The intimate apparel industry got a lift this week when Rihanna and Kim Kardashian announced hefty funding rounds for their respective fashion ventures.&nbsp;



Rihanna’s lingerie brand,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyaklich/2022/01/26/rihanna-savage-x-fenty-lingerie-brand-raises-125-million-in-series-c-funding-after-opening-first-retail-store/?sh=763613ab7605">Savage X Fenty, secured $125 million</a>&nbsp;in Series C. The following day,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-01-27/kim-kardashian-s-skim-underwear-brand-doubles-valuation-to-3-2-billion" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bloomberg</a>&nbsp;reported that Kardashian’s shapewear line, Skims, had doubled its valuation to $3.2 billion after raising&nbsp;$240 million in new capital.&nbsp;



Both&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;billionaires thanks to their businesses, Rihanna and Kardashian are quick to gush about company growth on social media and elsewhere, but, like many celebrity entrepreneurs, they are heavily guarded when it comes to disclosing crucial financial information.



Generally, celebrity entrepreneurs tend to decline to reveal how much they have personally invested and almost all are tight-lipped about sales figures.&nbsp;



“All these private companies are on a PR tear and it’s even easier when a big name is involved,” says Sucharita Kodali, retail analyst at Forrester. She adds that when it comes to valuations, most startups lie, typically by a factor of 2x to 10x. “Who knows,” she adds, “because no one has seen the term sheets.”&nbsp;



Still, celebrities continue to use their fame as a sword and a shield for garnering startup recognition.



Early examples include Gwyneth Paltrow, who launched her lifestyle brand, Goop, in 2008. By the time she raised $50 million in Series C funding a decade later,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2018/03/28/exclusive-gwyneth-paltrows-lifestyle-company-goop-raises-50-million-series-c/?sh=5e55926f6880">various sources estimated Goop’s revenue at $15 million to $20 million</a>, but the company declined to confirm the number.



These days, Goop relies on selling provocative items–such as its Jade Egg (which claims to boost sexual energy when inserted in one’s vagina) and the “Keep Your Hands Off My Vagina” candle–more than her acting career to generate buzz. But when it comes to reporting annual sales figures, the company is far more reserved than its product lineup.&nbsp;



Country singer Blake Shelton, who ranks&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/blake-shelton/?sh=206b1df61ea9">No. 70 in the&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;Celebrity 100 list</a>, earns a majority of his income as coach on NBC’s&nbsp;The Voice.&nbsp;Last year&nbsp;Rolling Stone&nbsp;reported he quietly sold his music catalog for $50 million. But when asked about the deal recently, the famously loquacious Shelton was reticent. He is now looking to a new revenue stream,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jilliandara/2021/03/31/blake-shelton-just-launched-his-own-line-of-hard-seltzers-heres-what-we-know/?sh=62d0cab11ea2">his own line of hard seltzers</a>, but has yet to reveal how much he has invested in the launch of Smithworks.



And soon after stepping away from their royal duties in the U.K.,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dawnchmielewski/2021/02/26/how-much-are-prince-harry-and-meghan-markle-worth-surprisingly-not-that-much/?sh=1fba6cedc417">Prince Harry and Meghan Markle</a>&nbsp;went on an all-American publicity spree, announcing content partnerships with Netflix and Spotify. They also signed with the Harry Walker Agency to cash in on potential speaking engagements. But when it came to disclosing the value of those deals, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dawnchmielewski/2021/02/26/how-much-are-prince-harry-and-meghan-markle-worth-surprisingly-not-that-much/?sh=21363347c417">former royal couple remained as secretive</a>&nbsp;as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/arielshapiro/2021/03/10/inside-the-firm-how-the-royal-familys-28-billion-money-machine-really-works/?sh=21f07002bccf">The Firm they fled</a>.&nbsp;



Some just lie.



Kardashian’s half-sister,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2020/05/29/inside-kylie-jennerss-web-of-lies-and-why-shes-no-longer-a-billionaire/?sh=7621eab25f7b">Kylie Jenner, is a prime example</a>. The reality star and Kylie Cosmetics founder boasted revenues of $360 million in 2019, making her the youngest self-made billionaire at the time. The following year, publicly traded Coty bought 51% of the business at a $1.2 billion valuation. Soon after,&nbsp;Coty’s filings revealed that Kylie Cosmetics was half the size that Jenner had told&nbsp;Forbes,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/hanktucker/2021/04/06/kylie-jenner-west-virginia-governor-jim-justice-and-59-others-who-lost-their-billionaire-status-this-year/?sh=1a448b713eee">knocking her off the Billionaires list</a>.&nbsp;



So, why lie or withhold information? “The SEC does not regulate what private companies say and there’s no governing body,” says Kodali. “The venture capital community plays a huge part in propagating these lies, and nobody questions them.”&nbsp;



Kodali, who specializes in e-commerce and consumer behavior, says until a celebrity-driven company goes public, there’s no real way to quantitatively assess whether the brand has strong fundamentals. “<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/jessica-alba/?sh=343048a3159e">Jessica Alba’s early days at The Honest Co</a>. seemed respectable,” but it took&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/denizcam/2021/05/04/inside-jessica-albas-long-and-turbulent-road-to-taking-the-honest-company-public/?sh=77d0a1d16be1">going public</a>&nbsp;to confirm her books were indeed honest, says Kodali.



