KIM Kardashian has dabbled in almost every business venture she can – from skincare, make-up, equity firms, reality TV and of course Skims.
The 44-year-old has gone from an often-mocked reality TV star known for hysterically crying about losing a diamond earring to becoming one of the most successful business moguls – with Skims now worth £3 BILLION.
But like anything Kim Kardashian does, her success has not come from a stroke of luck, it’s a carefully thought out plan using her celebrity contacts to pose in their sexiest photoshoots yet to push the brand forward and reach fan bases that don’t even like her.
The mum-of-four has managed to get celebrities from across industries to help raise brand awareness – from Olympic sports stars, A-list actors and pop stars to remain relevant.
Just this week, she tapped up three generations of Kate Hudson’s family – for a cosy winter shoot with mum Goldie Hawn and her kids.
Brand and culture expert Nick Ede tells Fabulous: “Kim Kardashian is the queen of brand and with Skims she has really created the ultimate brand vehicle for her to drive sales, keep the brand fresh and build a massive empire.”
Here are the sexiest Skims shoots to date, and how she pulled them off…
Family Affairs
Not only has Kim ensured she stays the face and body of the brand by modelling on the website and on social media, she’s also tapped into her family’s fan base as well.
Kim made headlines when she posed in a crotchless bodysuit – one of her riskier looks and designs to date allowing her to show off her incredible body and sexy line of undies.
Nick says: “Kim has cleverly used her own body to model the collections and then has peppered the drops with a whole host of popular stars.”
And the star is no stranger to using her family ties to help drive sales as well.
She’s had supermodel sister Kendall Jenner pose for the brand in a teeny ting G-string bikini along with Kylie to tap into the families wider fan base.
“Using her supermodel sister is a no brainer and lets hope she got a mate rate for it,” says Nick.
The photoshoot was intentionally left plain with a simple pink backdrop so that you could focus purely on the bikinis and her sisters’ bodies.
While Kendall has a slender supermodel frame to show, Kylie has more curves and used them to her advantage pushing her shoulders back to emphasise them.
“Kim knows that using her family is a brilliant way of keeping them relevant and she mixes the shoots with content for her social media and her sisters and also as part of her HULU TV show which has been commissioned for another 2 seasons.
“Kim carefully uses them to boost her brand but also it boost her sisters too as keeps them cool, stylish and omnipresent.”
Gold Medal
With the Paris Olympics taking place earlier this year, it only made sense for Kim to hop on the trend and use Team US to leverage her business.
Not only was she able to get Olympic medallists such as gymnast Sunisa Lee and track runner Gabby Thomas to model for the brand – they were more than happy to show off their athletic figures in tight-fighting clothes.
Sunisa paired sexy with work as she wore a cropped vest top with tight shorts while waving the US flag as she did the splits in the air.
Gabby Thomas wore a tiny blue and white bikini to show off her hard-earned abs as she proved you can be sexy and the boss as she struck a power pose.
It’s the third Olympics Skims has partnered with Team US after Kim revealed sports was an important part of her life.
“Sports and fitness have always been really important in our family growing up,” she explained to GQ. “Whether it’s skiing every winter or playing a game of tennis on the courts with my parents—or now, with my own children, showing up to cheer on my kids at a soccer or basketball game—I love the way it brings everyone together.”
Nick adds: “Her knack for getting the right talent at the right time is second to none and other brands should be following her lead as she has her finger securely on the pulse when it comes to creating a strategic marketing campaign.”
“She also used great photographers who have done sports illustrated to create strong campaign images that bring the brand to life and gain fans in the sports world too.”
The success of SKIMS
Initially conceived as a vanity project by Kim Kardashian, Skims has metamorphosed into one of the most sought-after lingerie brands, enlisting high-profile names like Jude Bellingham and Nicola Coughlan.
The brand celebrates bodies of all shapes and sizes, and Nicola’s natural curves make her a perfect fit.
Nicola’s stunning debut in a floral “goddess” campaign came just days after Jude Bellingham, the 20-year-old England football star, showcased the men’s line.
Kim praised Nicola, saying: “Nicola is such an inspiration on screen and beyond, and she really brought the campaign to life with her undeniable beauty and energy.”
Since its 2019 launch, Skims has attracted a star-studded roster including Kate Moss, Usher, and Lana Del Rey.
The brand’s value has soared to £3 billion, with a 50% increase in sales last year. Unlike the glitzy allure of premium brands like Victoria’s Secret, Skims excels by blending comfort with subtle elegance, bolstered by savvy viral campaigns.
Kim’s campaign promoting a faux perky nipple bra sparked diverse reactions. Some women found the £64 bra empowering, while others criticised it for objectifying women. Personally, I found it uplifting—both literally and figuratively.
The £70 Skims waist trainer also proved popular, especially among new mothers. Kim revealed she often gifts it to friends post-pregnancy, praising its ability to make her feel “snatched.” Despite health concerns, the corset sold out rapidly online.
