# Bethenny Frankel
**Bethenny Frankel** is an American reality television personality, entrepreneur, and author who became one of the original cast members of Bravo's *The Real Housewives of New York City* in 2008 and built the Skinnygirl lifestyle brand out of that television exposure. She first appeared on television as the runner-up on *The Apprentice: Martha Stewart* in 2005, then parlayed reality fame into consumer products, publishing, broadcasting, and philanthropy.[1](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/21/perfect-pitching) • [2](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a36124918/bethenny-frankel-interview-2021/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Television debut | Runner-up on *The Apprentice: Martha Stewart* (2005); Martha Stewart declined to hire her, telling her, "Bethenny, you're a showoff."[1](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/21/perfect-pitching) |
| RHONY tenure | Original cast member of *The Real Housewives of New York City* from 2008, on seasons one through three and again seasons seven through eleven.[2](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a36124918/bethenny-frankel-interview-2021/) |
| Signature product | Ready-to-drink Skinnygirl Margarita, launched in 2009 as the ready-to-drink market was beginning to expand.[3](https://www.inc.com/magazine/202203/michael-callahan/bethenny-frankel-skinnygirl-margarita-real-housewives.html) |
| Sale of Skinnygirl Cocktails | Partnership with Beam Suntory in 2011 extended the brand into wines, flavored vodkas, and ready-to-drink cocktails.[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) The beverage brand was sold for a reported $100 million.[5](https://www.inc.com/ashley-couto/bethenny-frankel-tiktok-side-hustle-skinnygirl-business-advice-content-business/91321089) |
| Philanthropy | Founder of B Strong: Disaster Relief with Global Empowerment Mission; the initiative marshaled over 10 million pounds of aid, primarily for Puerto Rico, and raised approximately $1.25 million in cash cards plus over $20 million worth of relief supplies.[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) |
| Later ventures | Guest shark on ABC's *Shark Tank*; CNBC's *Money Court* with Kevin O'Leary; the iHeartMedia podcast *Just B With Bethenny Frankel* (2020).[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) • [6](https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/bethenny-frankel-ap-q-a-new-york-kevin-o-leary-b2246800.html) • [2](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a36124918/bethenny-frankel-interview-2021/) |
| Recent business | Social media side hustles generating $20 million in annual revenue, per an Inc. profile of her content business.[5](https://www.inc.com/ashley-couto/bethenny-frankel-tiktok-side-hustle-skinnygirl-business-advice-content-business/91321089) |
## Television career
Frankel's first television exposure came on *The Apprentice: Martha Stewart*, where she proved herself a capable businessperson by creating an ad spot for an airline and organizing a charity event before finishing as runner-up.[1](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/21/perfect-pitching) Her route onto *The Real Housewives of New York City* ran through a chance meeting: while working as a private chef in New York, she encountered Jill Zarin at a Hamptons event, and Zarin steered her toward the producers of a planned show called "Manhattan Moms." Frankel auditioned despite not being a mom. [Andy Cohen](https://www.edgepedia.org/andy-cohen), the executive producer of the *Real Housewives* franchise, recalled her first casting tape favorably, noting she was a natural-foods chef with a New Yorker's drive.[1](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/21/perfect-pitching) Frankel herself has said Andy Cohen and Bravo initially did not want her because she had already appeared on a reality show and the franchise wanted people without a preexisting profile.[7](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/bethenny-frankel-why-andy-cohen-didnt-want-me-on-rhony/)
**Spin-offs and other series.** Her 2010 spin-off *Bethenny Getting Married*, renamed *Bethenny Ever After* for its following seasons, documented her marriage; a nationally syndicated daytime talk show, *Bethenny*, lasted one season; and the 2018 Bravo series *Bethenny & Fredrik*, which she created, produced, and starred in, followed real estate projects with [Fredrik Eklund](https://www.edgepedia.org/fredrik-eklund).[2](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a36124918/bethenny-frankel-interview-2021/) • [8](https://www.bravotv.com/bethenny-and-fredrik) She left the show in 2010, returned for season 7, and exited again in 2019.[9](https://time.com/3525930/bethenny-frankel-real-housewives/) • [10](https://time.com/6174910/bethenny-frankel-ukraine-disaster-relief/) Her most recent Bravo-adjacent series was *The Big Shot With Bethenny* in 2021.