When I was in 7th grade, I got an English assignment to read an autobiography of someone famous and write them a letter. I chose the newly released book #GIRLBOSS by former Nasty Gal CEO Sophia Amorouo, and to this day #GIRLBOSS remains one of my favorite books and a continual source of empowerment. Amorouo’s story is unique because she created a brand out of truly nothing, utilizing her own skills and alot of hustle. She is an inspiration for young girls who crave the excitement and ingenuity of the fashion world - specifically the business side of fashion - but do not have the financial means to do so. Completely self-made, Amoruso is the epitome of the phrase “you can do anything you set your mind to.”

 

The first piece of writing on her website reads:

 

“If you’re here, you’re probably a founder, side hustler, or entrepreneurially curious. Welcome to the kick in the butt you’ve never wanted but always needed. No frills just thrills. Let’s do this.”

 

Amoruso has complete authority to say what she says. Starting as an eBay store, she launched Nasty Gal Vintage in 2006, where it grew into a phenomenon due to Amoruso’s creativity and uniqueness when it came to vintage clothing. As a result of this success, she developed Nasty Gal, a popular clothing e-commerce site for women. From 2009 to 2011, Nasty Gal scaled from $1,000,000 in revenue to $28,000,000. Amoruso was named by Forbes as one of the richest self-made women, and a visionary in her creations.

 

Aside from her book, #GIRLBOSS, Amoruso also launched Girl Boss Media. It started as a podcast and a book and developed into a platform for empowering girls and women to be their best selves. An article written by medium.com says Sophia “built an empire centered on women empowerment.” Her story was later developed into a Netflix series also by the name “Girl Boss.” While the show only released one season, the principle behind it of a strong female lead made waves in the entertainment industry.

 

Currently, Amoruso has developed an online course titled Business Class that targets young entrepreneurs who want to enter the business world and learn the intricacies behind creating entrepreneurial success. Forbes published an article in December of 2020 outlining the workings of this class and what to expect. In this course, there are 5 topics addressed: Identifying Your Strengths, Building a Brand, Connecting With Your Customer, Growing Your Team, and Legal & Finance.

 

Amoruso’s knowledge about the inner workings of running a fashion brand come from her own success and downfalls. Nasty Gal went bankrupt due to many factors, several of which involved the lack of proper business management tools. Now, Amoruso wants to enable future generations of women to launch their own companies with the means necessary for success. As a truly self-made businesswomen, her story is one to tell the future generation of girls. We can all take a page from her book.