Madam C.J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove, was America’s first female self-made millionaire. She pioneered a line of haircare and beauty products for people of color early in the 20th century, and the recent Netflix series Self Made details the story of this talented innovator and the challenges she overcame on the way to her success.
To accomplish her goals, she had to face overwhelming uncertainties. How would she finance her business? Would her partnerships fail? Would her products sell? Would ruthless competition and racism get in her way? Madame Walker’s future was far from certain when she began her journey, but that did not dissuade her.