More recently, Kodali points to Roger Federer’s $50 million investment in sneaker company On Running as an example of a celebrity-backed venture with solid footing. The company, founded in 2010, went public in September 2021 with an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/federer-backed-shoemaker-valued-over-11-bln-nyse-debut-2021-09-15/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$11.3 billion valuation</a>. “Its growth doesn’t seem to be based on hype,” Kodali says. “I didn’t hear about it from a headline, I heard about it from running enthusiasts, then investors. It was barely mentioned in the media until it went public.”&nbsp;



Meanwhile, it remains how much of a dent Savage X Fenty or Skims will make in the traditional intimate apparel market in the long term. Simeon Siegel, a retail analyst at BMO Capital Markets, acknowledges that many brands are trying to capitalize on Victoria’s Secret perceived vulnerability in market share. But a lingerie company like Rihanna’s–even with its funding to date at $310 million–is still “not even in the same ballpark as Victoria’s Secret,” which reported revenue of more than $5 billion in 2021.&nbsp;&nbsp;



However, with Rihanna and Kardashian’s massive social media followings—nearly 300 million each—both women have already used their fame as an express elevator to wealth.



“I bucket them all into startups that overstate their business, and it happens in waves as the sector becomes hot all at once,” says Kodali. “But you can’t hide once you’re public.”Follow me on <a href="https://www.twitter.com/tanyaklich" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Twitter</a>. Check out some of my other work <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyaklich/#32b2e15e795d" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">here</a>. 



By Tanya Klich, Forbes Staff

SKIMS Celebrates Launch At Nordstrom NYC With Personal Appearance By Kim Kardashian West

How Celebrities Use Fame To Fuel Their Startups—And Then Hide Behind It

With KKW Beauty and popular shapewear firm Skims, Kardashian West’s net worth increases to $1 billion, earning her a spot on Forbes’ World’s Billionaires List.



When Kim Kardashian West was first mentioned in the pages of&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;in 2011, it was simply a tally of her Twitter followers: 6.6 million, just below Barack Obama and just above Ashton Kutcher. Five years later, she graced the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2016/07/11/kim-kardashian-mobile-mogul-the-forbes-cover-story/?sh=4d20a0467e4f">cover</a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;thanks to her booming mobile game, which helped her earn $51 million that year. Now, she officially joins the World’s Billionaires list for the first time.



Forbes&nbsp;estimates that Kardashian West is now worth $1 billion, up from $780 million in October, thanks to two lucrative businesses—KKW Beauty and Skims—as well as cash from reality television and endorsement deals, and a number of smaller investments.



Kardashian West founded KKW Beauty in 2017, following the success of her half-sister Kylie Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics. She borrowed from Kylie’s playbook, using a similar direct-to-consumer model that relies heavily on social media marketing. Her first launch, 300,000 contour kits,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2018/07/11/why-kim-kardashian-west-is-worth-350-million/?sh=6a87c5004f7b">sold out within two hours</a>. By 2018, the business had expanded into eyeshadows, concealers, lipsticks and fragrances, and was bringing in about&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2018/07/11/why-kim-kardashian-west-is-worth-350-million/?sh=6a87c5004f7b">$100 million in revenue.</a>



&#8220;It’s the first time I&#8217;ve moved away from having licensing deals and transitioned into being an owner,&#8221; Kardashian West told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2017/06/13/how-kim-kardashian-west-bounced-back-to-45-5-million-and-a-new-cosmetics-company/?sh=6b6453f68f59">Forbes</a>&nbsp;in 2017, when she announced her cosmetics line.



She cashed in on that ownership last year when she sold 20% of KKW Beauty to cosmetics conglomerate Coty for $200 million, a deal that valued the company at $1 billion. While Forbes estimates that figure is a little bloated—Coty, which also bought 51% of Kylie Cosmetics in 2020, is known for overpaying—her remaining 72% stake is still worth about $500 million, by our count.



Then there’s Skims, the shapewear line Kardashian West launched in 2019. She raised money from fashion insiders like Net-a-Porter’s Natalie Massane and Theory’s Andrew Rosen, and capitalized on her massive social media following to shill the brand. (She now has 69.6 million Twitter followers and 213 million followers on Instagram.) Skims has been quick on its feet: During the pandemic, when consumers became more interested in comfy clothes for the couch than in smoothing their stomachs under evening gowns, she swiftly started turning the focus to loungewear.



