Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova is a worldclass tennis champion author entrepreneur and founder of candy line Sugarpova Her passion for craftsmanship and detail is reflected in everything she doesboth on and off the tennis court After moving to the United States from Russia at age 6 to pursue her tennis career Sharapova turned professional at age 14 She won Wimbledon at age 17the first of her five career Grand Slam titlesand has been ranked No 1 in the world by the WTA on five separate occasions Sharapova was also the seventh female player in the open era to complete the career Grand Slam and the first female athlete to serve as the Olympic flag bearer for the Russian delegation She chronicles much of her tennis career in her 2017 New York Times bestseller Unstoppable My Life so Far Outside of tennis Sharapova is an active founder CEO and business investor In 2012 she founded her premium candy line Sugarpova and has artfully designed and scaled all aspects of the company Sharapova oversees the daytoday decisionmaking and growth of the businessfrom creative branding and packaging to product RD and retail expansion She is also passionate about supporting the next generation of entrepreneursinvesting in several companies and participating in mentorship programs for women in business Most recently Sharapova mentored seven female business owners working across a wide range of industries through a program with the National Association of Women Business Owners NAWBO Sharapova has taken courses at Harvard Business School and is collaborating with architect Dan Meis on a new concept for boutique wellness centers Sharapova brings a creative and handson approach to all of her projects spanning tennis business design and more