Les Wexner

Leslie Herbert Wexner (born September 8, 1937 (age 88)) is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist best known as the founder of The Limited in 1963, which grew into L Brands (now Bath & Body Works, Inc.), a retail conglomerate he established in Columbus, Ohio, with a single store that evolved into a global empire including Victoria's Secret (acquired in 1982), Bath & Body Works, and Pink.

Wexner served as chairman and CEO of L Brands for over five decades, growing it into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise before stepping down in 2020 and assuming the role of chairman emeritus.

Leslie Herbert Wexner was born on September 8, 1937, in Dayton, Ohio, to Harry and Bella Wexner, Russian-Jewish immigrants who had settled in the United States and pursued modest livelihoods in the retail sector. His parents, after gaining experience in major department stores, opened a small clothing store named Leslie's in downtown Columbus, Ohio, naming it after their son, which provided the family with a basic but precarious income amid slim profit margins and limited luxuries. The family's working-class circumstances instilled an early appreciation for resourcefulness, as evidenced by the parents' first vacation—a simple outing during a Columbus blizzard—highlighting their frugal approach to life.

This immersion in the family's retail operations exposed Wexner to the inefficiencies of traditional small-store models, fostering a mindset oriented toward practical improvements in efficiency and turnover, though he initially chafed against his parents' established methods. The modest Jewish immigrant household environment, marked by parental perseverance in a competitive field, cultivated a resilient, hands-on approach that prioritized tangible results over complacency.

Wexner and Koppel's partnership has extended to shared philanthropic interests, including support for Jewish community programs and educational initiatives, though Koppel has maintained no formal role in Wexner's commercial enterprises such as L Brands. This separation underscores a consistent boundary between personal life and business operations, contributing to the enduring stability of their 30-plus-year marriage as of 2025.