William George Beers

Bette Nesmith Graham

Liquid Paper

Once a secretary and artist, Bette used her own kitchen blender to mix up her first batch of liquid paper, the substance used to cover up mistakes made on paper.
Bette Nesmith Graham started the Mistake Out Company (later renamed Liquid Paper). By 1967, it had grown into a million dollar business. She later sold her corporation for $47.5 million!
She was a single mother and didn't have money to perfect her product. She educated herself on how to patent it, how to run a business, and how to promote and sell her product.