Spanx CEO gives employees $10K, first-class plane tickets after acquisition

ATLANTA (Gray News) - The CEO and founder of women’s clothing brand Spanx gave her employees a huge surprise after the company was acquired by alternative asset manager Blackstone.

Sara Blakely, who founded the company in 2000, announced to Spanx workers they would get two first-class plane tickets to anywhere in the world along with $10,000 in cash to spend on the trip.

“I really want every employee to celebrate this moment in their own way and create a memory that will last them a lifetime,” Blakely said on Instagram.

The announcement came after Blackstone bought a majority stake in the womenswear brand at a valuation of $1.2 billion.

Blakely will maintain a significant equity stake in the business and become executive chairwoman of a newly appointed board of directors.

The CEO started Spanx with $5,000 in savings and grew the company into a global success.

“This is a really important moment in time for female entrepreneurs,” Blakely said in a news release. “I started this company with no business experience and very little money, but I cared the most about the customer, and that gave me the courage to launch the company.

Spanx is the latest in Blackstone investments, as the firm is also backing several other female-led businesses like Bumble and Ancestry.com.