If you close your eyes and think about the 1990s, you probably see two things: neon windbreakers and Suzanne Somers in a leotard, squeezing a piece of blue-handled spring metal between her knees. It was the Suzanne Somers ThighMaster. Honestly, it was everywhere. You couldn't turn on a television after 11 PM without seeing those perfectly toned legs and hearing the promise that you, too, could "squeeze, squeeze your way to shapely hips and thighs."
Most people remember it as a kitschy late-night punchline. But if you look at the actual business behind the spring, it’s a masterclass in survival and branding. Suzanne Somers didn't just stumble into a fitness fad. She built a $300 million empire out of a device that most experts originally thought was for your chest.
The Manolo Blahnik Moment
The story of how the ThighMaster became a cultural juggernaut is actually pretty weird. It started with a pair of shoes. Specifically, a $500 pair of Manolo Blahniks. Suzanne had just bought them, and she was worried her husband, Alan Hamel, would think she was nuts for spending that much.
She walked out of her dressing room in just her underwear and the shoes, asking him what he thought. He didn't look at the shoes. He just said, "Great legs!"
That was it. That was the spark. Suzanne realized that while people might not care about the mechanics of an isometric exerciser, they definitely cared about having legs that looked good in expensive heels. The marketing wasn't about the tension of the spring; it was about the result of the squeeze.
It wasn't even her invention
A lot of people think Suzanne invented the thing. She didn't. It was originally called the "V-Toner," developed by Anne Marie Bennstrom and later pitched by Joshua Reynolds (the guy who gave us the Mood Ring). When it was first shown to Suzanne, the inventors were pushing it as an upper-body workout. They wanted people to use it for their "pecs" and arms.
Suzanne looked at it and asked a simple question: "Does it work for the inner thighs?"
The guy pitching it said sure, but insisted women cared more about their upper bodies. Suzanne knew better. She knew that the inner thigh was a "problem area" that almost no other piece of equipment addressed at the time. She and Hamel bought into the company, rebranded it the ThighMaster, and the rest is basically retail history.
Why the ThighMaster Actually Worked (Business-Wise)
The timing was perfect. In the early 90s, the Reagan administration had just deregulated television commercial lengths. This opened the door for the "infomercial." Suddenly, you could buy 30 minutes of airtime to talk about a single product.
Suzanne was one of the first major stars to jump into this world. Back then, "selling out" on TV was a huge risk for a serious actor. Most stars went to Japan to do commercials so their American fans wouldn't see them. Suzanne didn't care. She had been fired from Three’s Company years earlier for demanding equal pay, and she was done playing by Hollywood's rules.
The Power of the "Squeeze"
The ThighMaster cost $19.95. It was the perfect price point. It was "impulse buy" money.
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- Simplicity: You didn't need a manual. You put it between your knees and squeezed.
- Portability: You could do it while watching Step by Step or Murphy Brown.
- The Innuendo: Let's be real—the commercials were suggestive. The "squeeze" was catchy, a little bit sexy, and very memorable.
By the time the craze hit its peak, they had sold over 10 million units. Suzanne eventually revealed on the Hollywood Raw podcast that the device generated roughly $300 million in total sales. She eventually bought out her partners, who she said "got drunk on money" and overspent, leaving her with 100% ownership of the brand.
The Science: Does It Actually Do Anything?
If you talk to a modern personal trainer about the Suzanne Somers ThighMaster, they'll probably give you a look. Is it a replacement for heavy squats or deadlifts? No. Not even close.
But it’s also not a total scam.
The device provides isometric resistance. When you squeeze, you're engaging the adductor muscles—the ones on the inside of your thigh that pull your legs together. Most people never train these muscles. If you’ve never done an adductor squeeze, doing 50 reps with a ThighMaster is going to make you feel the burn the next day.
The problem is the myth of "spot reduction." You can't burn fat specifically off your thighs by squeezing a spring. You can build the muscle under the fat, but if you want "shapely legs," you still need a caloric deficit and full-body movement. That said, as a way to keep muscles active while sitting on the couch, it was better than doing nothing.
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The Legacy of the Squeeze
Suzanne Somers passed away in 2023, but the ThighMaster outlived the infomercial era. Even Khloé Kardashian famously posted about getting a signed one, proving that the brand still has weight in the social media age.
It proved that a celebrity could be more than just a face for a product. Suzanne was a partner. She owned the manufacturing, the distribution, and the message. She turned a "fired" actress narrative into a "billion-dollar brand" narrative before that was a standard career move for influencers.
Practical Lessons from the ThighMaster
If you’re looking at the history of this device, there are a few real-world takeaways:
- Solve a specific "emotional" problem: Suzanne didn't sell a "portable gym"; she sold "great legs."
- Price for the impulse: $19.95 is the magic number for a reason.
- Ownership is everything: Buying out her partners was the smartest move Suzanne ever made. It turned a royalty check into a multi-generational fortune.
If you happen to find one at a garage sale or in the back of your mom’s closet, give it a squeeze. It’s a piece of history. Just don't expect it to replace your gym membership.
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If you're looking to build a brand today, start by identifying the "unsexy" use case for your product that everyone else is ignoring—just like Suzanne did with the inner thigh.