Who are the richest women in the South? These 5 are worth a combined $141.9 billion
Forbes just released the World’s Billionaires List and there are several Southern women who appear on this exhaustive list. In fact, there are two ladies who broke the top 50 billionaires in the world.
The list has thousands of billionaires from across the globe, but it’s always nice to know the South has some representation among the world’s most successful and wealthy.
To get a sense of the kind of wealth one must have to be on the list, Elon Musk was second at a net worth of $195 billion and Taylor Swift came in at 2,545th with just $1 billion.
21. Alice Walton - $72.3 billion
Coming in at 21st on the list is the Walmart heiress, Alice Walton. She is daughter of Walmart founder, Sam Walton, but worked professionally as a money manager. Alice’s cousins, Ann Walton and Nancy Walton Laurie are also on the list, $10.1B and $10B respectively. The whole Walton family is famously from Arkansas.
35. Jacqueline Mars - $38.5 billion
Mars is the granddaughter of Frank C. Mars, founder of the food production company Mars, Incorporated and hails from Virginia. Jacqueline joined the Mars company in 1982 to work as the food product group president. Her nieces, Marijke, Pamela and Valerie share the 242nd spot on the list.
180. Trudy Cathy White - $11.2 billion
If you’ve ever had a chicken sandwich in the South, you probably recognize her name. Trudy is from Eatonton, Georgia, but she started working at Chick-fil-A at 19 in a store in Birmingham, Alabama. She currently has her own podcast, “Along The Way.” Her brothers are also billionaires. Bubba Cathy is 69th and Dan Cathy is 70th.
188. Melinda French Gates - $11.1 billion
Melinda is a philanthropist, activist and benefactor for several foundations that serve women and girls and is often ranked one of the most powerful women in the world. She also just happens to be from Texas. Her former husband, Bill Gates, is co-founder of Microsoft.
332. Tamara Gustavson -$ 7.8 billion
Tamara is the largest shareholder of the company of the Public Storage Company. She is the daughter of co-founder and chairman, B. Wayne Hughes. She and her husband own Spendthrift Farms, a thoroughbred horse farm in Kentucky, that has produced 10 Kentucky Derby winners.
This story was originally published April 4, 2024 at 4:12 PM with the headline "Who are the richest women in the South? These 5 are worth a combined $141.9 billion."
