The 25 Richest Designers in the World
If you appreciate good design, then I’m sure you’re going to enjoy this list.
These designers have produced work in a variety of different industries and are not only some of the richest in the world but also the most talented.
Take a look at our list of the 25 richest designers in the world and let us know what you think!
The 25 Richest Designers in the World
The list of designers and figures mentioned below have been compiled from various sources around the web, such as celebritynetworth.com.
These are the 25 richest designers in the world:
25. Oscar de la Renta
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Net Worth: $200 Million
Starting off our list is Dominican-born fashion designer, Oscar de la Renta.
Throughout his life, he was one of the world’s top fashion designers.
His love for fashion started in Madrid whilst he was studying art at the Academy of San Fernando.
He began sketching for some of Spain’s leading fashion houses and worked his way to the top of the industry, from apprentice to award-winning prestigious designer.
24. George Condo
Net Worth: $200 Million
Next on the list of richest designers is a visual artist that goes by the name of George Condo.
George is an American artist that focuses on painting, printmaking, sculpture, and drawing.
Condo coined the term “Artificial Realism” in the 1980s and has been exhibited all over the world.
In 2018, one of his paintings sold for $6.16 million.
23. Christian Audigier
Net Worth: $250 Million
French fashion designer and entrepreneur, Christian Audigier was best known for his multiple fashion lines including, Ed Hardy, Rock Fabulous, and Crystal Rock.
His career began in his hometown of Avignon, where he worked as a salesman. He quickly rose up the ranks and was hired as a denim designer for Mackeen Jeans.
Nicknamed the “King of Jeans” he worked with brands like Diesel, Elio Fiorruci, Bisou Bisou, and Levis.
His fashion brand, Ed Hardy, was the brand that really established him as one of the world’s top fashion icons.
22. Tamara Mellon
Net Worth: $280 Million
The first female on our list is Tamara Mellon, a British-born businesswoman, and entrepreneur.
She is most famous for being the co-founder of Jimmy Choo, a luxury perfume brand.
Starting out, Tamara worked at Phyllis Walters Public Relations as an accessories editor for British Vogue.
She then started her own company, Jimmy Choo, and had more than 100 wholesale clients by 2001, including Harvey Nichols and Harrods.
Her company (Jimmy Choo) was acquired by Labelux in 2011.
21. Jean-Paul Gaultier
Net Worth: $300 Million
Jean-Paul Gaultier is a French fashion designer born in Paris on April 24, 1952.
Having never received any formal fashion training, he began his career by sending sketches to stylists he liked.
His break came when Pierre Cardin hired him as an assistant. From there, he went to work for Jacques Esterel and Jean Patou.
Finally, he returned to Pierre Cardin before launching his own collection in 1976.
He has seen great success in the fashion world and might be more recognizable to some for his highly successful perfume range.
20. Paul Smith
Net Worth: $390 Million
With a net worth of $390 million, Paul Smith is one of the richest designers in the world.
As an English fashion designer who grew up in Beeston, Nottinghamshire, he gained his fortune from his menswear brand.
A tailor by trade, Smith worked on Saville row, practicing his skills and sharpening his eye for design.
He was presented with an opportunity to create designs for notable celebrities, that came to Lincroft Kilgour tailors in Savile Rowe.
Starting his fashion business with a small amount of savings and support from his wife, he has since gone on to achieve great success and be recognized as a respected designer.
Paul was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2000.
19. Jony Ive
Net Worth: $400 Million
The friendly face and voice behind Apple’s product commercials, Jony Ive, has managed to amass a net worth of $400 million.
He first worked as a designer in the UK at the beginning of his career and then flew to the US to work for Apple.
He designed many of Apple’s flagship products including, the iMac, the iPod, the iPhone, and the MacBook.
He’s won numerous awards and was knighted by Princess Anne for his contributions to his field in 2012.
18. Tom Ford
Net Worth: $500 Million
Tom Ford is an American fashion designer and film director.
The majority of his wealth was accumulated whilst working for Gucci and YSL as a creative director, and his own fashion brand, Tom Ford.
Born in Austin Texas, Ford rose to fame by turning around the Gucci fashion house when they were going through difficult times.
His own label also significantly boosted his credibility and demand within the industry.
His work with Gucci and other prestigious brands secured his place in the fashion and retail world.
17. Roberto Cavalli
Net Worth: $500 Million
The first Italian designer on our list is Roberto Cavalli.
