The Duchess & Dior: how much could Meghan Markle potentially earn compared to stars such as Rihanna?

In 2015, Rihanna was named as the first black woman to front a Dior campaign and said at the time to MTV that “It is such a big deal for me, for my culture, for a lot of young girls of any colour. I think, to be acknowledged by Dior is just… it means a lot as a woman to feel beautiful, elegant and timeless.”

According to Forbes, Rihanna has a net worth of $1.4 billion, so if Meghan Markle does sign for Dior, I am sure she will want to emulate her wealth in the long term.

Before moving on to discuss both Rihanna's earnings and Meghan's potential earnings, I whole heartedly believe that Prince Harry and Meghan losing their £20m podcast Spotify deal will pale into insignificance in no time at all.

Rihanna’s fortune can of course not be attributable to Dior alone but more to do with her partnership with LVMH (headed up by the world’s richest man Bernard Arnault) as a whole. Dior is part of LVMH, as is Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty. In 2021, Forbes wrote that “The bulk of her fortune (an estimated $1.4 billion) comes from the value of Fenty Beauty, of which Forbes can now confirm she owns 50%.”

 Rihanna is of course not the only star who has had partnerships in Dior. In 2014, Page Six reported that Hollywood actress Jennifer Lawrence’s deal with Dior was worth between $15 million and  $20 million. 

Prestige Hong Kong revealed in June 2023 that actress Charlize Theron’s Dior deal is reportedly worth $55 million and said::”One of Theron’s most expensive brand endorsements came when Dior signed an 11-year-long pact with the South-Africa born actress for its J’adore perfume range. With an annual payout of USD 5 million, the deal saw Theron appear in several Dior commercials and billboard adverts.

So, what about the Duchess of Sussex’s potential Dior deal? According to reports if Meghan Markle does sign with Dior, she could be set to earn millions of dollars. The Daily Mail reported that brand and expert Nick Ede told them that “Meghan could become one of the biggest influencers in the world’ and could command millions’ by becoming the face of Dior.”

Nick Ede went on to say that “if the deal goes ahead it could even rival the revenue Kim Kardashian has brought in over the years through her partnership with Dolce & Gabbana-which saw her paid $47 million for simply wearing the designer on her wedding day.”