Emma Grede: From College Dropout To One Of America's Most Successful Self-Made Women | Forbes

Emma Grede spent her childhood saving spare change to buy fashion magazines. Now she’s making millions helping one of America’s most famous families start and run their businesses.
With many of these businesses taking off, Grede has earned herself a spot alongside Kim and Kris on Forbes’ 2022 list of the richest self-made women in the U.S. Forbes estimates Grede to be worth $360 million due in large part to her nearly 8% stake in Skims, which was valued at $3.2 billion in January. The rest of her fortune comes from owning about 23% of Good American, 22% of Safely and less valuable stakes in Frame and Brady, companies cofounded by her husband; the latter is a collaboration with NFL legend Tom Brady.
Grede may best be known to people outside the fashion industry as a guest judge on Shark Tank. She says she took the role to help bring attention to underfunded Black-owned businesses. She is also chairwoman of the 15 Percent Pledge, a campaign started after George Floyd’s murder in May 2020 that asks retailers to commit 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned brands (pledge signees include Nordstrom, Sephora and Macy’s).
In this video, Grede sits with Forbes' Maneet Ahuja to discuss her ever-growing empire, what dropping out of college afforded her, and the power of small, black-owned businesses within the retail industry.
0:00 Introducing Emma Grede & Maneet Ahuja
0:06 The Early Days & Dropping Out Of College
1:28 Juggling Multiple Businesses
3:45 Grede's Tips For Entrepreneurs
5:47 On Building A Household Brand
6:53 Explaining The 15% Pledge
8:49 Grede's Involvement In Shark Tank
10:21 Failsafe Advice To Founders
11:22 Grede On The Most Overhyped & Undervalued Things In Retail Right Now
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[@o1oo1o11oo1]

Does anyone else feel like this interview was a little disrespectful, just because of the audio and how poor the audio is....this is Forbes, its not just a regular interview

[@jessicaT12345]

It seems like they were on location and Forbs found a cut on the side to do rolling interviews with people. I think they did the best the could with the level of activity and noise around them.

[@alexrodriguez5370]

She is a very impressive individual. Continued success to both of these intelligent women!

[@Pinkcrayon706]

Good for her for being in the right place at the right time! I just wish she would’ve touched on the importance influencer marketing since that has basically funded all 3 of her brands

[@monilark]

Kudos to her for her well-deserved success!

[@RR-et6zp]

yeah most women just wear a crop top n shorts

[@rosemaryfengchannel]

"You have to have the faith for your business. You have to love your business via ups and downs" which really cheer me up

[@accordingtodaye]

I love this and relate so much to this!!! especially the begging about dropping out and wanting to hit the ground running!

[@asam4600]

She is AWESOME!

[@noousha]

Amazing!! What a smart lady she is. Bravo👏🏼

[@Lilioideae]

Very inspiring and She is extremely gorgeous! Keep glowing and growing Emma!🙏🏾♥️💕

[@alp.9672]

Yea she won, looks and money.

[@RR-et6zp]

you're using the male metrics of success lol

[@alp.9672]

@@RR-et6zp huh?

[@RR-et6zp]

@@alp.9672 attraction is not symmetric, we care about very different things. A foreign concept to wester women

[@SuccessNothingLessco]

Great interview and love Emma story. Very gracious and transparent! I love good American and bought a few items from her

[@faeconomist]

Great piece, thanks Emma

[@cocowms7569]

Wonderful woman. Shes amazing in business!!

[@unburriedtalents599]

Inspiring! Thank you!

[@maroonhorizon1693]

she Is so inspiring. beaute and brains

[@krista700]

That was a great interview.

[@intellectualesemv]

If people spent their hard-earned money and invested in businesses of worth, non-profits and overall philanthropic pursuits instead of NFTs, we might have some movement toward better change

[@aggiealbert7087]

my thoughts exactly. Right it's really tough in my country Nigeria, zero opportunities and a whole lot of corruption. We really need help, I really need help

[@sbusisonhlabathi2894]

All I heard was" drop out of college" , jokes aside very informative and the point she made about learning by personal contact , personal involvement really touched me.

[@chapletgymworkout]

Thanks for sharing this video

[@nelliediemo]

I'm so inspired! the beginning doesn't determine the results!

[@loretagurakuqi6950]

Awesome! your potential seems limitless. I'm fascinated with investing but being a single mother and juggling all these things are quite difficult. How best can I start and what sector to engage in?