Kardashian West owns a majority stake in closely-held Skims, which hasn’t disclosed its revenues. A source familiar with Skims told Forbes about a transaction that values the shapewear company north of $500 million. As a result, Forbes estimates her Skims stake is worth a conservative $225 million, enough to lift her fortune to $1 billion.



The rest of Kardashian West’s fortune sits in cash and investments, including real estate. Every year since 2012, she has earned at least $10 million pretax, by&nbsp;Forbes’&nbsp;count, thanks to paychecks from&nbsp;Keeping Up With the Kardashians,&nbsp;endorsement deals and endeavors like the aforementioned mobile game and her now-defunct Kimoji app. She’s also got three properties in Calabasas, northwest of Los Angeles, and a portfolio of blue-chip investments, including shares of Disney, Amazon, Netflix and Adidas that her soon-to-be ex-husband Kanye West gifted her for Christmas in 2017.&nbsp;



But it’s the companies that she has launched herself, and grown with the typical Kardashian flare for self-promotion, that land her on the World’s Billionaires list. As she tweeted the day she made the cover of Forbes, mocking the criticism she’s received for years: “Not bad for a girl with no talent.”



By <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/">Madeline Berg</a>Forbes Staff

2020 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones – Arrivals

Kim Kardashian West Is Officially A Billionaire

Jay-Z reaped a massive windfall selling a piece of his champagne brand to luxury goods giant LVMH – but it doesn’t beat stars like Dr. Dre or Kylie Jenner when they sold their stakes in major companies.



By Abigail Freeman,Forbes Staff



It turns out Jay-Z’s luxury champagne brand is worth more than “half a B.”



The partnership announced on Monday between Jay-Z and the wine and spirits division of LVMH makes the billionaire rapper the latest celebrity to pocket a windfall by selling part of a consumer brand to a major distributor. The deal appears to have valued the brand, Armand de Brignac, at more than $600 million, which would land him a cash payment of at least $300 million—about $50 million more than he would have made based on the $500 million value he rapped about in Meek Mill’s 2018 song “What’s Free.” &nbsp;



The founder of RocNation sold 50% of the champagne business to LVMH’s Moët Hennessy in a move aimed at “taking the business to new heights across the world,” according to Moet’s CEO Philippe Schaus.&nbsp; LVMH is known to bid competitively, and that certainly appears to have been true for this latest deal.&nbsp;



Forbes&nbsp;values the deal for the bubbly wine, known by its nickname Ace of Spades thanks to its logo design and several of Jay-Z’s lyrics promoting it, at roughly $630 million, based on conversations with five beverage analysts and industry insiders. That’s double&nbsp;Forbes’ previous valuation of the brand. The terms of the deal have not been publicly reported by LVMH or Jay-Z, whose company will still handle production. Neither side would comment, but based on analyst estimates, Jay-Z likely pocketed at least $315 million in the deal.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The multiples for Armand de Brignac—based on the category and volume size of the brand—far outreach brands that don’t have that celebrity ownership,” says beverage market analyst Eric Schmidt.&nbsp;



Still, it’s not the biggest celebrity cash out by a long shot: Kylie Jenner sold 51% of her cosmetics company to Coty in a deal that valued the brand at more than $1 billion; she got $540 million pre-tax. Rapper-Producer Dr. Dre sold his audio product company Beats to Apple in 2014 for $3 billion, pocketing $585 million himself before taxes.&nbsp;



Plenty of other pop stars have followed suit, not just selling out or selling stakes but often partnering with global giants. LVMH struck an earlier deal with Jay-Z protégé&nbsp; Rihanna in 2017 to launch Fenty Beauty, and most recently invested indirectly in her lingerie line Savage x Fenty earlier this month. The value of her stakes in both businesses totals $530 million.&nbsp;



“With celebrity association, particularly in the earlier years, the valuation of a company could be higher by three to seven times,” says food and beverage marketing consultant Arthur Gallego. “But I don’t think it works for every celebrity. There’s got to be something authentic about it.”



Jay-Z’s<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2014/11/06/why-jay-zs-champagne-news-isnt-so-new/?sh=17b1677528d3">journey with Ace of Spades</a>&nbsp;began in 2006, a year after he signed Rihanna to her first record deal. At the time, the Brooklyn-born mogul called for a boycott from Cristal champagne after CEO Frédéric Rouzaud said, &#8220;What can we do? We can&#8217;t forbid people from buying it,&#8221; in response to being asked about the brand’s popularity among rappers at the time. Later that year, Jay-Z debuted his champagne brand by featuring its signature gold bottle in his &#8220;Show Me What You Got&#8221; video.



