Rank
16
Chip Bergh
Levi Strauss CEO Chip Bergh poses for photos outside the New York Stock Exchange, . Levi Strauss & Co., which gave America its first pair of blue jeans, is going public for the second time. The 166-year-old company, which owns the Dockers and Denizen brands, previously went public in 1971, but the namesake founder's descendants took it private again in 1985. Photo Credit: Richard Drew/AP/ShutterstockRichard Drew—AP/Shutterstock
- TitleCEO
- AffiliationLevi Strauss
When Bergh took over in 2011, the denim maker was a shadow of its iconic former self. Bergh brought the cool back, marketing Levi’s as hip Americana with a celebrity pedigree. Internally, he revamped company tech and cleaned house; by the time the company went public in March, annual revenue had risen 26% on his watch. Bergh has also launched the Safer Tomorrow Fund, a pioneering effort to prevent gun violence.