From reality TV to riches: Kim Kardashian's net worth story

By: Shawn
Kim Kardashian has used her reality TV fame to become one of the world's most successful businesswomen, with an estimated fortune of $1.7 billion, according to Forbes.

Kim Kardashian.
Getty Images for Baby2Baby

Kardashian's family rose to prominence in the 1990s, when her father, Robert Kardashian Sr., represented O.J. Simpson in court. As a young adult, she worked as a stylist for Brandy Norwood in the early 2000s before becoming her friend Paris Hilton's assistant and featured on Hilton's show, "The Simple Life." Kardashian and her two sisters, Khloé and Kourtney, eventually founded their apparel boutique DASH in Calabasas, California, and later expanded to New York City's SoHo and Miami, Florida.

The most significant turning point in Kardashian's career, however, was the premiere of her family's 2007 reality television series "Keeping Up With the Kardashians." The show propelled Kardashian and her family to popularity, ultimately leading to her current status as a billionaire and cultural celebrity.

Forbes now estimates Kardashian's net worth at $1.7 billion, the majority of which comes from her interest in Skims, her shapewear brand.

Skims was worth $4 billion as of July 2023

Kardashian launched her shapewear and fashion brand Skims in 2019, changing the name from Kimono after cultural appropriation allegations. The brand's shapewear range offered distinctive shapes, such as an asymmetrical short that can be worn with a thigh slit.

Since then, the business has expanded its offerings beyond shapewear to include loungewear and basics. According to The New York Times, shapewear no longer accounted for the majority of the company's sales as of July, and the company intends to begin selling men's goods this fall.

The New York Times reported in July that Skims secured $270 million in a fresh investment round, bringing its valuation to $4 billion. In 2022, the brand was worth $3.2 million.

Jens Grede, Kardashian's business partner and Skims' CEO, told the Times that the company was profitable and that he planned to someday take it public.

Forbes estimates that Kardashian owns at least one-third of Skims, implying that the $270 million fundraising round increased her net worth by almost $500 million.

Kardashian has also made money from her family's several reality projects

"Keeping Up With the Kardashians" aired for 20 seasons from 2007 to 2021. In 2017, The Hollywood Reporter cited unidentified industry insiders who said that Jenner and her daughters earned $4.3 million per year for "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," with Jenner collecting a portion of her children's earnings as "momager." That year, the family extended its contract with E! for the show until 2020, with an anonymous insider telling Variety at the time that the deal was "below $100 million." (When contacted by Variety, an E! spokesman declined to comment on the deal's conditions.)

The Kardashians subsequently shifted their reality television operation to Hulu, debuting "The Kardashians" in March 2022. Khloé Kardashian told Variety that the entire Kardashian family will be paid the same for the series, stating that they were "all equals." Variety reported, citing anonymous insiders, that the family's contract with Hulu was for nine figures.

Kardashian started KKW Beauty in 2017, but later closed it and launched a skincare business

People stated that Kardashian began her own cosmetics business, KKW Beauty, in 2017 with a series of contouring kits.

According to The Financial Times, in June 2020, cosmetics major Coty agreed to pay $200 million for a 20% share in KKW, valuing the company at $1 billion.

Then, in 2021, Kardashian stated that KKW would be closing in order to start a whole new brand, People said. In June 2022, she debuted SKKN by Kim, a skincare line priced at $575 for the entire nine-product range.

Kardashian entered the investment industry in 2022

Kardashian revealed in September 2022 that she was founding SKKY, a private equity firm, with Jay Sammons and her mother Kris Jenner as partners.

According to a press release, the company intended to invest in "consumer products, digital & e-commerce, consumer media & entertainment, hospitality, and luxury."

Though Kardashian and Sammons declined to confirm the figure with Fortune, the outlet said that SKKY is trying to raise $1 billion to invest in startups.

Kardashian's mobile game was also very successful

"Kim Kardashian: Hollywood," a smartphone game starring Kardashian that allows players to build their own celebrity career, was released in June 2014. According to Forbes' July 2016 cover story, the game was downloaded 45 million times, producing $160 million in revenue and earning Kardashian an estimated $45 million.

Kardashian has a line of bespoke emoji as well

Kardashian released "Kimoji," an app that provided users with hundreds of Kim Kardashian-themed emoji, in late 2015. According to Fortune, the software cost $1.99 and peaked at number one on Apple's software Store paid apps list in February 2016. According to Fortune, the app made it into the top 50 biggest grossing apps for Apple at the time.

According to the Washington Post, the app's developer sued Kardashian in 2019 for $300 million, accusing her of depriving him of income. According to Fortune, Kardashian won her lawsuit in 2020.

Kardashian also owns a range of real estate properties

Kardashian's first house purchase was a condo in Beverly Grove, Los Angeles, in 2005, which she later sold for $885,000 in 2010, according to Architectural Digest.

During her divorce from ex-husband Ye, also known as Kanye West, Kardashian paid $23 million for his part of their Hidden Hills house in 2021, People claimed. According to Architectural Digest, the former couple bought a Bel Air property for $9 million in 2013 and sold it for $17.8 million in 2017.

In 2022, Kardashian bought Cindy Crawford's former Malibu home for $70.4 million, according to Architectural Digest.

According to a February 2022 Vogue cover story, Kardashian had two more real-estate projects in the works: architect Tadao Ando was working on a Palm Springs residence, and architect Kengo Kuma was developing a glass-and-wood lake house for her.

Kardashian has a car collection estimated to be worth millions

TMZ revealed photos in April 2023 of a line of matching gray automobiles outside Kardashian's Hidden Hills house, estimating their value at around $2 million. Kardashian previously showed off some of her favorite automobiles in a 2022 Vogue interview.

Kardashian revealed in the Vogue interview that all of her cars are gray to match her residence. In the video, she displayed a Lamborghini Urus Mansory, a Rolls-Royce Ghost, and her personal favorite, a Maybach sedan.

Kardashian has a range of other cash streams, including paid Instagram postings and a blossoming acting career.

Kardashian stated at The New York Times DealBook conference (via CNBC) in 2019 that she employs judgment when it comes to paid social media posts, and that she will occasionally assess whether or not to do them based on how much she has spent or anticipates spending. She also stated at the conference that she will occasionally accept paid posts if she thinks she can use the money to finance legal bills for people in prison.

Kardashian has also worked on a number of acting ventures throughout the years, including a voice role in the "Paw Patrol" movies. She also appeared in "American Horror Story: Delicate" with Emma Roberts and Cara Delevingne.

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