The popularity and strong sales of Ace of Spades helped boost Jay-Z’s fortune to $1 billion by 2019, earning him&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;recognition as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2019/06/03/jay-z-billionaire-worth/?sh=28eea6cf3a5f">first hip-hop artist</a>&nbsp;toreach the 10-figure milestone. The latest deal will likely bump that figure up, while leaving him with other assets to monetize, including RocNation’s entertainment business, music streaming service Tidal, an athlete representation agency, his master recordings and music publishing rights, and a second liquor brand, D’usse.



Here is how his windfall stacks up against some of the most notable celebrity deals inked in the past five years.



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-george-clooney">George Clooney</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50129" width="403" height="268" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1148820506-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 403px) 100vw, 403px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>



British liquor giant Diageo purchased the movie star’s tequila company Casamigos in 2017 in a transaction that valued the company at up to $1 billion including $700 million up front and another $300 million based on performance over the following 10 years. The A-list actor netted more than $200 million pretax, making him Forbes’ top paid actor of 2018. He cofounded the company with nightlife entrepreneur Rande Gerber (husband of supermodel Cindy Crawford) and real estate tycoon Mike Meldman in 2013. Clooney, Gerber and Meldman each invested $600,000 apiece as equal partners to start up Casamigos, which loosely means house of friends, and then reinvested profits, earning them an impressive ROI. The star and his pals are still involved in the business.



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Kylie Jenner</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50131" width="378" height="566" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205228158-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="(max-width: 378px) 100vw, 378px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Rich Fury/VF20/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)</figcaption></figure></div>



Jenner used $250,000 of her earnings from modeling to pay an outside company to make her first 15,000 lip kits, which sold out in minutes in 2015. Kylie Cosmetics quickly became one of the fastest growing makeup brands, thanks to the reality TV star’s massive social media following—now at 265 million followers across Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. Cosmetics giant Coty Inc paid $600 million for a 51% stake of the brand in January 2020; she pocketed $540 million, pretax. She still has <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2020/05/29/inside-kylie-jennerss-web-of-lies-and-why-shes-no-longer-a-billionaire/?sh=520c80cc25f7">an estimated 44.1%</a> stake—with Kris Jenner owning a small stake—in the brand, and she and her team oversee all creative efforts.  



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Kim Kardashian West</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-1024x682.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50132" width="424" height="282" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-2048x1363.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1205274440-600x399.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 424px) 100vw, 424px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)</figcaption></figure></div>



Kardashian West sold 20% of KKW Beauty to publicly traded Coty in a deal that closed in January, and took home $180 million pre-tax. Kardashian West still has a 72% stake, worth an estimated $500 million. The new partners plan to enter new beauty categories together and expand overseas. In the works: a skincare line set to launch in fiscal year 2022. Kardashian West filed for divorce from Kanye West, her husband of seven years, in February; the couple had signed a pre-nup. 



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Rihanna</h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-1024x705.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50133" width="491" height="338" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-1024x705.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-300x206.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-768x529.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-1536x1057.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-2048x1410.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1208055829-600x413.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 491px) 100vw, 491px" /><figcaption>. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for BET)</figcaption></figure></div>



The pop star has made the bulk of her fortune from Fenty Beauty, the makeup brand she started with LVMH in September 2017. Forbes estimates that LVMH owns 50% and she owns 15%, or $450 million worth, of the $3 billion (est. value) brand. Fashion house Fenty, which she launched less than two years ago as a joint venture with LVMH, has been less successful. Following a decline in business at Rihanna’s Fenty clothing line, LVMH said it is halting the luxury fashion house after less than two years of operation. Rihanna also has a roughly $80 millionstake in lingerie line, Savage x Fenty, a joint venture launched in 2018 with TechStyle Fashion Group. Investors in the business include L Catterton and Jay-Z’s Marcy Venture Partners. 



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Kanye West </h3>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-47745" width="413" height="275" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-scaled-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-scaled-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/GettyImages-1144131570-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 413px) 100vw, 413px" /><figcaption>. (Photo by Timothy Norris/Getty Images for Coachella)</figcaption></figure></div>



In a deal perhaps more reminiscent of Michael Jordan’s partnership with Nike or rapper Diddy’s Ciroc vodka with liquor giant Diageo, West gets much of his money from a profit sharing agreement with Adidas.&nbsp; West owns 100% of his super popular sneaker brand Yeezy. But it’s a complicated deal in which Adidas handles all the production, marketing and distribution, and West receives a royalty of approximately 11% of Yeezy revenue. Based on estimated revenues of $1.3 billion in 2019, West likely received royalties of over $140 million.&nbsp; That was more than either Jordan, who earned $130 million from his cut of Air Jordan sales, or Diddy, who pocketed $50 million, the bulk of his earnings, in beverage partnerships, mostly from Ciroc. Based on the royalty stream,&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;valued West’s business at nearly $1.3 billion.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Additional reporting by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/madelineberg/">Madeline Berg</a>.

