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The fashion industry has experienced massive growth in the past decades. It’s a multibillion-dollar business, with designers from all over the world vying to be at the top of their game. Yet in the world of fashion, there are a few names that stand out above the rest in terms of the wealth they have created from the profession. In this article, we’ll tell you the top 10 names that have amassed huge wealth from fashion and are ranked among the top 10 richest fashion designers in the world. Also, we’ll also tell you how they make their money, and their net worth.
If you dig down their history, you’ll discover that these high-end fashion designers started quite small- with only a sewing machine and a dream. Notwithstanding, with creativity, they have turned their art into a lucrative business. The latest trends, styles, and other elements in the market are the products of creativity that the leading fashion designers give us every season.
Who is a Fashion Designer?
A fashion designer is someone who designs clothes for people to wear. These artists create clothing brands that follow trends, styles, and ideas they have come up with in the process of designing their new line or collection. They come out with the latest trends, styles, and other elements in the market every season.
How Much do Fashion Designers Make?
There is no limit to how much a fashion designer can make. This generally depends on the level of success of the fashion designer. Whereas most of them can make millions (or billions) of US dollars every year, others may only be able to be making a living wage.
The top 10 richest fashion designers are all worth more than $1 billion with some even nearing $5 billion! With these numbers, it’s not hard to see why so many people want in on the action.
Top 10 Richest Fashion Designers in the World 2024
Here is the list of the top 10 richest fashion designers in the world:
- 10. Tom Ford ($500 million)
- 9.Vera Wang ($650 million)
- 8. Calvin Klein ($700 million)
- 7. Michael Kors ($1 billion)
- 6. Tory Burch ($1.5 billion)
- 5. Valentino Garavani ($1.5 billion)
- 4. Domenico Dolce & Stefano Gabbana ($1.7 billion)
- 3. Miuccia Prada ($5 billion)
- 2. Ralph Lauren ($7.5 billion)
- 1. Giorgio Armani ($9.6 billion)
10. Tom Ford
- Net Worth: $500 million
- Born: August 27, 1961
Tom Ford completes our list of the top 10 richest fashion designers in the world, with a net worth of $500 million. He’s had a hugely successful career as a fashion designer and as a movie director. Ford has also written and directed two films: A Single Man and Nocturnal Animals.
Tom Ford made most of his fortune as a creative director of both Gucci and YSL, two of some of the most expensive clothing brands in the world. He also founded his own namesake brand which was sold to Estee Lauder in 2022 for $2.8 Billion.
Ford deals in Men and women’s wear and over the years, has been the favorite designer to numerous stars for several occasions and has never stopped being applauded for his creativity by the crowd. Notably, he designed the floor-length ivory gown that was adorned by Michelle Obama when she visited Buckingham Palace in 2011.
9. Vera Wang
- Net Worth: $650 million
- Born: June 27, 1949
Vera Wang is among the richest fashion designers in the world with a net wort of $650 million. She is popular for her wedding gown designs that have been worn by celebrities including Jennifer Garner, Holly Hunter, and Alicia Keys. She not also design wedding gowns, but she’s also designed housewares, shoes footwear collections, fragrances eyewear, and jewelry.
Wang launched her bridal boutique about 15 years after she worked as a senior fashion editor and as a designer at Ralph Lauren. Today, Wang’s ready-to-wear labels can also be spotted in nearly every major department store, earning the designer a $650 million estimated net worth.
8. Calvin Klein
Net Worth: $700 million
Born: November 19, 1942
Calvin Klein is one of the most famous names in the fashion world. As of 2024, he is worth $700 million to emerge as the 8th richest fashion designer in the world.
Calvin Klein started his fashion house as a coat shop in New York in the year 1968. Later, he graduated from lifestyle and accessories to home furnishings and Jewelry.
He is popular for his Calvin Klein clothing brand, a brand he launched in 1968. Calvin began his professional career immediately after graduating from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology as an apprentice to a suit manufacturer. He is reputable for his simple, clean, and urban style designs.
7. Michael Kors
- Net Worth: $1 billion
- Born: August 9, 1959
We have gradually gotten to the billionaires league in the fashion designing industry. Rightly so, Michael Kors opens the list with a net worth of $1 Billion as of 2024. He serves as chief creative director and honorary chairman for Michael Kors clothing brand. Prior this time, he also worked at the House of Celine as a designer of the Women’s ready-to-wear line.