Skims has expanded beyond lingerie to include swimwear, dresses, loungewear, PJs, and menswear. The brand’s commitment to inclusivity, featuring a diverse range of celebs and models, resonates with a multi-generational audience.
A notable collaboration with Italian luxury fashion house Fendi in November 2021 further elevated Skims’ profile. The limited collection, starting at $950 (£747), sold out within 24 hours, generating over a million dollars in sales within minutes.
In summary, Skims’ success lies in its unique blend of inclusivity, comfort, and clever marketing, ensuring its place as a dominant force in the fashion industry.
Squashing Feuds
The expert business woman has publicly made enemies in her quest to the top spot – most notably Taylor Swift – but that hasn’t put Taylor’s friends off from joining Kim’s elite list of models so they can show off their seductive side.
Most notably was Sabrina Carpenter’s cutesy look for Skims, posing in pastel baby doll outfits and lingerie sets as she hung out in her bedroom – and it was the first time she’d ever stripped down.
It was the perfect blend of girl-next-door and female sexuality – something Sabrina is known for on set of her Short & Sweet tour.
After the photos broke on Instagram Sabrina had to squash rumours Taylor was upset with Sabrina for posing for Kim, she told Rolling Stones: “I’ve been very, very communicative with her about that situation, and I just love her so much and support her till the end.”
A phone call in 2016 with Taylor and Kim’s ex-husband Kanye West was leaked by her on Snapchat, after Taylor publicly called out the song and its music video for calling her a ‘b***h’ and showing a life-like figure of her naked body.
Kim released the phone call, which appeared to show Taylor was onboard with the song, but it turned out she was never told he would refer to her in a derogatory way. A new leak published on YouTube showed the full version of their conversation.
This led to Taylor withdrawing from the public eye for a year, as people flooded her social media accounts calling her a ‘snake’ after Kim posted the infamous cryptic tweet: “Wait, it’s legit National Snake Day? They have holidays for everyone, everything these days!”
Taylor’s notorious girl squad includes the likes of Lana Del Ray, who came onstage to accept Taylor’s Grammy this year and Sabrina Carpenter, who toured with her during her US leg of the Eras Tour.
And Kim wasn’t going to chance having their fans not buy from Skims – instead opting to have both pop stars model for the brand.
Lana Del Rey opted for an edgy Valentine’s look posing with white roses.
The vintage romantic style of the photos was the perfect collaboration between Kim and Lana and offered a more subtle sexuality to Skims’ usual campaigns.
Nick says: ” She has famously fallen out with Taylor Swift and perhaps her way of healing this rift is by engaging with Taylor’s friends in her campaigns to win over the swifties too! With stars like Lana Del Rey who you wouldn’t think of as a face of a lingerie campaign.”
Acting Out
A-list pop stars aren’t the only brand of Celebrity Kim has branched out from.
She’s had enormous actors pose in their undies for her including the likes of Megan Fox and Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan to keep relevant.
the hyper-sexualised campaign with Megan Fox saw the actress and Kim’s sister Kourtney biting into ‘forbidden fruit’ as their bodies pressed up against each other in classic black undies.
Nick explains: “Tapping into the Bridgerton trend and using the brilliant actress Nicola Coughlan as one of her models keeping her brand ultra relevant and producing brilliant content too.
“Skims is all about embracing any body shape and this way of mixing athletes and actors it marketing genius.”
Nicola wore her infamous strappy dress as she posed surrounded by flowers and what appears to be clouds – inspiration appears to have come from the roman Goddess Venus, who encompasses love, beauty, desire, and sex.
She also set tongue’s wagging for her lingerie as pop star Charli XCX posed in a garden with sprinklers wetting her down in the height of Brat Summer.
Not afraid to show a different side to her dark-club aesthetic – Charli posed in white underwear that had turned see-through thanks to being soaked through from rain.
“Not one to shy away from controversy Kim has had campaigns fronted by stars who have caused a stir, Megan Fox and Charlie XCX have huge fan bases but also have caused controversy tapping into the cultural zeitgeist of BRAT summer,” says the PR expert.
“Using Charlie at the height of her fame is a very special moment that appeals to TikTokers and fashion trendsetters and everyone in between.”
Top Models
To solidify that Skims is a brand that is staying and continues to make waves in the fashion world she’s also recruited an army of top models to get into their undies.
Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Candice Swanepoel united in a sultry campaign wearing pieces from Fits Everybody collection.
The simple look proved you don’t need fancy lingerie to look sexy, instead proving being in your birthday suit is enough.
Kims even managed to blag Kate Moss posing topless for her – a sign that her brand is cemented in the fashion world.
In one of Kate’s sexiest looks to date she paired glam sultry makeup with messy hair and no top to go for en effortless look.
“To make sure that the fashion heayweights respect the Skims brand she has called on supermodels like Kate Moss and Tyra Banks to pose in the product,” Nick adds.
“This builds the brand, and editors from some of the world’s biggest publications feature it, including Vogue and Harper’s.