Born in Florence, Italy in 1940, Roberto’s career began in 1970 but he was relatively unheard of until 1990 when his career really took off.
Stars like Brigitte Bardot and Sophia Loren wore his clothing back in the day and now more recently, the youthful ‘it-crowd’ are seen sporting his latest creations.
His most recent work includes leopard prints and quality tailoring.
16. Michael Kors
Net Worth: $600 Million
Having a net worth of $600 million makes Michael Kors one of the richest designers in the world.
He is an American-born fashion designer, whose real name is Karl Anderson, Jr.
His mother was a model, who introduced him to the fashion world.
Karl began to design his own clothes and dropped out of college to start working in the industry.
After launching his brand, Michael Kors, he fought his way to the top and was recognized by Time Magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2013.
15. Vera Wang
Net Worth: $650 Million
Starting out her professional life as a figure skater, Vera Wang has become one of the richest designers in the world.
She decided to shift her focus toward fashion after not making the US Olympic figure skating team.
Vera is most recognized for her wedding gown designs, worn by a number of celebrities, and has designed fragrances, eyewear, jewelry, and shoes.
14. Calvin Klein
Net Worth: $700 Million
One of the most famous and recognizable names on our list is Calvin Klein.
He developed a passion for sewing from his grandmother and practiced sketching and design work throughout his youth.
Graduating from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, he began his professional career as an apprentice to a suit manufacturer.
He launched His company in 1968 and thanks to some smart marketing campaigns, he successfully lent his name to a number of different products that have done very well.
13. Pierre Cardin
Net Worth: $800 Million
Italian-born French fashion designer, Pierre Cardin has a net worth of $800 million.
Starting out young, Pierre went to work as a tailor’s apprentice at the age of 17. He moved to a Parisian fashion house and began to design costumes for films.
By the 1970s, he was widely regarded as one of the top fashion designers in the world. He has received a variety of awards for his designs and creations.
12. Peter Nygard
Net Worth: $900 Million
Founder of Nygard International, a women’s clothing company, Peter Nygard is a Canadian fashion executive, born in Helsinki, Finland.
He immigrated to Canada from Finland with his parents in 1952 and gained a degree in business from the University of North Dakota.
In 1967, he established his clothing company by getting together all the money he could and purchasing a percentage of a women’s clothing manufacturer.
After seeing some initial success, he bought the rest of the company and renamed it Nygard International.
11. Tory Burch
Net Worth: $1 Billion
The first billionaire on our list is Tory Burch.
She is an American fashion designer, philanthropist, and entrepreneur.
Born June 17, 1966, in Pennsylvania she has won numerous fashion awards for her designs.
Her company now has over 120 stores worldwide, including New York, Los Angeles, London, Rome, Tokyo and Seoul.
The Tory Burch brand is also available online through her e-commerce stores, which are available in seven languages.
10. Christian Candy
Net Worth: $1.1 Billion
Our first male billionaire is Christian Candy.
Christian is a British high-end property developer and interior designer who is the second half of the London-based design team Candy & Candy.
He is probably best known for his part in the development of the luxury condo One Hyde Park in London, which is one of the most expensive residential buildings in the world.
The Candy brothers worked their way up from fixing up flats in London, to designing some of the world’s most luxurious properties.
9. Valentino Garavani
Net Worth: $1.5 Billion
Valentino Garavani is best known as an Italian fashion designer and founder of Valentino SpA.
He began his career as an apprentice for his aunt and a local designer. He relocated to Paris to study and then left to open a fashion house in Rome.
His first glimpse of success came at his first show at the Pitti Palace, where he received a number of orders from foreign buyers and positive comments from the press.
Valentino built his impressive fortune over a successful 45-year career.
8. Stefano Gabbana
Net Worth: $1.7 Billion
Number 8 on our list of richest designers is one half of Dolce & Gabbana, Stefano Gabbana.
Stefano is an Italian fashion designer, born in Milan, Italy. When he began working for an atelier in 1980, he met his future business partner, Domenico Dolce.
The pair opened their first fashion company in 1982, specializing in women’s clothing. Since then, the company became extremely successful, won a number of awards, and is recognized worldwide.
7. Domenico Dolce
Net Worth: $1.7 Billion
The second half of the Dolce & Gabbana due is Domenico Dolce.
Domenico is an Italian fashion designer who was born in Sicily. He started out his professional life working with his father, a tailor by trade.
