Celebs cashing in with racy bikini lines – Kim Kardashian’s £2bn empire to Michelle Keegan’s unusually-named swimsuits | The Sun
GET your suncream on and your pasty bits out – and slip into some celeb swimwear.
Today marks National Bikini Day and we are already getting our two-pieces out ahead of this weekend’s scorcher.
But this year celebs are way ahead of the game and already cashing in on our love of the humble bikini.
Some have even released their own cozzie companies while others have collaborated with existing brands.
From Lizzo’s body positive suits to Love Island’s Montana Brown’s sustainable swimwear, finance expert Gemma Godfrey takes a look at the savvy stars and their swimwear.
Montana Brown – Swim Society
Love Island star Montana Brown might not have found love in the villa but she did come up with a business idea for recycled bikinis.
She had just completed an economics degree before her season in 2017, so it’s no surprise she spotted a gap in the market while sunning herself with contestants.
Last year Swim Society landed a six-figure funding injection so expect to see more cozzies from Montana.
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Gemma said: “By focusing on the clothing item worn the most on the show that made her famous, Montana is cleverly catering to the interest of her fan base, to sell bikinis and build her business”
Kate Hudson – Fabletics
Actress Kate Hudson’s yummy mummy athleisure wear brand this year launched its own swimwear line.
The Almost Famous star, 43, co-founded the chain in 2013 and now has a 20 per cent stake in the £413million ($500million) business.
Last year she took a step back from being the face of the brand to take up an advisory role – as well as being an ambassador for WW.
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Gemma said: “Kate has created a consistent brand focused on the wellness market, while testing the demand for different products, from supplements to distilled drinks.
“Her activewear brand Fabletics has grown exponentially, and while she’s still paid for partnering with other brands, she savvily prefers to promote products from companies she owns.”
Emily Ratajkowski – Inamorata
Model Emily Ratajkowski, 31, rose to fame for starring in Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines video.
The video led to a successful modelling career and garnered Emily 29.4million Instagram followers.
So when she launched the bikini line Inamorata in 2017, her eager fans saw that the items sold out in 24 hours.
In addition to her fashion line, last year she released her memoir My Body.
Gemma said: “Emily has made money by taking back ownership of her body.
“From her book, to the swimwear company she co-founded, Inamorata, she has converted her social media followers into customers.”
Abbey Clancy – F&F at Tesco
She's not just a pretty face, Abbey Clancy has shown her business nous by designing a range of sustainable swimsuits for Tesco.
The 70s-inspired range also has inclusive sizing going up to a size 22 and has made Abbey’s company worth £700,000.
The model started partnering with Tesco’s clothing label F&F last year – with a clothing line modelled by her kids.
Meanwhile, Gemma believes this could be the start of a Clancy-shaped empire.
She said: “Abbey has moved from modelling to supermarket partnership deals, with her Tesco swimwear range.
“She’s also not putting her eggs in one basket, by profiting from a growing portfolio of properties.”
Candice Swanepoel – Tropic of C
South African model Candice Swanepoel has already posed for Victoria’s Secret Angel swimwear range and even for the Kardashians.
These gigs helped the 33-year-old become the 8th highest earning model according to Forbes – earning £2.7million (£3.3million) a year.
She piled her profits into swim range Tropic of C in 2018, which she also modelled.
Gemma said: “The Victoria’s Secret model knows the secret to making the big bucks.
“She commanded high fees on the catwalk and has taken this to the bank by modelling her own swimwear line to her large social media following.”
Kim Kardashian – SKIMS
Worth £1.4billion, Kim Kardashian has already been hugely successful in her reality TV, skincare and underwear careers.
This year she’s launched her own swimwear brand to chime in with her bikini-laden Instagram posts.
She appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition to launch the range while continuing to holiday with boyfriend Pete Davidson.
Her Skims clothing range in total is worth an eye-watering £2.45billion.
Gemma said: “Building on her hugely successful shapewear brand Skims, Kim has branched into swimwear, enabling her to profit from her holiday snaps.
“It coincided nicely with her Sports Illustrated front-cover debut a couple of months later.”
Gigi Hadid – Frankies Bikinis
Model Gigi Hadid caused a storm when she posed in matching Frankies cozzies with daughter Khai last summer.
The green sets sold out immediately, according to owner Francesca Aiello, a school friend of Hadid’s.
Now this year Hadid has designed her own range for the brand, beloved by a host of celebs like Kendall Jenner and Hailey Baldwin.
Gemma said: “Gigi is very savvy to now profit from her pull with the public. Helping to sell out products that she has collaborated on will be far more financially rewarding.”
Stacey Solomon – In The Style
X Factor contestant turned Loose Woman Stacey Solomon charmed the public by showing her “real” body in a bikini in 2017.
During the video she said: “I thought I’d make a little holiday video celebrating my society labelled ‘imperfections’ because actually I love them, they’re part of me, and they have their uses.”
She’s now come full circle by designing her own cozzies for In The Style which promise to “cover flaps”.
Gemma said: “Stacey is a regular mum and has been extremely switched on to realise this chimes with other working mums.
“She’s modelled her own swimming range and capitalising on her fan base as a hugely-liked and body positive TV personality.”
Michelle Keegan – Orfila Bee
Our Girl star Michelle Keegan has already dipped her toe in the fashion business – modelling hubby Mark Wright’s fitness gear line.
Now Michelle, 35, is capitalising on her reputation as a stunner by launching her own range.
Called Orfila Bee, the multiway swimsuit is named after her nan and her home city of Manchester.
Gemma said: “With a successful acting career continuing to build, Michelle is taking her finances into her own hand with the launch of her own business ventures.
“She is taking on the swimwear market with the potential for sales from her six million Instagram followers alone.”
Lizzo – Yitty Swim
Plus-sized singer Lizzo has made body positivity cool with her shapewear line Yitty.
She launched a bejewelled swimwear range from the label in April – coincidentally owned by Fabletics.
The brand will no doubt add to her estimated £10million fortune.
Gemma said: “Lizzo’s move from lucrative endorsement deals to launching her own products is well timed.
"She’s entering a growing market, and her products are available not just on the company’s own website, but available to an already well established customer base via Fabletics online and in stores”.
Selena Gomez – La’Mariette
Actress and singer Selena Gomez is no stranger to an endorsement but has just launched a swimsuit capsule collection.
La’Mariette is owned by her friend Theresa Mingus and she even launched the brand while revealing a scar from her 2017 kidney transplant.
In addition to swimwear, Selena has also modelled for Puma and struck a deal with make up giant Sephora.
Gemma said: “Having started working at the age of seven, she has amassed a considerable fortune and invested in other people’s businesses too.
“Adding swimwear designer to the long list of her money-making activities is just the latest in the expansion of her business empire.”
Kylie – KYLIE SWIM
Swimwear was a rare miss for Kylie Jenner, the youngest of the KarJenner sisters last year.
The swimming, costume and bikini range did not enjoy the success of her lip kits and skincare lines.
Fans took to TikTok to complain about the quality of the range – with some claiming the items were see-through or falling apart at the seams.
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Gemma says this could be a real learning curve for Kylie.
She said of the line: “While its initial launch wasn’t met with the same praise as her sister Kim’s, if the range becomes a core focus, the power of the marketing machine of the Kardashian-Jenner family shouldn’t be underestimated.”
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