Sandy Lerner

About

Sandra Sandy Lerner is an American businesswoman, technology pioneer, and philanthropist best known for co-founding Cisco Systems in 1984 alongside her then-husband Leonard Bosack. While working at Stanford University, Lerner and Bosack developed the multi-protocol router, a technology that enabled disparate computer networks to communicate and laid key infrastructure for the modern internet. After leading Cisco through its initial public offering in 1990, Lerner was ousted from the company, selling her stake for approximately $170 million.

Following her tenure at Cisco, Lerner co-founded the cosmetics brand Urban Decay in 1996 with Wende Zomnir, aiming to challenge traditional beauty standards with bold colors and edgy aesthetic themes. The company was later sold to LVMH in 2000 and subsequently acquired by L'Oreal. Beyond her entrepreneurial ventures, Lerner is a passionate philanthropist, animal welfare advocate, and proponent of organic agriculture. She purchased and restored Ayrshire Farm in Upperville, Virginia, converting it into a certified organic and humane agricultural estate.

Lerner has also devoted significant resources to literary preservation and feminist scholarship. In 1992, she purchased a long-term lease on Chawton House, the former estate of Jane Austen's brother, establishing the Centre for the Study of Early English Women's Writing. A polymath with degrees from California State University, Chico, and Stanford University, Lerner remains an influential figure in technology history, sustainable farming, and cultural conservation.

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