[11](https://www.cinemablend.com/television/real-housewives-rumor-claims-bethenny-frankel-begging-return-bravo)
## Skinnygirl and business ventures
Frankel worked as a natural-foods chef and private cook, including for the actor [Denis Leary](https://www.edgepedia.org/denis-leary), before her television break, and wrote an anti-diet diet book called *Naturally Thin* during that period.[1](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/21/perfect-pitching) With an investor in the liquor veteran David Kanbar, she launched the ready-to-drink Skinnygirl Margarita in 2009, timed to the rapid growth of the ready-to-drink cocktail market.[3](https://www.inc.com/magazine/202203/michael-callahan/bethenny-frankel-skinnygirl-margarita-real-housewives.html) In 2011 she partnered with Beam Suntory to grow the portfolio into wines, flavored vodkas, and ready-to-drink cocktails.[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) A Money profile reported that an excised portion of her Bravo contract, now known as the "Bethenny clause," made her Skinnygirl fortune more lucrative than it otherwise would have been.[12](https://money.com/bethenny-frankel/?amp=true) Roughly a decade after selling the beverage brand for a reported $100 million, she began building content businesses on TikTok, which Inc. reported were generating $20 million in annual revenue; Frankel has said her influencer work is now more lucrative than the Skinnygirl sale was.[5](https://www.inc.com/ashley-couto/bethenny-frankel-tiktok-side-hustle-skinnygirl-business-advice-content-business/91321089)
Forbes named her one of its Top 100 Most Powerful Celebrities, and a 2011 Forbes cover story called her the most well-known entrepreneur on television by making her business everyone's business.[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) • [9](https://time.com/3525930/bethenny-frankel-real-housewives/)
## Publishing and broadcasting
Frankel is a multiple *New York Times* bestselling author whose books include *Naturally Thin*, *A Place of Yes*, and *Business Is Personal: The Truth About What It Takes to Be Successful While Staying True to Yourself* (Hachette Go, 2022), in which she argues that persistence and hard work matter more than anything else and that business success depends on living one's values.[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) • [13](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9780306827037) In 2022 she joined [Kevin O'Leary](https://www.edgepedia.org/kevin-oleary) as co-host of the CNBC series *Money Court*, where the two heard small-business disputes on pricing, work culture, and expansion and proposed solutions.[6](https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/bethenny-frankel-ap-q-a-new-york-kevin-o-leary-b2246800.html) She signed a multiyear deal with iHeartMedia to host the podcast *Just B With Bethenny Frankel*, which debuted in 2020 with celebrity interviews; in July 2026 she announced she had ended the show and exited the contract, saying the format felt like a shackle even as iHeart had been a strong partner.[2](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a36124918/bethenny-frankel-interview-2021/) • [14](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/why-bethenny-frankel-stopped-recording-her-podcast/)
## Philanthropy
**B Strong.** Frankel founded B Strong, a crisis-intervention initiative launched in partnership with Dress for Success that provides real-time emergency assistance to women in crisis, and separately established B Strong: Disaster Relief with Global Empowerment Mission, distributing gift cards, bank cards, and critical supplies after natural disasters in Texas, Florida, Mexico, Northern California, Dominica, the U.S. [Virgin Islands](https://www.edgepedia.org/virgin-islands), and New York City.[4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) She traveled to Puerto Rico in 2017 after [Hurricane Maria](https://www.edgepedia.org/hurricane-maria); the effort marshaled over 10 million pounds of aid, coordinated more than 55 private charter planes, and drew contributions from over 10,000 individuals, companies, and foundations.[10](https://time.com/6174910/bethenny-frankel-ukraine-disaster-relief/) • [4](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel) TIME profiled the initiative as a $100 million disaster-relief effort built on her business methods, and Frankel described the work as an application of entrepreneurial skill: organization, immediacy, and crisis management.[10](https://time.com/6174910/bethenny-frankel-ukraine-disaster-relief/)
## Recent years
After leaving RHONY, Frankel relocated from New York to Florida in 2025 for personal and professional reasons.[15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCgmnoxL2Cw) She walked in the 2025 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Runway Show and made her debut in the 2026 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue at age 55.[16](https://www.aol.com/articles/bikini-clad-bethenny-frankel-55-170503000.html) In February 2026 she disclosed on Instagram that she had been diagnosed with stage 3a chronic kidney disease, discovered about a month after an initial stage 2 finding; she said the condition was not yet at the medication point, emphasized regular testing after a liver nodule was found on a sonogram, and urged followers to get tested.[17](https://parade.com/news/bethenny-frankel-reveals-chronic-kidney-disease-progression) • [18](https://www.thedailybeast.com/reality-star-bethenny-frankel-urges-fans-to-get-tested-amid-scary-diagnosis/) She shares one daughter, Bryn Hoppy, with her ex-husband Jason Hoppy, who appeared with her on *The Real Housewives of New York City*.[19](https://www.thedailybeast.com/bravo-star-bethenny-frankel-55-slammed-for-her-inappropriate-outfit-at-f1-race/)
