Outrage as Forbes calls Kylie Jenner a 'self-made' billionaire

Published Jul 12, 2018

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LONDON - Forbes is the place to go for numbers — but maybe not for words.

Many people are taking issue with the magazine's definition of "self-made", after it placed Kylie Jenner on its latest cover.

The publication branded her the "cosmetics queen", declaring on the cover: 'At 21, she's set to be the youngest-ever self-made billionaire. Welcome to the era of extreme fame leverage.'

According to the publication, Kylie - who is set to turn 21 on August 10 - is currently worth an estimated $900 million thanks to her cosmetics line. 

The Internet immediately lit up with reaction, with even Dictionary.com appearing to throw shade.

On Wednesday it tweeted the definition: 'Self-made means having succeeded in life unaided.

'Used in a sentence: Forbes says that Kylie Jenner is a self-made woman,' it added, posting a link to the Forbes article.

Many more on Twitter took umbrage, with one pointing out that "calling Kylie Jenner a ‘self-made billionaire’ is like claiming you made soup from scratch because you opened a can and reheated it."

'For the love of God, I seriously want to break something when I see the very epitome of privilege described as "self-made". For f*** sake, if you start the 40-yard dash on the 39-yard line, you are NOT self-made,' a second posted.  

'“Self-made”? Really? It’s easy to become a billionaire when you’re parents are millionaires...It’s called generational wealth + nepotism. Try Oprah Winfrey, who was raised on a small Mississippi farm by her grandmother, for self-made *whispers Kylie also isn’t a billionaire yet*' a third tweeted.

A fourth asked: 'Does Forbes know what Self Made means? 

Another claimed 'Calling Kylie Jenner self made is like saying cardi b spelled "kulture" right.'  

Self-made or not,  once she crosses the $1billion mark, she will unseat Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg as the youngest-ever self-made billionaire.  

In the story accompanying the cover, Forbes said they estimate that Kylie Cosmetics has raked in $630 million since it launched in 2015. 

'Even using a conservative multiple, and applying our standard 20% discount, Forbes values her company, which has since added other cosmetics like eye shadow and concealer, at nearly $800 million. Jenner owns 100% of it.

'Add to that the millions she's earned from TV programs and endorsing products like Puma shoes and PacSun clothing, and $60 million in estimated after-tax dividends she's taken from her company, and she's conservatively worth $900 million, which along with her age makes her the youngest person on the fourth annual ranking of America's Richest Self-Made Women,' the article reads. 

According to the article, Kylie employs just seven full-time and five part-time employees at her company, outsourcing production and sales. 

As with all of her kids, Kris handles her daughter's finance's and public relations for a 10% fee. Last year, that meant Kylie paid her mom $17 million.

-DAILY MAIL

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