• 5. American model Gigi Hadid made an estimated $9 million in 2021. AP Photo
    5. American model Gigi Hadid made an estimated $9 million in 2021. AP Photo
  • 4. Britain's Rosie Huntington-Whiteley raked in $9 million through various projects. AFP
    4. Britain's Rosie Huntington-Whiteley raked in $9 million through various projects. AFP
  • 3. British actress and model Cara Delevingne made $19 million. AFP
    3. British actress and model Cara Delevingne made $19 million. AFP
  • 2. Brazilian model Adriana Lima made an estimated $30 million. AFP
    2. Brazilian model Adriana Lima made an estimated $30 million. AFP
  • 1. Kendall Jenner, from the US, reportedly earned $40 million. Reuters
    1. Kendall Jenner, from the US, reportedly earned $40 million. Reuters

How the five highest-paid models in 2021 made their money, from Gigi Hadid to Adriana Lima


  • English
  • Arabic

Bella Hadid has been named as the new face of Swarovski jewellery meaning the Palestinian-American model can add another high-profile brand to her already impressive list of contracts.

While both parties are remaining tight lipped on how much money the deal is worth, as a famous face with 51.8 million Instagram followers, it is sure to be worth a pretty penny..

Despite the age-old cliche of modelling being a "brainless" pastime, in reality, it can be very lucrative with big-name models regularly picking up six-figure sums to head up a brand, resulting in net earnings that run into tens of millions of dollars. To give an idea of how much the top models actually earn, here are the five who earned the most over the past 12 months.

5. Gigi Hadid, $9 million

US model Gigi Hadid arrives for the 2022 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022, in New York. Photo AFP
US model Gigi Hadid arrives for the 2022 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022, in New York. Photo AFP

Bella's older sister Gigi has an estimated personal wealth of $29m, and has earned her money from fashion shows, a Maybelline campaign and being a Victoria’s Secret Angel, a gig that pulled in up to $1m per year.

Gigi has graced multiple magazine covers, and is go-to in the industry. In 2016, she was named International Model of the Year by the British Fashion Council, and has since gone on to work with Guess, Tom Ford, Balmain, Missoni, Moschino and Isabel Marant.

That same year she collaborated on a clothing line with Tommy Hilfiger, and last month announced that her own clothing line will be unveiled soon. She is also taking on television work, and later this year will be co-host on Queer Eye. She is estimated to have earned $9m in 2021.

4. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, $9 million

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley on the autumn winter 2010 runway, for Louis Vuitton. Photo: Louis Vuitton
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley on the autumn winter 2010 runway, for Louis Vuitton. Photo: Louis Vuitton

The British model has an estimated fortune of $30m, built up from modelling and her long-running lingerie line with Marks & Spencers. The partnership has now expanded to cover perfume and swimwear.

While pregnant with her first child, Huntington-Whiteley also launched her own beauty line called Rose Inc, meaning that in addition to modelling for names such as Ralph Lauren and Bloomingdales, she is thought to earn in the region of $9m per year.

3. Cara Delevingne, $19 million

British model Cara Delevingne arrives for the 2022 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022, in New York. Photo AFP
British model Cara Delevingne arrives for the 2022 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022, in New York. Photo AFP

The English model-turned-actress is a wealthy woman with more than $37m in the bank. Since signing with Storm Management in 2009, Delevingne has worked with many high-profile brands, including Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, and Louis Vuitton, and was named Model of the Year at the British Fashion Awards in 2012 and 2014.

In 2012, she branched out into acting, and has appeared in Suicide Squad and Valerian, among others. While Delevingne is more focused on acting than modelling these days, contracts with Tag Heuer, Burberry and YSL Beauty mean her earnings last year were more than $19m.

2. Adriana Lima, $30 million

Brazilian top model Adriana Lima poses on the red carpet for the opening gala of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, on September 25, 2021. Photo EPA
Brazilian top model Adriana Lima poses on the red carpet for the opening gala of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, on September 25, 2021. Photo EPA

The Brazilian model is thought to be worth $95m, with much of that coming from her long-running contract with Victoria’s Secret, between 1999 and 2018.

In 2015 and 2016, she was named by Forbes as the second-highest-paid model, much of which came from being ambassador to Puma, Maybelline, and IWC watches. In the past year, Lima earned just short of $30m.

1. Kendall Jenner, $40 million

The highest-earning model of 2022, Kendall Jenner, arriving at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala May 2, 2022, New York. AP
The highest-earning model of 2022, Kendall Jenner, arriving at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala May 2, 2022, New York. AP

Although born into a wealthy family, Jenner, 26, has now earned more than enough on her own, and is worth a rumoured $45m. In 2018, Forbes first named her the "world's highest-paid supermodel," citing earnings that year alone of $22.5m, a status not damaged by the disastrous Pepsi ad the year before, that was so slammed, the company withdrew it.

As famous off the runway as on it, much of Jenner’s fortune has come from endorsements such as Marc Jacobs, Fendi and Estee Lauder, and, of course, her social media posts. With more than 200 million followers, Jenner charges up to $700,000 per post. In the past year, she has earned a reported $40m, making her the highest-paid model for the third year running.

WORLD CUP FINAL

England v South Africa

Yokohama International Stadium, Tokyo

Saturday, kick-off 1pm (UAE)

Avatar: Fire and Ash

Director: James Cameron

Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana

Rating: 4.5/5

The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra

Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa

Rating: 4/5

Sui Dhaaga: Made in India

Director: Sharat Katariya

Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav

3.5/5

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

The bio

His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell

His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard

Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece

Favourite movie - The Last Emperor

Favourite personality from history - Alexander the Great

Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos

 

 

Gulf Under 19s final

Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B

Name: Brendalle Belaza

From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines

Arrived in the UAE: 2007

Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus

Favourite photography style: Street photography

Favourite book: Harry Potter

Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”

Poland Statement
All people fleeing from Ukraine before the armed conflict are allowed to enter Poland. Our country shelters every person whose life is in danger - regardless of their nationality.

The dominant group of refugees in Poland are citizens of Ukraine, but among the people checked by the Border Guard are also citizens of the USA, Nigeria, India, Georgia and other countries.

All persons admitted to Poland are verified by the Border Guard. In relation to those who are in doubt, e.g. do not have documents, Border Guard officers apply appropriate checking procedures.

No person who has received refuge in Poland will be sent back to a country torn by war.

Specs

Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric

Range: Up to 610km

Power: 905hp

Torque: 985Nm

Price: From Dh439,000

Available: Now

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

  • be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
  • not be younger than 25 years old
  • not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
  • be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
  • have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
  • undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
  • A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
%3Cp%3EThe%20Punishment%20of%20Luxury%3Cbr%3EOMD%3Cbr%3E100%25%20Records%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

The Little Things

Directed by: John Lee Hancock

Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto

Four stars

Updated: May 31, 2023, 11:14 AM