Reality TV star, business woman and influencer, Kim Kardashian has officially been declared a billionaire by business magazine, Forbes.
According to the magazine’s estimate, her wealth jumped by more than $200 million since October 2020, from a worth of $780 million last year to $1 billion this year - only five years after the magazine first reported she had made her first $51 million.
Kim’s money reportedly comes from her TV income, endorsement deals, smaller investments as well as her two lifestyle brands.
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Here's a quick overview of how Kim accumulated her wealth over the years.
2006 – Kim and sisters open their DASH store
In 2006, Kim alongside her sisters, Khloe and Kourtney opened DASH – a clothing boutique in Calabas, California. The boutique then expanded to other places such as Miami and New York. The Kardashian sisters then closed the stores in 2018 to focus on their families and other business ventures.
However, the expansion of their shop earned them two more TV deals while they were still on Keeping Up With The Kardashions: Kourtney and Kim Take Miami and Kourtney and Kim take New York.
2007 – Kim sues the entertainment company that distributed her sex tape
During this year, Kim was embroiled in a scandal that saw her sex tape with musician, Ray J Norwood being leaked to the public. Kim then sued the entertainment company that had distributed the tape and reportedly made $5 million from the lawsuit.
During that year Kim also posed for Playboy and the shoot was aired on her family’s reality show. Bringing in a lot of ratings for the already popular show.
2009 – Kim releases her own workout DVD
Titled Fit In Your Jeans by Friday, Kim’s DVDs were split into three sections called, “Ultimate Butt Body Sculpt,” “Amazing Abs Body Sculpt,” and “Butt Blasting Cardio Step.”
In the same year she started her acting career and appeared in productions such as Deep in the Valley. In 2013 she appeared in Tyler Perry’s Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor.
2010 – 2015: Kim ventures into the beauty industry
From 2010 to 2015, Kim and her sisters dipped their hands in everything from perfume to makeup to clothing. They first launched a self-tanning gel and months after that, Kim launched her own fragrance, 'Kim Kardashian'. She then went on to launch many more of her own fragrances.
In 2011, Kim also got married to NBA player, Kris Humphries. Although that marriage only lasted for 72-days, the wedding earned Kim $18 million in licensing fees, endorsement deals, and broadcast deals.
During these years she also launched the Kimoji app which crashed Apple’s app store when it first went live. She also launched her Android and Apple game, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, which took off immediately and reportedly made roughly $1.6 million in its first five days of release.
In 2017 Kim launched KKW Beauty and her first product sold out within minutes and and made over $13-million in sales. The business continues to thrive today. In 2019, Kim also launched, SKIMS Solutionwear, a shapewear line that's done and is continuing to do very well.
According to Forbes, Kim's KKW Beauty and SKIMS and 'cash from reality television and endorsement deals, and a number of smaller investments' are the key sources for her current wealth.
Today, she continues to maintain her brand, she does multiple speaking engagements and her businesses are thriving.