2020 Roc Nation THE BRUNCH – Inside

Here’s How Much Jay-Z Made On His Ace Of Spades Deal—And How It Stacks Up Against Other Celebrity Cashouts

Hip hop heavyweight and unlikely presidential candidate <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/#99f4e0256f16">Kanye West</a> has released a religion-steeped campaign ad that calls for voters to write his name in on their ballots and urges Americans to “revive our nation’s commitment to faith,” as West says in the spot.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h4>



With less than a month to go until Election Day, West dropped a new nearly one-minute-and-30-second advertisement that heavily featured the themes of prayer and religion.



“We as a people will revive our nation’s commitment to faith, to what our constitution calls the free exercise of religion, including, of course, prayer,” West says in the ad. “Through prayer, faith can be restored.”



West, a devout Christian, has been open about his beliefs throughout his relatively short run for president—he even reportedly asked political to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2020/09/16/kanye-west-reportedly-asked-campaign-staffers-to-refrain-from-fornicating-outside-marriage/#35d914334736">refrain from extramarital sex</a>&nbsp;while working on his campaign.



“By turning to faith, we will be the kind of nation, the kind of people, God intends us to be,” West said in the ad.



At the end of the ad, the written message to “<a href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1315766834046541825?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">write in Kanye West</a>” appears to be a concession to the fact that it is mathematically impossible for him to win the election because of his campaign’s late start in July, which has allowed him to qualify for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/elanagross/2020/09/08/kanye-west-now-on-ballot-in-12-states-after-qualifying-in-mississippi/#72023207712c">the ballot</a>&nbsp;in just a handful of states.



During an August interview with Forbes, when the fact was raised that it was virtually impossible for him to win, West replied, “I’m not going to argue with you. <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2020/08/06/exclusive-kanye-west-indicates-that-his-spoiler-campaign-is-indeed-designed-to-hurt-biden/#52b7744c6397">Jesus is King</a>.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><a href="https://t.co/ZURvTEW9ee">https://t.co/ZURvTEW9ee</a> we stepping out on faith <a href="https://t.co/ypQfooB35w">pic.twitter.com/ypQfooB35w</a>&mdash; ye (@kanyewest) <a href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1315766834046541825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<h4 class="wp-block-heading">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h4>



“We as a people are called to a greater purpose than ourselves. We are not only a beacon to the world, but we should be servants to each other,” West said in the ad. “To encourage each other, to help each other, to lift up each other. Our fellow Americans, that we may all prosper together. We have to act on faith.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">Friends writing me in 🕊 <a href="https://t.co/bC4NvFBWB5">pic.twitter.com/bC4NvFBWB5</a>&mdash; ye (@kanyewest) <a href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1314407219434196993?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 9, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<h4 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h4>



Forbes estimates West is worth <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/#99f4e0256f16">$1.3 billion</a>, thanks largely to his profitable Yeezy brand deal with sportswear giant Adidas and his separate Yeezy clothing line.



-By Carlie Porterfield, Forbes Staff

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Kanye West Angles For Write-In Presidential Votes With Campaign Ad Calling For Religious Revival

After years of hints, Kanye West formally announced he is running for president this year in a challenge to Trump, who he once supported, and Democratic rival Joe Biden, winning support from his friend and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.



KEY FACTS



<ul><li>Rounding off his Fourth of July, West <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1279575273365594112?s=20" target="_blank">tweeted</a> on Saturday night: “We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future. I am running for president of the United States! #2020VISION.”</li></ul>



<ul><li>Musk<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1279577069005897728?s=20" target="_blank"> tweeted</a> in response: “You have my full support!”</li></ul>



<ul><li>Wife Kim Kardashian also publicly pledged her support, retweeting West’s statement and adding a U.S. flag <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/KimKardashian/status/1279597399380332544?s=20" target="_blank">emoji</a>.</li></ul>



<ul><li>West’s announcement follows years of hints that he would run for office this year which he later postponed to 2024, after publicly declaring at a Fast Company event in 2019: “When I run for president in 2024&#8230;We would create so many jobs! I’m not going to run, I’m going to walk.”</li></ul>



<ul><li>But the rapper, who recently <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/pamdanziger/2020/06/28/kanye-west-gives-gap-a-ten-year-lifeline-with-yeezy-partnership-and-gets-what-he-always-wanted/#3db3d12e3dde">inked</a> a 10-year deal with Gap through his Yeezy brand, is reportedly yet to file any paperwork to get on state election ballots, while he has missed the deadline for states including Texas, New York, and Indiana.</li></ul>



<ul><li>It is not known how serious West’s intentions are this time around, however, he still has time to <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://ballotpedia.org/Important_dates_in_the_2020_presidential_race" target="_blank">file</a> as an independent candidate across most states, according to Ballotpedia.</li></ul>



