One of the most logical – and lucrative – side ventures for a celebrity is to start a fashion line. The glamor and star power of a successful artist or prominent actress can easily attract publicity and fan sales.

Indeed, reality TV star Kim Kardashian’s Skims clothing line has propelled her into the billionaire realm, while pop star Rihanna’s lingerie brand Savage X Fenty has been named one of the Most Influential Companies of the Year by Time magazine this year.

The latest celebrity to become a designer is actress Lena Dunham, who came up with a plus-size collaboration last month, but plenty of other stars have translated their personal styles into successful fashion ventures.

Rihanna

Pop superstar Rihanna’s lingerie line, Savage X Fenty, has the slogan of promoting “fearlessness, confidence and inclusiveness.”

The brand’s online website offers models in all sizes, shapes and skin colors, and sizes range from XS to 3X.

Founded in 2018, it is now worth $ 1 billion ($ 1.3 billion), according to Time magazine, which named it one of this year’s most influential companies, alongside titans from various fields such as Apple, Nike, Moderna and Zoom.

A partnership between luxury giant LVMH and 33-year-old singer Savage X Fenty saw impressive sales growth of over 200% last year, despite the Covid-19 pandemic.

Even though LVMH suspended Rihanna’s luxury ready-to-wear line, Fenty, earlier this year, they are still working together on her lingerie brand, as well as her hugely popular Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin lines.

Lena dunham

Actress Lena Dunham has never shied away from grappling with her body image over the years and has now fully embraced it with her capsule collection with 11 Honoré, a large online retailer.

Best known for her Girls TV series, which she created, wrote and performed from 2012 to 2017, Dunham designed five pieces for the collection, which launched last month.

11 Honore X Lena Dunham features a scalloped-edged blazer and skirt, a masculine-inspired butter yellow shirt with pearly buttons and a print dress designed by her father, artist Carroll Dunham.

The clothing sizes range from 12 to 26 and reflect her love of vintage, bright colors and bold patterns.

In an interview with fashion magazine Vogue last month, the 34-year-old said: “Sometimes it seems like people who make plus size clothes think women want to disappear. Because our bodies are curvy, we don’t. want to be seen longer, and that’s just not true. “

Kim kardashian

Bootylicious reality TV star Kim Kardashian became a billionaire last month, according to Forbes magazine. His net worth rose from US $ 780 million (S $ 1.04 billion) in October last year to US $ 1 billion in April, with most of his fortune coming from his cosmetics company KKW Beauty. and shapewear line Skims, as well as the Keeping Up With The Kardashians reality show (2007-present).

Capitalizing on her massive social media following – she has 220 million Instagram subscribers and 70 million on Twitter – the two sidelines have become very lucrative.

However, Kardashian has also shown great business savvy, especially with two-year-old Skims, which has a hugely popular all-inclusive Fits Everybody line.

When the pandemic hit last year, she quickly went from stretchy, stomach-smoothing clothes to comfortable clothes for lounging on the couch.

In an interview with the New York Times last month, Kardashian revealed that Skims reported $ 145 million in revenue last year, which he expected to double this year.

As Kardashian herself has said time and time again, “Not bad for a girl with no talent.”

JJ Lin

Singaporean singer JJ Lin’s streetwear line, Smudge, short for “always on the move under gunfire”, is a clear reflection of his personal style and love for pop art and street fashion. The fashion line, which debuted in 2009, offers accessible urban clothing such as loose hoodies, sweatpants, bucket hats and denim jackets, which are items in which Lin, 40, is regularly seen. There is also a line for women.

Most recently, he collaborated with sports brand Reebok in March to give Reebok Instapump sneakers his own twist.

A savvy entrepreneur who has got his hands on numerous pies, Lin opened a flagship concept store in Taipei last year and there is another in Shanghai.

Instead of just selling clothes, these lifestyle stores combine fashion, food, and coffee under one roof. You can get food such as kaya toast as well as freshly ground coffee, which is another Lin’s passion.

Victoria beckham

Victoria Beckham has been a fashion designer longer than she was in the girl group Spice Girls, but she still maintains the image of Posh Spice.

Her eponymous fashion line, which launched in 2008, seven years after the Spice Girls split, has proven to be more than just a vanity project. In 2011, the brand was named Designer Brand of the Year at the British Fashion Awards.

Over the years, he has conquered initially questionable fashion critics with his sleek designs that channel the designer’s personal style, and spawned a cheaper release label, as well as lines for denim, sunglasses and clothing. perfumes.

However, despite its critical success and increasing sales, the company faces an uncertain future as it has racked up more than £ 46million ($ 87million) in losses since launch, according to its listeners. in February.

The pandemic has further threatened her survival, as she was forced to close her flagship store in London during last year’s lockdown and lay off around a fifth of her staff.

However, Beckham, 47, and her husband, former footballer David Beckham, 46, have other profitable businesses that can continue to keep the fashion business afloat.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen

Actresses Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are known for their distinctive high-end homeless look. Usually seen in baggy black outfits, long flowing locks and heavily kohled eyes, the 34-year-old twins, who started out as cherub child stars, translated their adult personal style into two fashion lines.

Couture label The Row, which started in 2006, offers wool skirts at US $ 1,990 (S $ 2,660) and cotton shirts at US $ 1,090 with their oversized fit and dark palette.

A friendlier line, Elizabeth And James, launched a year later and has a more relaxed vibe and a lot more color.

Successful fashion designers in their own right, the Olsens were named the Council of Fashion Designers of America Women’s Clothing Designer of the Year for The Row in 2012 and 2015.

Sarah Jessica Parker

Like Carrie Bradshaw, the character of Sarah Jessica Parker in Sex And The City (1998-2004), the actress is a true shoe lover.

Parker started the shoe brand SJP by Sarah Jessica Parker in 2014, 10 years after the groundbreaking HBO series ended its six seasons. The hit show also spawned two films in 2008 and 2010.

Known for their love of super high stiletto heels, the Parker line includes shoes as high as 10cm. But he doesn’t neglect those who prefer not to break their ankles, also offering sensible sandals and pumps.

On its website, it also lists one item of clothing – the SJP LBD. The tiered little black tulle dress, similar to the short pink Parker wore in the show’s opening credits, is very much in the spirit of the soon-to-be rebooted series.

And the 56-year-old actress, who will reprise her role as Bradshaw in And Just Like That …, will likely see her shoe brand reach stylish heights.

Kanye west

A rare pair of rapper Kanye West’s sneakers broke a world shoe record at a Sotheby’s auction last month by going under the hammer for $ 1.8 million ($ 2.4 million).

The Nike Air Yeezy 1 prototypes, which were only worn once by West, 43, to the Grammy Awards in 2008, were developed with the sportswear giant and released the following year.

Four years later, he moved his Yeezy sneaker line to Adidas, where it reportedly grossed around $ 1.7 billion in sales last year, according to Forbes magazine.

Coveted by sneakerheads and often sold for grossly inflated prices, Yeezy sneakers aren’t the only fashion items West has participated in.

His designs for men, women and children for the American retailer Gap, under the label Yeezy Gap, should hit shelves this summer.