One of the highest-paid models in the world, Gisele Bündchen’s net worth is a whopping $400 million, according to various sources! That is much more than her husband Tom Brady’s, $250 million net worth. But how did she amass such a high net worth within her 25-year-long career? That is quite an interesting story!
Early Life and Discovery
The German-Brazilian beauty was born in Rio Grande do Sul on 20th July 1981 and lived in a large family with her parents and five siblings. Fun fact: she is multilingual and speaks English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and French!
Gisele had no intentions of getting into the fashion industry. As a child, she dreamt of being a volleyball player. But fate had other plans when she and her sisters were made to join modeling classes by their mother to improve their posture and build their confidence.
After completing the course, the girls flew to Curitiba, Sao Paulo, and Rio de Janerio for a vacation. This is where Elite Model Management discovered her. Gisele then participated in the Elite Model Look national contest and ranked second. She finally made her debut in 1996 at New York Fashion Week.
The Beginning
After facing multiple rejections in London, she walked the ramp for Alexander McQueen in 1998. Following this, Gisele did campaigns for high-end brands like Valentino, Ralph Lauren, Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, and Chloe. This led to her being featured on the cover of Paris and British Vogue. i-D did a feature story on her titled “A Girl Called Gisele”. This is when she changed her management to IMG models.
Next, Gisele was a part of the Vogue group cover with fellow supermodel icons Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss. It was a considerable achievement, especially since she had been in the industry for merely two years! She was winning awards, and accolades and had even been the cover girl for Rolling Stones after she won the title of the “most beautiful woman in the world”.
Gisele’s beauty and supermodel status prompted many to call her “the return of the sexy model” and the “uber model”. She is also responsible for making “the Brazilian bombshell” a thing in the modeling industry.
International Success
In 2000, Gisele officially signed a 5-year contract with Victoria’s Secret that catapulted her to international stardom. By now, she had already been the face of 37 Vogue Covers. Brands like Marc Jacobs, D&G, and Valentino continued to be Gisele loyalists and had her walk the ramp during the Fashion Weeks.
You know that Gisele had attained heights of success when she wore the Victoria’s Secret Red Hot Fantasy Bra for their fashion show. Why? Because Guinness World Records mentioned the $15 million lingerie to be the most expensive lingerie of all times! Five years later, she donned the $12.5 million Sexy Spendor Fantasy bra, the second most expensive lingerie.
2004 was the year Gisele officially made her acting debut in Taxi, her co-stars being Jimmy Fallon and Queen Latifah. She was one of the few models to appear in The Devil Wear Prada as Serena, Miranda Priestly’s ex-first assistant who had been promoted to a higher level of management. This was a bold move on Bündchen’s part because Vogue Director Anna Wintour was against the movie. The Devil Wears Prada was loosely based on her and being in this movie could mean going against Nuclear Wintour. That did not stop Gisele though.
After her Victoria’s Secret contract ended, Gisele retired from walking the ramp. While she continues to make occasional appearances on the runway, she mainly continues appearing on various fashion magazine covers.
Her post-runway career consisted of founding Sejaa Pure Skincare, designing flip-flops for Ipanema, endorsing Pantene shampoo, and becoming the face of David Yurman, Les Beiges (Chanel’s makeup line), and the spokesperson for Chanel No. 5. She holds the record for the most Vogue Brazil covers and, from 2014-15 did the most number of commercials in Brazil.
Gisele was listed in Time’s “All-Time 100 Fashion Icons list” and Vogue’s “Spotlight” to honor her as one of the ten supermodels who appeared on most of their covers.
Gisele has also dabbled in music, releasing the cover versions of popular songs for H&M’s charity campaigns in 2013 and 2014. The single even charted in numerous countries! As of 2022, she continues to model, do campaigns, expand her business ventures, and has authored two books.
Conclusion
With such an expansive career it is evident why Gisele Bündchen’s net worth is $400 million. She can turn anything she touches into gold. What is even more heartwarming is how compassionate and giving she is.
Gisele has been focused on social and environmental causes for two decades. She supported the Breast Cancer Campaign, designed jewelry to raise money for hurricane victims, helped raise money to donate to AIDS victims in Africa, and joined the Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program in 2010. These are only a few of her achievements over the years and the list is truly endless.
She remains one of the highest-paid models and celebrities in the world but has always given back to the planet and the world that made her the star she is today. No wonder she is an icon and always, always the moment!
