The Rise of the Celebrity Side Hustle

 Millie Mackintosh at her pop-up shop launch in London, September 2016.

It is a weird time to be make your living as a pop star. It is almost impossible to buy a new album on an average British high street, yet at every Boots in the country you can buy fragrances from Shawn Mendes, Little Mix, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande, as well as Cristiano Ronaldo and Sarah Jessica Parker.

Celebrity fragrance has long been an easy way to squeeze extra cash from fans, but according to the latest figures, it could be falling out of fashion. Fashion forecaster Euromonitor International has predicted just a 3% annual growth rate between 2017 and 2022 for fragrances – meaning the market is set to lag behind that of both cosmetics and skincare.

However, in the last few years, celebrity makeup, clothing and other luxury lines have moved from a side hustle into a multi-billion-dollar industry that can generate fortunes for the famous that far surpass the money they make for doing the thing they’re famous for.

 Drake’s OVO store opening in Canada.

Rihanna now makes more money from her Fenty Beauty makeup line than she does from music – the company turned over $100 million in its first 40 days trading. By comparison, in the whole of 2016, the last year she had a record out, she earned $7.6m from streaming and $2.5m from music sales. Drake is expected to make a $50m revenue this year from his OVO clothing brand, which opened a bricks-and-mortar shop in London’s Soho earlier last year. That’s $3m more than Forbes estimated he made from all his ventures over the previous year, despite being the most streamed artist in the world.

Cassandra Napoli, associate editor of digital media & marketing at fashion trend agency WGSN, says there is more to these lines than just putting your name to a product. “What’s new is celebrities creating brands that are relevant now, that tie into this cultural moment. With Rihanna, it’s about inclusivity and diversity, which has long been a topic on the runways for the past couple of years. When she launched her first foundation it came in 40 shades.”

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