On”
    singer seems to have simi-
    larly eternal commercial ap-
    peal. Since 2003, she’s been
    cashing in on her live shows
    at The Colosseum at Cae-
    sars Palace in Las Vegas; her
    latest production, launched
    in 2011, is closing this June.
    No matter: She’s been gross-
    ing seven-figure sums on
    arena gigs around the world
    between breaks in her Las
    Vegas schedule. She also has
    endorsement deals, includ-
    ing a recently announced one
    to become a spokesperson for
    L’Oréal Paris.
    47. JUDY SHEINDLIN
    $440 million
    AGE: 76 RESIDENCE: Naples, Florida
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 8
    Daytime TV’s favorite adjudicator has been tough-talking on
    screen for 23 seasons. As Judge Judy, she’s earned $47 million
    (pretax) a year since 2012 for her eponymous show. A shrewd
    dealmaker, she sold the rights to her extensive library of
    episodes for an estimated $100 million in 2017.
    47. JAMIE KERN LIMA
    $440 million
    AGE: 41 RESIDENCE: Los Angeles
    SELF-MADE SCORE: 9
    A former morning news
    anchor, she pocketed at least
    $400 million when she sold
    her IT Cosmetics to L’Oréal
    for $1.2 billion in 2016. She
    remains co-CEO of the brand,
    which has launched 431
    products since Kern Lima
    first started mixing makeup
    to help hide her rosacea. Up
    next: IT is moving into new
    markets like Spain, Belgium
    and the Netherlands later
    this year. With some of her
    cash proceeds, Kern Lima
    has also invested in more
    than a dozen mostly woman-
    founded businesses.