<ul><li>West’s declaration was met with skepticism on social media, while some commentators pointed out that it could work out in Trump’s favour.</li></ul>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">Kanye West went from endorsing Trump to claiming he’d run against him —an announcement that benefits the president to the degree it spotlights Biden’s need for black voters &amp; his potential weakness with young voters <a href="https://t.co/0m4PUO6s6a">https://t.co/0m4PUO6s6a</a>&mdash; Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1279589464491376642?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 5, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">Kanye West isn’t really gonna run for President, but his next album will be called Presidential Dropout&mdash; David Gardner (@byDavidGardner) <a href="https://twitter.com/byDavidGardner/status/1279585706432659457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 5, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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KEY BACKGROUND



West’s declaration suggests the rapper is looking to cement political ambitions he has expressed throughout Trump’s presidency. West previously forged alliances with Trump, and was pictured in the Oval Office in 2018 wearing a signature Trump ‘Make America Great Again’ cap. He once called the president his “brother” and previously hit back at criticism towards his support for Trump, likening the backlash to racial discrimination. Although he says he didn’t vote in 2016, West later said he “would have voted for Trump”, and earlier this year doubled down, suggesting he would vote for him in November. But that could very well change given Saturday’s announcement.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="594" height="456" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/gettyimages-1059657306-594x594-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-46417" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/gettyimages-1059657306-594x594-1.jpg 594w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/gettyimages-1059657306-594x594-1-300x230.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 594px) 100vw, 594px" /><figcaption>American rapper and producer Kanye West embraces real estate developer and US President Donald Trump in the White House&#8217;s Oval Office, Washington DC, October 11, 2018. West wears a red baseball cap that reads &#8216;Make America Great Again,&#8217; Trump&#8217;s campaign slogan. (Photo by Ron Sachs/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



TANGENT



West and Musk were <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1278353774671802369?s=20" target="_blank">pictured together</a> on July 1st, with West tweeting: “When you go to your boys [sic] house and you’re both wearing orange.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">When you go to your boys house and you’re both wearing orange 🍊 <a href="https://t.co/IyPOdEKaVY">pic.twitter.com/IyPOdEKaVY</a>&mdash; ye (@kanyewest) <a href="https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1278353774671802369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2020</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabeltogoh/">Isabel Togoh</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/business">Business</a>

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Elon Musk, Kim Kardashian Endorse Kanye West Running For President

In what will be the second major Kardashian cashout in a year, Kim Kardashian West is selling a 20% stake in her cosmetics company KKW Beauty to beauty giant Coty&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/companies/coty-inc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">COTY</a>&nbsp;for $200 million. The deal—<a href="https://www.coty.com/in-the-news/press-release/coty-and-kim-kardashian-west-announce-strategic-relationship-expand-beauty" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced today</a>—values KKW Beauty at $1 billion, making Kardashian West worth about $900 million, according to&nbsp;Forbes’estimates.



The acquisition, which is set to close in early 2021, will leave Kardashian West the majority owner of KKW Beauty, with an estimated 72% stake in the company, which is known for its color cosmetics like contouring creams and highlighters.&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;estimates that her mother, Kris Jenner, owns 8% of the business. (Neither Kardashian West nor Kris Jenner have responded to a request for comment about their stakes.) According to Coty, she’ll remain responsible for creative efforts while Coty will focus on expanding product development outside the realm of color cosmetics.



Earlier this year, Kardashian West’s half-sister, Kylie Jenner, also inked a big deal with Coty, when she sold it 51% of her Kylie Cosmetics at a valuation of $1.2 billion. The deal left Jenner with a net worth of <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2020/05/29/inside-kylie-jennerss-web-of-lies-and-why-shes-no-longer-a-billionaire/#6e35ef4c25f7">just under $900 million.</a> Both Kylie Cosmetics and KKW Beauty are among a number of brands, including Anastasia Beverly Hills, Huda Beauty and Glossier, that have received sky-high valuations thanks to their social-media-friendly marketing. 



“Kim is a true modern-day global icon,” said Coty chairman and CEO Peter Harf in a statement. “This influence, combined with Coty’s leadership and deep expertise in prestige beauty will allow us to achieve the full potential of her brands.”



The deal comes just days after Seed Beauty, which develops, manufactures and ships both KKW Beauty and Kylie Cosmetics, won a temporary injunction against KKW Beauty, hoping to prevent it from sharing trade secrets with Coty, which also owns brands like CoverGirl, Sally Hansen and Rimmel. On June 19, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2020/06/23/the-company-that-makes-kim-kardashians-cosmetics-is-suing-her-to-protect-its-trade-secrets/#1f7f0b0aaac0">Seed filed a lawsuit against KKW Beauty</a> seeking protection of its trade secrets ahead of an expected deal between Coty and KKW Beauty. The temporary order, granted on June 26, lasts until August 21 and forbids KKW Beauty from disclosing details related to the Seed-KKW relationship, including “the terms of those agreements, information about license use, marketing obligations, product launch and distribution, revenue sharing, intellectual property ownership, specifications, ingredients, formulas, plans and other information about Seed products.”



