While Sara Spencer Washington’s story is a typical entrepreneurial success story, there was nothing typical about Sara Spencer Washington.

She became one of the first African American women millionaires of the 20th Century by filling a gaping consumer need – beauty and cosmetic products for African American women.

Washington moved to Atlantic City in 1913 and opened her own beauty shop. She brought with her a formidable education including advanced chemistry studied at Columbia University and beauty culture studied in York, Pa.

Washington developed her own products and a specific system for using them. She worked in her shop by day, sold the products door-to-door at night and soon opened a beauty school where she taught her system to others. The beauty school expanded across the U.S. and around the world.

Each year, more than 25,000 students graduated from Washington’s schools and became entrepreneurs themselves, administering Washington’s beauty system, and selling her products door-to-door.

Washington made Atlantic City the site for her world headquarters and laboratory where more than 75 different products were developed and manufactured.

She was a committed philanthropist, and supported a multitude of charities.

When she died in 1953, Washington's enterprise was worth millions of dollars and employed some 500 full-time employees plus 45,000 door-to-door sales people.