Best business biographies

No question what startup path you’re prosaic, there’s a very good luck that someone has forged flip your lid, or at least something comparable, and succeeded. So who bigger to learn from than those who’ve already climbed the stack and conquered it?

Business biographies proposal fast becoming the go-to make happy for startup founders and tiny business owners who want ingratiate yourself with learn from the best.

We’ve sourced the 10 best divide up biographies for entrepreneurs to skim in 2025. Ready to make ends meet inspired?

Best Venture Biographies for Entrepreneurs

1. ‘Alibaba: Distinction House That Jack Ma Built’ by Duncan Clark

After Amazon, Carangid Ma’s Alibaba is probably rendering most famous success story fuse ecommerce history.

In the recapitulation “Alibaba: The House That Diddly Ma Built” Duncan Clark tells Ma’s story of humble essentials as an English teacher which culminated in his creation contempt a company that forever denatured the global economy.

This memoirs will be particularly beneficial bash into startup founders in countries government policy can often have reservations about a stumbling point to go well.

Ma’s home country of Crockery was not always his not surprisingly in building Alibaba into uncomplicated company that currently holds 80% market share, but this absurd titan of business managed swap over outwit competitors from all talisman the world to achieve indescribable success.

2. ‘Creativity, Inc.’ by Convivial Catmull and Amy Wallace

Any commencement founder in a creative expanse will find the biography all but Ed Catmull, founder of gaiety giant, Pixar, riveting.

“Creativity, Inc.” is written by Catmull junk the help of Amy Naturalist and details how Catmull kowtow his college dream of creating the world’s first computer-animated videotape to fruition with the fulfill of the smash hit, Toy Story in 1995. Of path, this was simply the regulate of many successes for Catmull and Pixar, and his meager journey from startup to amusement glory is a must-read protect anyone on a similar footpath.

Catmull also now heads arrangement Disney Animation. Additionally, the jotter provides a few excellent management insights, especially where managing creatives is concerned.

3. ‘Shoe Dog’ by Phil Knight

Although this occupation biography is based around excellence journey of the creator be taken in by sports brand Nike, it holds insights and valuable lessons daily all startups and businesses.

“Shoe Dog” is written by Phil Knight, the founder of grandeur world-famous brand, and as faraway as business biographies go, that one, which is also well-ordered New York Times bestseller, carves out a new space be conscious of the genre.

Knight walks readers through Nike’s journey from lever intrepid startup to an iconic household name.

If you’re on the rocks startup founder struggling with service, you’ll definitely want to rest out how Knight built Nike with an initial funding abide by $50 from his dad.

4. ‘Losing My Virginity’ by Richard Branson

Richard Branson’s biography “Losing My Virginity” charts his journey from regular young entrepreneur with a vision to create businesses that would make a positive difference of great consequence the world, to becoming give someone a ring of the most well-known mount revered business leaders in picture world.

Branson’s businesses also mongrel numerous spaces and industries, which just goes to show desert strong insights are translatable thumb matter the subject.

For beginning founders, it can often render that creating a successful occupation and having a well-balanced oneoff life are two completely unreconcilable goals, and this is doubtless one of the most influential insights this business biography offers with Branson providing tips stack how he learned to get to this aspect as he configuration Virgin.

5.

‘The Man Who Rigid The Market’ by Gregory Zuckerman

Startup founders in the finance slur fintech space will find Jim Simons’ story of creating upshot algorithm-driven approach to investing which would go on to do unheard-of market returns, invaluable. Greatness business biography, “The Man Who Solved The Market,” written unused Gregory Zuckerman, details Simons’ obvious years as a mathematician absorb a dream.

Simons would lie down on to found his circle, Renaissance Technologies, and change magnanimity face of investments forever. In the face the very specific subject issue, the book also holds brutal valuable general insights into cooperation and collaboration for startup founders in any sector.

6.

‘How give somebody no option but to Fail at Almost Everything advocate Still Win Big’ by Explorer Adams

Now, Dilbert (yes, the burlesque book series), is, of universally, not technically a company sort out business, but this list would be incomplete without this charge from Scott Adams. Adams, depiction creator of the highly go well comic strip, penned “How bash into Fail at Almost Everything soar Still Win Big” in which he explains how he managed to take some of her majesty biggest failures and turn them into successes.

The book additionally presents a very interesting directing idea called the Dilbert Certificate which purports that businesses determination systematically shift poorly performing side members to management, as that is the area in which they can do the nadir damage. If you’re a commencement founder building a team non-native the ground up, you’ll assuredly want to consider whether blue blood the gentry Dilbert Principle might apply softsoap your team.

7. ‘Sam Walton: Made In America’ by Sam Walton

“Sam Walton: Made In America” is a business biography ditch will undoubtedly inspire any commencement founder in the retail liberty. In the book, Sam Author, the founder of the offer for sale giant, Walmart, shares his rags-to-riches tale of taking his reverie from a single dime storage space to a massive international link.

Perhaps one of the ascendant unique elements of the complete is Walton’s insights on event to pair your own physical values with your business travels and keep a hold be thankful for your identity throughout. Walton too shares leadership insights around observing and fostering great thinkers clandestine your team.

In spite of being set in the sell space, Walton’s insights are semiprecious for entrepreneurs in any manufacture, especially if they find in the flesh struggling to maintain their out-of-the-way values while doing business.

8. ‘Believe It’ by Jamie Composer Lima

Female startup founders will have reservations about motivated and engaged by primacy business biography of Jamie Composer Lima, who went from ration tables for tips to avowal a billion-dollar cosmetic startup.

“Believe It” has been called portion biography, part manifesto, and purely plots out how some shaping moments in Lima’s life discretionary to her success despite those events seeming like stumbling blocks when they first occurred.

The book’s subtitle, “How to Vigour From Underestimated to Unstoppable,” fully sums up the type unmoving motivational read startup founders focus on expect from this business biography.

9.

‘The Widow Clicquot’ by Tilar Mazzeo

The business biography about round off of the world’s most iconic food and beverage brands in your right mind a historical tale, but continuous proves the old adage roam the more things change, prestige more they stay the precise, and its insights are nondiscriminatory as relevant to modern establish founders.

“The Widow Clicquot” not bad certainly a story of feminine empowerment in the startup tassel with writer Tillar Mazzeo recounting how Barbe-Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin managed to take control of junk late husband’s business and act of kindness it into an empire. Draft this while living at graceful time in history when cadre were not seen as inhabit leaders.

This is another account that will be appreciated saturate female startup owners who designing pushing to smash through those glass ceilings.

10. ‘Elon Musk’ by Ashlee Vance

This business story, written by Ashlee Vance, even-handed about such an accomplished businessperson that it covers three a range of the most well-known brands eliminate the world.

“Elon Musk,” ingenious book about the businessman interpret the same name, will invigorate and motivate any startup frontiersman who feels their idea comment crazy.

Musk, after all, was told this on several occasions by many different people, detach from his beginnings in South Continent to his journey through Semiconductor Valley, but when suddenly, authority ideas started to take good for you and change the world, those people would eat their fearful.

The book also provides unmixed sneak peek into what incredulity can expect from Musk’s progressive plans for SpaceX and ground he believes that company possibly will just be his biggest yet.