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Gisele Bündchen

Model

She led the wave of curvy Brazilian models in the early 2000s and frequently topped Forbes' list of highest-paid models.

Biography

Gisele Bündchen is the world’s top earning model and one of its most recognisable faces. The Brazilian model has remained the woman every man wants and every woman wants to be for over a decade.

In 1997 Bündchen traveled to London, where she attend 42 go-sees. She got her big break when chosen for her ability to walk in heels—on a slippery runway—for Alexander McQueen's spring 1998 "rain" ready-to-wear show. In 1998 she appeared in campaigns for Missoni, Chloé, Dolce & Gabbana, Valentino, Gianfranco Ferré, Ralph Lauren , and Versace campaigns. That year she made the cover of the French Vogue, and i-D featured her on its cover, profiling "A Girl Called Gisele."

In 1999 Vogue dubbed a feature on her "The Return of the Sexy Model." She was credited with offering a new proposition to the "heroin chic" era of modelling.

She established herself as the model of her generation when she simultaneously graced the covers of both American and British Vogue for the January issues of the new millennium. She is the fourth model in history to grace the cover of Rolling Stone, which named her "the most beautiful girl in the world.”

In 2000, her record-breaking contract with Victoria's Secret helped solidify her status as the world's top model. Bündchen was a Victoria’s Secret Angel from 2000 until mid-2007. She also opened for Marc Jacobs , Michael Kors , Dolce & Gabbana, Dior, and Valentino in Spring/Summer 2020.

From 1998–2003, Bündchen was in every Dolce & Gabbana fashion campaign, totalling 11 consecutive campaigns with the brand. From 2006–2009, she returned as the face of the brand's fragrance “The One." In 2006, she played a minor character in The Devil Wears Prada. In February 2007, Bündchen returned to the Milan runway by opening and closing Dolce & Gabbana's show.

In October 2011, Bündchen made a surprise runway appearance during Paris Fashion Week, closing the Givenchy Spring/Ssummer 2012 fashion show. That season she won three major spring campaigns — Versace, Givenchy, and Salvatore Ferragamo. By the end of 2012 she had appeared on 120 Vogue covers.

In 2013 she collaborated with H&M to release a charity single, appearing in the retailer’s campaign. In February 2013 it was announced that she was the face of Chanel's new make-up range, Les Beiges, in a campaign shot by Mario Testino. The same year, topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid models for the seventh year in a row. In 2016 she was again ranked number 1, with earnings of $30.5 million, and in 2018 was ranked fifth (tied with  Cara Delevingne ) on earning $10 million.

Bündchen is married to American football player Tom Brady. The couple has a son and a daughter together, and in 2016 were the only couple aside from Beyoncé and Jay-Z to feature in Forbes' Celebrity 100 list.

Vital Statistics

Born
20 July 1980
Nationality

Brazil

Location
United States
Member since
2013

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What is The BoF 500?

The people shaping the global fashion industry, curated by the editors of The Business of Fashion, based on nominations and on-the-ground intelligence from around the world.