Has Cara Topped Kate As Britain’s Highest Earning Model?

Cara Delevingne might have retired from modelling to pursue a career on the silver screen, but she has topped a new estimated list of Britain’s highest-earning models thanks to continued lucrative work with Chanel, Rimmel and Puma.

The 24-year-old model, who hung up her runway stilettos in 2015, reportedly earned £8 million last year, according to a recent survey, which looked at catwalk day rates and commercial deals. If the statistics are true, it will mean that Cara Delevingne not only earns roughly £22,000 a day, she has taken the crown from Kate Moss, who is said to have earned £5m in the last year.

While Kate Moss has profitable contracts with Equipment and Rimmel, she lacks the social media influence of Cara Delevingne. The model-turned-actress has over 40 million Instagram followers, which is a powerful incentive for brands looking to push products to a larger audience, particularly the Instagram generation. Moss joined the platform in September 2016 via her modelling agency, and has 630,000 followers, in comparison.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who is also a keen social user with 7.6m Instagram followers, allegedly beats Moss, with an estimated £6.5 million in annual earnings. The new mother, who welcomed her first baby, Jack Oscar, with fiancé Jason Statham last month, continues to enjoy a fruitful lingerie design contract with Marks & Spencer’s Rosie For Autograph line, and Autograph make-up.

David Gandy, the only male model in the new list, comes in fourth place, with a reported annual salary of £4 million, thanks to contracts with Marks & Spencer underwear and Dolce & Gabbana fragrance.

If the study is accurate, fifth place is awarded to Naomi Campbell with an annual salary of £3 million. Georgia May Jagger, Edie Campbell, Jourdan Dunn, Erin O’Connor and Lottie Moss follow, respectively.