The Business of Modeling
Feb. 28 -- "I don't get out of bed for less than $10,000," supermodel Linda Evangelista once said, putting her fashion-star status into financial perspective.
And while Evangelista may have been exaggerating, it is true that women in the exclusive coterie of supermodels are among the best-paid female celebrities in the world.
As the new Forbes magazine's annual "Celebrity 100" list shows, for the select few who have attained that elusive, hard-to-define "supermodel" tag — and can rouse themselves out of bed in the morning to show up for photo shoots and the occasional runway show — the modeling business is highly lucrative.
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Claudia Schiffer is the highest-earning model in the world, topping four other supermodels on the Forbes list. The 30-year-old German pulled down $9 million last year.
Christy Turlington ($8.5 million), Gisele Bundchen ($8 million), Cindy Crawford ($6.3 million) and Tyra Banks ($5.5 million) round out the top five models in 2000 earnings.
Ad Campaigns, Endorsements and Investments
How do these supermodels make super money? Mostly through long-term endorsement contracts and business enterprises. Although some leading models command upwards of $50,000 per appearance at fashion shows, only Bundchen, of the Forbes top five, is a regular on the runway.
Schiffer, for instance, hauls in cash through a multimillion-dollar deal with cosmetic firm Revlon, ads for Citroen cars and a lucrative swimsuit calendar contract.
Crawford has enjoyed long-standing endorsements with Revlon, Pepsi and Omega watches, and in January 2000 signed a deal to endorse Special K cereal estimated at more than $5 million.
And some fashion stars have even shown an eagerness to develop their own business initiatives.
Turlington, for one, quit runway modeling in 1994, but, in addition to lucrative endorsement contracts with Calvin Klein and Maybelline, recently founded her own skin-care company, Sundari.