Coty has struggled in recent years, with Wall Street insisting it routinely overpays for acquisitions and has failed to keep up with contemporary beauty trends. The coronavirus pandemic has also hit the 116-year-old company hard. Since the beginning of the year, Coty’s stock price has fallen nearly 60%. The company, which had $8.6 billion in revenues in the year through June 2019, now sports a $3.3 billion market capitalization. By striking deals with companies like KKW Beauty and Kylie Cosmetics, Coty is hoping to refresh its image and appeal to younger consumers.



Kardashian West founded KKW Beauty in 2017, after successfully collaborating with Kylie Cosmetics on a set of lip kits. Like her half-sister, Kardashian West first launched online only, but later moved into Ulta stores in October 2019, helping her generate estimated revenues of $100 million last year. KKW Beauty is one of several business ventures for Kardashian West: She continues to appear on her family’s reality show,&nbsp;Keeping Up with the Kardashians,&nbsp;sells her own line of shapewear called Skims and promotes her mobile game,&nbsp;Kim Kardashian Hollywood.&nbsp;Her husband, Kanye West,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2020/06/26/gap-stock-surges-after-kanye-west-signs-deal-to-sell-a-new-yeezy-clothing-line-with-struggling-retailer/#2807b5361437">recently announced a deal</a>&nbsp;to sell a line of his Yeezy apparel in Gap stores.



“This is fun for me. Now I’m coming up with Kimojis and the app and all these other ideas,” Kardashian West <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2016/07/11/kim-kardashian-mobile-mogul-the-forbes-cover-story/#46bf36907e4f">told Forbes</a>of her various business ventures in 2016. “I don’t see myself stopping.”



&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/">Madeline Berg</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/hollywood-entertainment">Hollywood &amp; Entertainment</a>

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Kim Kardashian West Is Worth $900 Million After Agreeing To Sell A Stake In Her Cosmetics Firm To Coty

gettyimages-1144225029-594×594 (1)

Kanye West’s Second Coming: Inside The Billion-Dollar Yeezy Empire

Last month, after Forbes named Kylie Jenner <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2019/03/05/at-21-kylie-jenner-becomes-the-youngest-self-made-billionaire-ever/" target="_blank">the world’s youngest self-made billionaire</a>, we unintentionally set off a heated debate on social media about the meaning of the word “self-made.” 



The idea that a 21-year-old who grew up on a reality TV show (Keeping Up With the Kardashians), whose sister is Kim Kardashian, and whose rich and famous parents are Kris and Caitlyn Jenner could be considered self-made, sparked a very public backlash.



The debate was renewed once again on March 31 after the New York Times published a story in which Kylie admitted to having some help building her business. “I can&#8217;t say I&#8217;ve done it by myself,&#8221; the beauty mogul told the Times. “If they&#8217;re just talking finances, technically, yes, I don&#8217;t have any inherited money. But I have had a lot of help and a huge platform.&#8221;



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/woman/2019/03/08/at-21-kylie-jenner-becomes-the-youngest-self-made-billionaire-ever/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="At 21, Kylie Jenner Becomes The Youngest Self-Made Billionaire Ever (opens in a new tab)">At 21, Kylie Jenner Becomes The Youngest Self-Made Billionaire Ever</a>



Well, yes, that’s exactly what we mean at Forbes when we say that Kylie—and 1,449 other billionaires—are “self-made.” And that’s perhaps the nub of the disagreement. At Forbes we’ve been using the term to describe the origin of someone’s fortune, rather than whether a billionaire got help to build a hugely successful company or not.



 Forbeshas been tracking the fortunes of America’s richest for more than 35 years and we’ve used three classifications for how people made their fortunes: self-made, inherited and inherited and growing; the latter category was reserved for people like Donald Trump, who built on his father’s real estate empire.



 Forbeshas been tracking the fortunes of America’s richest for more than 35 years and we’ve used three classifications for how people made their fortunes: self-made, inherited and inherited and growing; the latter category was reserved for people like Donald Trump, who built on his father’s real estate empire.



What many object to when&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;calls Kylie self-made is that (1) she had lots of help (from people like her mom, Kris Jenner) building the company that turned her into a billionaire, and (2) she started out rich and famous. Both of those assertions are true. But Mark Zuckerberg, whom&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;also classifies as self-made, didn’t build Facebook by himself and he started out well-off, though not as rich and not nearly as famous as Kylie. (Zuckerberg’s father is a dentist, his mother a psychologist).



