The 10 Greatest Entrepreneurs

There is a harsh truth that any small business owner has to face. Even in the best of times, the vast majority of small businesses fail. Therefore, when companies are successful and business empires are grown, the entrepreneurs behind the success are often seen as larger than life and captivating. After all, when so many small businesses fail, what made theirs succeed?

For some, it’s a reliance on patience, determination, and feedback from close partners. For others, it’s determination, superior knowledge, and perseverance. For almost all, it’s being bold, taking risks, and trying things that have never been done.

There is no all-encompassing list of the greatest entrepreneurs, as many talented businessmen and businesswomen have contributed to our economy and society today. In this article, we’ll look at 10 entrepreneurs who not only succeeded at what they did but built vast business empires that often spanned several industries.

Who Are the 10 Greatest Entrepreneurs?

You may have heard of today’s entrepreneurs due to their frequent appearances in the news, but the history books are where most are found. These businesspeople changed their industries and culture, built vast wealth, and created innovations that continue to influence our lives today.

1. John D. Rockefeller

John D. Rockefeller was the richest man by most measures in his time. He made his fortune by squeezing out efficiencies through horizontal and vertical integrations that made Standard Oil synonymous with monopoly, and the price of fuel dropped drastically for the everyday consumer. The government broke up Standard Oil for good in 1911.

Rockefeller’s hand can still be seen in companies like Exxon and Conoco, which profited from the R&D and infrastructure they received as their piece of the breakup.

Rockefeller retired at the turn of the century and devoted the rest of his life to philanthropy. More than 80 years after his death, Rockefeller remains one of the great figures of Wall Street.

2. Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie loved efficiency—his mills were always on the leading edge of technology. Carnegie combined his superior processes with an excellent sense of timing, snapping up steel assets in every market downturn.

Like Rockefeller, Carnegie spent his years giving away the fortune he spent most of his life building. Although he isn’t as well-remembered as some of his contemporaries, Andrew Carnegie’s legacy is strong and moralistic.

3. Thomas Edison

There is no doubt that Edison was brilliant; however, it was his business sense, not his talent as an inventor, that clearly showed his intelligence. Edison took innovation and made it the process now known as research and development. He sold his services to many other companies before striking out on his own to create most of the electrical power infrastructure of the United States.

Edison is one of the founders of General Electric (GE)—the original company was Edison General Electric. Although Edison had far more patents than he did corporate ties, it is the companies that will carry his legacy into the future.

4. Henry Ford

Henry Ford did not invent the automobile. He was one of a group working on motorcars and was arguably not even the best of them. However, these competitors were selling their cars for a price that made the car a luxury of the rich.

Ford put America—not just the rich—on wheels and unleashed the power of mass production. His Ford Model T was the first car to cater to most Americans.

Ford’s progressive labor policies and his constant drive to make each car better, faster, and cheaper made certain that his workers and everyday Americans would think of a Ford (F) when they shopped for a car.

5. Oprah Winfrey

One of the richest and most influential women, Oprah Winfrey’s career started as a news anchor and blossomed into a full-blown entrepreneur. Her show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” was syndicated nationally in 1986. It became the highest-rated U.S. talk show and earned Oprah several Emmy Awards. Oprah has also starred in films, including leading roles and as a voice actress in several animated films.

Oprah is a pioneer in entrepreneurial endeavors, breaking into an on-air book club in 1996 and launching O, the Oprah Magazine in 2000. She co-founded Oxygen Media, a cable television for women, and debuted a channel on satellite radio in 2006. Most notably, Oprah created Oprah’s Angel Network, sponsoring charitable endeavors around the world. Not only has Oprah paved the way for many businesswomen, but she consistently demonstrates how to use entrepreneurial power for good.

6. Sam Walton

Sam Walton picked a market no one wanted and then instituted a distribution system no one had tried in retail. By building warehouses between several of his Walmart stores, Walton was able to save on shipping and deliver goods to busy stores much faster. By adding a state-of-the-art inventory control system, Walton lowered his cost margins well below those of his direct competitors. Then, rather than booking all of the savings as profits, Walton passed them onto the consumer.

By offering consistently low prices, Walton attracted more and more business wherever he set up shop. Eventually, Walton took Walmart to the big city to match margins with the big boys—and the beast of Bentonville has never looked back.

7. Charles Schwab

Charles Schwab, usually known as “Chuck,” took Merrill’s love of the little guy and belief in volume over price into the Internet Age. When May Day opened the doors for negotiated fees—all broker trades had previously been the same price—Schwab was among the first to offer a discount brokerage for the individual investor.

To do this, he trimmed the research staff, analysts, and advisors and expected investors to empower themselves when making an order.

From a bare-bones base, Schwab added services that mattered to his customers, like 24-hour service and more branch locations.

Merrill brought the individual investors back to the market, but Chuck Schwab made it cheap enough for them to stay.

8. Tom Love

If you’ve driven along an American highway, chances are you saw one of the 600+ Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores scattered across 42 U.S. states. Known for its 24-hour access, restaurant offerings, and travel items, Tom Love built an empire with over 38,000 employees working in convenience stores across the country. In addition, Love employs workers at their corporate office in Oklahoma City.

A member of the Chickasaw Nation, Love and his wife Judy leased their first gas station in Watonga, Oklahoma, in the 1960s. In 2019, Love was inducted into the tribe’s hall of fame, noting that “the same love and qualities that define Love’s Travel Stops define the Chickasaw Nation.”

9. John Johnson

Born in Arkansas in 1918, John Johnson is regarded as one of the most influential African American publishers in American history. After finding success with his 1942 launch of Negro Digest, Johnson published Ebony, the most popular African American magazine in the world since its launch in 1945. Six years later, Johnson launched the largest weekly African American news magazine, Jet.

Johnson didn’t stop at publishing, though. He eventually owned Fashion Fair Cosmetics, the largest black-owned cosmetics company in the world. He eventually became chairman and CEO of Supreme Life Insurance, as well. In 1996, President Bill Clinton awarded Johnson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the nation.

10. Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs co-founded Apple, one of the only tech companies to offer a significant challenge to Microsoft’s dominance. In contrast to Gates’ methodical expansion, Jobs’ influence on Apple was one of creative bursts. Apple was a failing computer company when Jobs returned to it and made it into one of the top tech companies in the world.

The iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad are the engines of growth that propelled Apple toward the once unassailable Microsoft.

The Bottom Line

These 10 entrepreneurs succeeded by giving customers something better, faster, and cheaper than others. Because entrepreneurship is so diverse, and everyone’s beginnings are different, entrepreneurs can take many different avenues to succeed.