It’s official: Kim Kardashian West is a billionaire.
Kardashian West appeared for the first time on Forbes’ annual world’s billionaires list, topped by Jeff Bezos ($177 billion), Elon Musk ($151 billion), Bernard Arnault & family ($150 billion), Bill Gates ($124 billion) and Mark Zuckerberg ($97 billion), on Tuesday.
Forbes estimates that Kardashian West is now worth $1 billion (putting her at No. 2674 on the ranking), up from $780 million in October, thanks to her two lucrative businesses, KKW Beauty and Skims, as well as earnings from “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” endorsement deals and a number of smaller investments.
Kardashian West launched KKW Beauty in 2017, selling makeup products such as contour kits, eyeshadows, lipsticks, concealers and fragrances. Within a year, the business brought in about $100 million in revenue, according to Forbes.
Following the monumental success of Kardashian West’s half-sister Kylie Jenner’s makeup company, Kylie Cosmetics, Forbes dubbed Jenner (in March 2019) the world’s youngest self-made billionaire. However, the magazine reported the following year that her worth was inflated and that she wasn’t, in fact, a billionaire.
Kardashian West launched her shapewear company Skims in 2019. Previously called Kimono, she changed the name after being accused of cultural appropriation. Capitalizing on her massive social media following to shill the brand (she currently has 69.7 million Twitter followers and 213 million Instagram followers), Kardashian West pivoted her brand to include loungewear during the COVID-19 pandemic, when everyone started sporting cozier clothing while quarantined at home. Forbes said she has a majority stake in the private business, which is valued “north of $500 million.”
The rest of Kardashian West’s fortune sits in cash, investments and real estate. She has earned at least $10 million pretax every year since 2012 from “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” endorsement deals and other endeavors. While her family’s long-running show is coming to an end, they’ve struck a content pact with Hulu.
Additionally, Kardashian West was gifted a portfolio of blue-chip investments from her soon-to-be ex-husband Kanye West in 2017, including shares of Disney, Amazon, Netflix and Adidas. When she landed the cover of Forbes for the first time in 2016, she mocked those who doubted her, saying, “Not bad for a girl with no talent.”
#NotBadForAGirlWithNoTalent 😍😜
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) July 11, 2016
Most recently, Kardashian West announced that her first Skims pop-up store will open at The Grove in Los Angeles. She is yet to comment on joining the ranks of billionaires.
SKIMS is excited to announce that our first ever pop-up at @TheGroveLA is now open! We can’t wait to welcome our Los Angeles community in store.
See you soon:@SKIMS pop-up at The Grove
189 The Grove Drive
Los Angeles CA 90036 pic.twitter.com/RFiEjE0kqM— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) April 6, 2021