[@loretagurakuqi6950]

@Bryan wow! do you think you can give me some advice on how to invest in a healthy way as you are doing? please

[@loretagurakuqi6950]

@Bryan Thanks for sharing, just looked up on google and I'm super impressed with her credentials. I dropped a massage on her webpage and hope she replies soon

[@Benjaminmac]

Don’t wait until the market skyrocket again then you start biting your fingers wishing you made the decision to invest. bought my third house already, earn on a monthly through passive income and got 4 out of 5 goals, just hope it encourages someone that it doesn’t matter if you don’t have any of them right now, you can start TODAY regardless your age INVEST and change your future! Investing in the financial market is a grand choice I made.

[@patsnew8422]

Am not good doing it alone but getting into the market has been my best decision so far in my road to financial independence as it turns out to be lucrative for me and Personally I have multiple streams so I just enable the use of an investment advisor to navigate and secure the returns.

[@christopher8633]

Woah, Though this is the first time i would be reading comments about my financial advisor Ms. Melisa on KZbin comments and it is quite a memorable insight

[@angela3297]

Love you suit Emma🧡🧡🧡 and your product line! Keep up the great work🌟🌟👏🏼👏🏼🏆

[@Itslalajamera]

I already love her !!!!

[@muhammadgasymov6147]

she is on her way

[@alp.9672]

On her way? She rich af, married and kids. She already got there.

[@munix9351]

Not self made. Married the owner of her previous agency. They sold the business for millions. Started working with Khloe and built the good American brand. Capital investment and industry partnership. Floods of money played a part in the success of the brands she works with. She builds on existing brands who already have exposure. Don't be fooling these young people. Let me see you build a brand from scratch. No investment and no network. Tell everyone the equity funds and VC's that gave you money. Did you have to spend six years pitching? What did your pitch deck look like? Did you start the company with interns or did you have enough money to launch the business with experienced individuals?? Your owner already had a following of 50 million people on Instagram and a TV show of nearly 60 million of people. So stop this nonsense about you building brands on your own. Stop deceiving young girls. 🙄🙄🙄

[@margea.9506]

No one truly is self made

[@steamdecknation7908]

Thanks for this they make it seem like it is easy alone

[@bmurry2]

@@margea.9506 Rihanna ?

[@astbast1966]

@@margea.9506 That's just bs

[@lexl.5896]

Dismissing her success due to her decision to marry someone?

[@lexl.5896]

This interviewer seemed to really stress that she dropped out of college. Does anyone give Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg a hard time about this?

[@akeemhuggins4973]

Congratulations 🥳 🎉

[@vanilla-thesmartchristian7869]

Her accent 🔥

[@cageynerd]

I don't like the Kardashians but she's brilliant. Gives 100% more credibility to the three brands she works under. Brilliant. I agree with crypto -- never was a believer and I was right. Zero intrinsic value -- it can go to 0 and unwind like a short in less than an hour.

[@YasinNabi]

Making money is not just a science, but also an art. it is 30% science and 70% art. a fellow creator~~~~

[@aggiealbert7087]

i am a Nigerian currently in search of opportunities, things are really hard in my country right now and the youths need help. Please respond

[@CaptainPlanet007]

Self made, self paid and self laid! 😍

[@RR-et6zp]

you're using the male metrics of success lol + she is born with value

[@123_Ed_DPL]

Lol, it's so bad. The Theranos Elizabeth Holmes ghost linked to the 'college dropout self made young millionaire' will continue to haunt first impressions of those who now follow this path.

[@TheUncommonBeauty]

Inspirational!👏🏽

[@SoloMotivation]

*Don’t trust everything you see even salt looks like sugar!* Only for the wise

[@thaexception3406]

Seems like she is doing some great work. Cutie and great color suit on her too.

[@god563616]

This is incredible!!!! Inspired 100%!! But to make one thing clear ALOT of black businesses today sell products and say on their websites "FOR BLACK WOMEN", "FOR MELATONIN WOMEN" "FOR WOMEN OF COLOR" and the marketing is only blacks and no other race in ads which is fine but as a business owner and a consumer of color seeing that does make me feel that the product is EXCLUSIVELY made for blacks and if I feel this way I'm sure others do too just a note. If you're doing your business just for blacks fine but I personally wouldn't want to limit myself because everyone should experience your product and it's greatness.