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/lists/2019/04/05/the-10-most-notable-new-billionaires-of-2019/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The 10 Most Notable New Billionaires Of 2019 (opens in a new tab)">The 10 Most Notable New Billionaires Of 2019</a>



Plus there are seven other Facebook billionaires who, one could argue, rode alongside Zuckerberg in building the massive social network, including cofounder Dustin Moskovitz, Zuckeberg&#8217;s former roommate; cofounder Eduardo Saverin, Zuckerberg&#8217;s former classmate; Sean Parker, the social network’s first president; Jim Breyer and Peter Thiel, its early investors; and Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief operating officer since 2008, four years after the company was founded.&nbsp;Forbesclassifies all of these billionaires as self-made—none of them inherited their fortunes. None of them built Facebook alone.



Five years ago, Forbes dug deeper into one defining characteristic of billionaires: How far did they climb to make their way to the top? That year, for the first time, we gave each member of The Forbes 400 list of richest Americans a<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/afontevecchia/2014/10/02/the-new-forbes-400-self-made-score-from-silver-spooners-to-boostrappers/" target="_blank"> self-made score </a>on a scale from 1 to 10: A 1 means the fortune was completely inherited; a 10 is for a Horatio Alger-esque journey from the depths of poverty. At the most basic level, the scores denote who inherited some or all of their fortune (scores 1 through 5) and those who truly made it on their own (6 through 10).



We have continued to apply this self-made score to all American billionaires (and also now to self-made women). In Kylie’s case, we gave her a 7 out of 10, acknowledging that she had plenty of advantages from the start. 



Donald Trump scores a 4 because he inherited a fortune from his father and then expanded it significantly, while the widow of Steve Jobs, Laurene Powell Jobs, gets a 2 because she inherited a fortune and has a role in managing it, having made investments in media (The Atlantic and Ozy Media) and professional sports (she owns a 20% stake the group behind the NBA’s Washington Wizards and NHL’s Washington Capitals).



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/focus/2019/04/02/more-than-a-dozen-of-europes-wealthiest-billionaires-and-their-families-had-nazi-ties/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="More Than A Dozen European Billionaires—Linked To BMW, L’Oréal, Bosch—Have Families With Past Nazi Ties (opens in a new tab)">More Than A Dozen European Billionaires—Linked To BMW, L’Oréal, Bosch—Have Families With Past Nazi Ties</a>



While few billionaires have had the type of social media platform that Kylie Jenner had when she launched her business—with 120 million Instagram followers—(which we actually think further underscores her entrepreneurial savvy, not the help she got), every single self-made billionaire on Forbes’ list has had help building their fortune, be it from other employees at the company they founded, venture capitalists, mentors, friends or parents. 



Steve Ballmer, for instance, had the good fortune to be one of Bill Gates’ classmates at Harvard, which led to a job at Microsoft. He eventually replaced Gates as chief executive, a job he held for 15 years. He is now the 19th-richest person in the world.   



Leon Black, whose father was the CEO of United Brands, got a $75,000 life insurance payout after his father died when he was in business school. He later cofounded private equity giant Apollo Global Management, which made him a billionaire. Hedge fund tycoon Chase Coleman is a descendant of Peter Stuyvesant, the last Dutch governor of New York. Another hedge fund titan, Ken Griffin, started trading in his Harvard dorm room using $265,000, part of which came from his family. 



And the nation’s richest real estate developer, Donald Bren, is the son of a real estate investor and Hollywood film producer. Phil Knight, in his autobiography Shoe Dog, spells out how the early days of Nike were a team effort by a core group of incredibly dedicated early employees. Even Oprah Winfrey, who grew up dirt poor and earns a number 10 rank on our self-made score, got help from smart producers and other employees to turn her daytime talk show from an also-ran into a huge hit, as the podcast Making Oprah details.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2019/03/28/the-worlds-most-generous-billionaires-outside-of-the-us/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The World’s Most Generous Billionaires Outside Of The US (opens in a new tab)">The World’s Most Generous Billionaires Outside Of The US</a>



So why have people reacted so vehemently to Kylie? Is it that the Kardashians are people everyone loves to hate? Is it that Americans are fed up with the reality TV, social media culture that not only helped make a 21-year-old who posted on Instagram a billionaire but also helped get a president elected? Several people with whom we spoke wondered if it was because she was a woman. Would we have had the same discussions if it was her half-brother Robert who became a billionaire instead of Kylie?



No one will really ever know. But one thing is certain: Kylie Jenner figured out a simple, easy way to turn her family&#8217;s fame, her huge Instagram following and her passion for makeup into big, big bucks.



&#8211;Luisa Kroll; Forbes Staff



&#8211;Kerry A. Dolan; Forbes Staff

Tag: Kim Kardashian

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