## Legacy within the Housewives franchise
[The Atlantic](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-atlantic), marking the franchise's twentieth anniversary, cited Frankel as the exemplar of how a Housewives cast member with traction can parlay the audience into a successful business, specifically her Skinnygirl margarita blend.[20](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/04/real-housewives-20th-anniversary/686657/) TIME, in a 2014 retrospective of her departure from the show, framed her arc in the same terms: one divorce, one talk show, and many millions later, she returned to the series that made her famous.[9](https://time.com/3525930/bethenny-frankel-real-housewives/)
## References
1. [Bethenny Frankel and the Making of a Celebrity Brand, The New Yorker](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/21/perfect-pitching)
2. [Bethenny Frankel on 'Big Shot' and Whether She'll Run for Office, Marie Claire](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a36124918/bethenny-frankel-interview-2021/)
3. [Bethenny Frankel Is Not Who You Think She Is, Inc.](https://www.inc.com/magazine/202203/michael-callahan/bethenny-frankel-skinnygirl-margarita-real-housewives.html)
4. [Bethenny Frankel, The Real Housewives of New York City, BravoTV.com](https://www.bravotv.com/people/bethenny-frankel)
5. [Bethenny Frankel's Social Media Side Hustles Generate $20 Million in Annual Revenue, Inc.](https://www.inc.com/ashley-couto/bethenny-frankel-tiktok-side-hustle-skinnygirl-business-advice-content-business/91321089)
6. [Q&A: Bethenny Frankel on giving advice on all platforms, The Independent](https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/bethenny-frankel-ap-q-a-new-york-kevin-o-leary-b2246800.html)
7. [Bethenny Frankel: Why Andy Cohen Didn't Want Me on 'RHONY', Us Weekly](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/bethenny-frankel-why-andy-cohen-didnt-want-me-on-rhony/)
8. [Bethenny & Fredrik, BravoTV.com](https://www.bravotv.com/bethenny-and-fredrik)
9. [So What Has Bethenny Frankel Been Up To Since Leaving Real Housewives?, TIME](https://time.com/3525930/bethenny-frankel-real-housewives/)
10. [How Former 'Real Housewife' Bethenny Frankel Turned Business Savvy into a $100 Million Disaster Relief Initiative, TIME](https://time.com/6174910/bethenny-frankel-ukraine-disaster-relief/)
11. [Real Housewives Rumor Claims Bethenny Frankel Is 'Begging' To Return To Bravo, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/television/real-housewives-rumor-claims-bethenny-frankel-begging-return-bravo)
12. [Bethenny Frankel: How I Went From Debt to Millions, Money](https://money.com/bethenny-frankel/?amp=true)
13. [Business Is Personal review, Publishers Weekly](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9780306827037)
14. [Why Bethenny Frankel 'Stopped Recording' Her Podcast, Us Weekly](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/why-bethenny-frankel-stopped-recording-her-podcast/)
15. [Bethenny Frankel reveals the real reason she's leaving NYC for a fresh start, Page Six via YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCgmnoxL2Cw)
16. [Bikini-clad Bethenny Frankel, 55, struts her stuff in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Show, AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/bikini-clad-bethenny-frankel-55-170503000.html)
17. [Bethenny Frankel Shares Update on Chronic Kidney Disease Diagnosis, Parade](https://parade.com/news/bethenny-frankel-reveals-chronic-kidney-disease-progression)
18. [Reality Star Urges Fans to 'Get Tested' Amid Scary Diagnosis, The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/reality-star-bethenny-frankel-urges-fans-to-get-tested-amid-scary-diagnosis/)
19. [Bravo Star, 55, Slammed for Wearing 'Inappropriate' Outfit to F1 Race, The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/bravo-star-bethenny-frankel-55-slammed-for-her-inappropriate-outfit-at-f1-race/)
20. [We're All Real Housewives Now, The Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/04/real-housewives-20th-anniversary/686657/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Reality television personalities and media celebrities › Docuseries and ensemble cast members › Shore and lifestyle ensemble cast › The Real Housewives cast members*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license