After relocating to Milan, he met up with Stefano Gabbana and formed Dolce & Gabbana shortly after.
Their first big break came in 1984 when they were invited to participate in Milan Fashion Week.
Since then, they’ve gone from strength to strength and designed costumes for a number of celebrities, such as Maddona and Whitney Houston.
6. Patrizio Bertelli
Net Worth: $5.2 Billion
Patrizio Bertelli is the CEO of Prada S.p.A and made his fortune by setting up a small factory in Arezzo, making belts, bags, and leather goods.
He won a contract to produce leather goods for Prada and then became the mastermind behind the Prada label.
Along with his wife, he transformed the company into a global fashion behemoth, resulting in an impressive $2.4 billion in sales!
5. Tim Sweeney
Net Worth: $8 Billion
Starting off the top five count down is American game developer and CEO, Tim Sweeney.
Tim began developing a shareware company called Epic, whilst he was still in college. After college, he started developing and launching a number of games, eventually breaking through with the hit game “ZZT”.
He launched “Epic Games” and went on to develop a series of first-person shooter games, called “Unreal”.
Among many other games, he also developed “Gears of War” which he sold to Microsoft for an undisclosed figure.
Net Worth: $8.2 Billion
Occupying the fourth spot on our list is Ralph Lauren, an American fashion designer whose net worth is $8.2 billion dollars.
Proving that college isn’t for everyone, Ralph dropped out of his business degree to start selling menswear.
Later on, he began designing his own line of men’s clothing and accessories.
Today, Ralph owns 35 boutique shops in the US and is regarded as one of the most famous and successful fashion designers ever!
Net Worth: $9.6 Billion
Giorgio Armani takes the third position on our list of the richest designers in the world.
With a net worth of almost $10 billion dollars, he’s best known for his clean-cut power suits, which featured in films like Miami Vice.
After suits came to a whole host of other business ventures. By the end of the ’90s, Armani had over 2,000 stores across the world and annual sales of around $2 billion.
2. Miuccia Prada
Net Worth: $11.1 Billion
The wife of Patrizio Bertelli, number six on our list, Miuccia Prada is an Italian fashion designer and businesswoman, with an impressive net worth of $11.1 billion.
Miuccia Prada took over the family luxury goods manufacturing business in 1978, which was previously owned by the Prada brothers.
She started making waterproof backpacks until she met her husband, Patrizio. From there, they began acquiring other companies and turning the business into a fashion powerhouse.
1. Satoshi Nakamoto
Net Worth: $19 Billion
Almost doubling the net worth of the second richest designer in the world, Japanese-American computer software developer, Satoshi Nakamoto is the richest designer in the world.
Shrowded in mystery, Satoshi Nakamoto is allegedly the elusive creator of the popular cryptocurrency, Bitcoin!
He lost two jobs and his home to financial misfortune, so it’s thought that this is what led him to create a digital currency.
Now, no-one knows for sure, but Nakamoto has managed to amass a $19 billion dollar fortune pretty darn quick!
However, it’s a bittersweet situation for him, as he’s been unable to cash in on his Bitcoin, through fear of revealing his true identity!
So, watch this space!
Summary
So there you have it, we hope you enjoyed our list of the 25 richest designers in the world.
They’re some truly talented people with incredible abilities.
Here’s a quick recap of the 25 richest designers in the world:
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- Satoshi Nakamoto – $19 Billion
- Miuccia Prada – $11.1 Billion
- Giorgio Armani – $9.6 Billion
- Ralph Lauren – $8.2 Billion
- Tim Sweeney – $8 Billion
- Patrizio Bertelli – $5.2 Billion
- Domenico Dolce – $1.7 Billion
- Stefano Gabbana – $1.7 Billion
- Valentino Garavani – $1.5 Billion
- Christian Candy – $1.1 Billion
- Tory Burch – $1 Billion
- Peter Nygard – $900 Million
- Pierre Cardin – $800 Million
- Calvin Klein – $700 Million
- Vera Wang – $650 Million
- Michael Kors – $600 Million
- Roberto Cavalli – $500 Million
- Tom Ford – $500 Million
- Jony Ive – $400 Million
- Paul Smith – $390 Million
- Jean-Paul Gaultier – $300 Million
- Tamara Mellon – $280 Million
- Christian Audigier – $250 Million
- George Condo – $200 Million
- Oscar de la Renta – $200 Million