[@Un_Autre]

Brilliant and gorgeous

[@Marcellagraham01]

Omg! I was here!

[@priscilamotte1224]

Life MBA 💥

[@LareinaP]

niiiicceee!

[@akeemhuggins4973]

GoD self made

[@peggymutabaruka241]

She must be grateful for the khadashian clan 👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾

[@Nats77777]

100% agree about bitcoin!

[@cryptidnomad3850]

Eh fashions come and go but style is forever

[@brittanymiller5153]

💜

[@PositiveWomenTV]

Wow

[@chiblackjesus]

i already thought she was smart from following the Kardashians but damn she's a force.

[@hangender]

I see. Imma drop out too.

[@kaiacrisp]

Amazing women!

[@Boo-jy5ju]

RIP Emma😩

[@maydaymemer4660]

Sigma female grindset

[@BlackCulturalPreservation2023]

Take 📝 Most millionaires and billionaires don’t have a college degree 😎🍿💰. However not every is built or determined enough to be their own boss.

[@thembinkosikissama8764]

Halalu'Emma

[@munix9351]

To all my young girls wanting to be "successful ". Remember the brands this lady is managing had an injection of nearly £150 Million pounds to help them launch the business at a fast rate. So ladies don't compare yourself to these brands!! Their story is much more complex!

[@thembinkosikissama8764]

Halala Ela

[@icewolfvlogs884]

She went to my secondary school

[@Renould2010]

Gorgeous, Love you, 😍👑❤️💯👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾👏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾, I would Love to work with you, 👑❤️😍

[@metagirl2573]

I wish I am amazing

[@africangirl189]

As soon as you make in life there is no story you can't sell cz money has power that's why they all have stories to tell lies , exaggerated lies cz people will just flow with it.... therefore I stopped listening to such stories you can be successful and don't tell us how struggled atleast we know people struggle but exaggerated struggles we don't want to hear.

[@nicolasm978]

She's 40???????????????

[@god563616]

Absolutely the new 30! 40 is better in today's society!

[@bbharim]

Being hard-working, thick-skinned, product-oriented (or customer-oriented) and innovative, doesn't translate to successful and rich. She avoids the real secrets.

[@makylavender]

I catch feelings way too easily🥵💔

[@godwindavidakhamere9154]

She knows her onion

[@alp.9672]

Damn I had no idea she was a college dropout

[@lu-bo6yh]

Her husband is also really rich

[@alp.9672]

@@lu-bo6yh Are you shocked? Boss Babe like this usually marry other rich men or they just stay single.

[@maroonhorizon1693]

@@alp.9672 that is why they are boss babes :) very inspiring

[@hussienalsafi1149]

😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎

[@nusratafrin6207]

Interned at Gucci 🤓

[@thembinkosikissama8764]

HalaluYah

[@lucygabrielle5112]

If you’re not ready to start making profits then you should at this moment cease trading because as inexperienced as you are, you’ll end up losing all your funds. Get with a certified professional to assist you in profit making my recommendation will be Mr John darry he’s the very best.

[@lucygabrielle5112]

On telegram

[@lucygabrielle5112]

Johndarry

[@Ashleyunfiltered]

Yea I don’t think she’s self made considering she partnered with millionaires and billionaires who could invest in the company’s … she just does the work really but she didn’t start these brands .. kind of disappointed cause she’s not self made

[@cryptoclique8234]

Nothing! We’re just a group of same minded friends who invest in crypto and has been doing that successfully with a lot of profits made with the help of pro expert Mr john darry. We call ourself the crypto clique. Thanks for all you do for us John!

[@cryptoclique8234]

On telegram

[@cryptoclique8234]

Johndarry

[@Boo-jy5ju]

She looks like she ate Emma!

[@regees]

like me no education and burning up

[@jordanrugz2999]

She's British...

[@Tiff-vi9kx]

But she works and lives in LA so… yeah she’s an American entrepreneur.

[@Countcho]

People immigrate

[@romelllewis8195]

@@Countcho still british

[@edwinbrace4681]

@@Tiff-vi9kx She identifies as a British citizen though

[@Tiff-vi9kx]

@@edwinbrace4681 but she’s an American entrepreneur in that she runs businesses in the US.

[@monde1250]

She is not this black. Is the skin tone a look for the interview?

[@thembinkosikissama8764]

HalaluYah