David Gandy is a lucky lad, he was born beautiful in times when good looks are more than just a personal asset. They’re currency in a multi-billion-dollar industry. Good looks help to sell everything and anything under the sun. The global modeling industry gross revenues this year are estimated to be about $3 billion with consumer goods accounting for a substantial 64% of this low overhead lucrative trade.
David’s career begins modestly, winning a modeling competition on a British daytime TV show in 2001. Despite rapidly ascending the ranks to become one of the highest-earning male models, he was working in the shadows of relative anonymity.
That all changed when in 2007 David Gandy become the face of luxury fashion house Dolce & Gabbana. This rocketed him into the stratosphere of supermodel stardom. Forbes, citing 2022 earnings at $1.4 million and a cumulative $16 million over his two decades in the business.
Fortuitous Chromosomes
The story on his luck takes an interesting turn when contemplating the dynamics within the industry. Had the fortuitous XY chromosomes made David Gandy a woman instead of a man his income would have been significantly larger. On average male models get paid 75% less than women. Gisele Bündchen for instance, who like David was also born in 1980, take home pay last year was $40 million. Over her long and celebrated career $400 million. And that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
In the complex interplay of beauty and economics David Gandy’s future unfolds auspicious. Male models can enjoy extended careers, smartly navigating the runways and film sets well into their 50s. Dolce & Gabbana new fragrance Light Blue, for instance, is banking on a 44-year-old David Gandy to sway consumers. Traditional gender norms are crumbling, and men are opening to the use of cosmetics. The men personal care market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.04% during the next five years, nearly doubling the pace of the broader cosmetics industry.
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