Born Karl Anderson, Jr., he ventured in to fashion designing thanks to his mother who was a model.
After launching his brand, Michael Kors have a record of 770 lifestyles around the world. His products include handbags, and shoes, alongside his women’s ready-to-wear clothes.
As of 2024, Michael Kors has a net worth of $1billion, making him one of the richest fashion designers in the world, on the seventh spot.
6. Tory Burch
- Net Worth: $1.5 billion
- Born: October 27, 1966
Borch is the founder and CEO of TRB by Tory Burch, a branch she founded in 2004. She has successfully grown her company to have over 120 stores worldwide including Los Angeles, London, New York, Rome, Seoul, and Tokyo. In addition, Tory Burch brand is also available online through her e-commerce stores, which are available in seven languages. She is number 6 on the list of the richest fashion designers in the world in 2024.
Burch studied at Brown University before dropping out to pursue an internship at Vogue magazine. She then attended the Parsons School of Design in New York City where she studied textiles.
Burch started out her career as a journalist, serving for four years at W Magazine while also writing features on fashion and popular culture. She left Vogue to become Fashion Director and Editorial Director of GQ magazine from 1998-2001 before launching her own brand in 2004.
5. Valentino Garavani
- Net Worth: $1.5 billion
- Born: May 11, 1932
Valentino Garavani is an Italian fashion designer who started out his career as an apprentice for his aunt and a local designer. He has grown to build up a net worth of $1.5 billion over the 50 years of his career, making him the fifth richest fashion designer in the world.
Garavani has dressed movie stars and celebrities, including Michelle Obama. He is popular for making brilliantly gorgeous gowns after his first handmade gown was showcased in the year 1962. Nowadays, 90-year-old Valentino Garavani’s name can be seen on everything from wedding gowns to ready-to-wear pieces and perfumes
4. Domenico Dolce & Stefano Gabbana
- Net Worth: $1.7 billion
- Born: November 14, 1962
This Italian designer duo founded their luxury fashion house in 1985. They have created a wide variety of designs, including rich and extravagant fabrics with eclectic patterns to bold gangster suits that look like they are from the Prohibition era. Domenico and Stefano maintained a relationship from 1982 until 2003.
They created diverse designs which included rich, extravagant, and luxurious fabrics and this greatly made way for this name. Today, they duo are worth $1.7billion each, making them one of the richest fashion designers in the world in 2024.
They have made several outstanding designs and they have expanded to include more than just fashion – they now encompass everything from fragrances to eyewear or hotels!
As of 2024, each of them is worth over $1.7 billion, earning them a place on the billionaires list for fashion designers.
3. Miuccia Prada
- Net worth: $5 billion
- Born: May 10, 1949
Miuccia Prada is an Italian fashion designer and businesswoman, with an impressive net worth of $5 billion. She took over the family luxury goods manufacturing business in 1978, which was previously owned by the Prada brothers. Her leadership as the creative director has seen the brand expand to become one of the household names in the fashion industry.
Notably, she started out by making waterproof backpacks from Pocone fabric. Today, Miuccia is known for her elegant yet understated designs that focus on a woman’s curves while still maintaining a sense of fun and intelligence.
Prada products are the favorites of celebrities since they are all gorgeous and of the highest quality.
2. Ralph Lauren
- Net Worth: $7.5 billion
- Born: October 14, 1939
Ralph Lauren is the second richest fashion designer in the world in 2024 with a net worth of $7.5 billion. The American fashion mogul has a Polo Ralph Lauren brand that generates over $4 billion in revenue per year.
He started his career manufacturing men’s neckties and later graduated to designing his own menswear and accessories in 1968.
The brand is currently broadened, involving other investments apart from denim and footwear. He owns 35 boutique shops in the US and is regarded as one of the most famous and successful fashion designers ever!
1. Giorgio Armani
- Net Worth: $9.6 billion
- Born: July 11, 1934
Giorgio Armani is the richest fashion designer in the world with a net worth of $9.6 billion. The Italian fashion designer and entrepreneur is the founder of the Armani Company, which started as a boutique in 1965 named Arma.
He is best known for his clean-cut power suits, which featured in films like Miami Vice. He also designed women’s wear too and has over 300 boutiques in the US. Armani is credited with being one of the first designers to bring Italian style to an international audience
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