By Jessica Frost
@jessicaxfrost
The modelling industry is one of a few industries’ where females dominate and make up almost 100% of the highest paid spots. It would take a while to list off all of the mega models who are making bank yet I could probably count on one hand the number of wildly successful male models. The whole equal pay debate is a whole other article, but it is kind of great to be a part of an industry where women aren’t paid less than men simply for being women.
The reason female models are paid more though is unfortunately a very predictable and stereotypical answer. To put it simply, women are easier to sell to, and tend to – no, most definitely, spend more money on fashion and beauty then men.
It would be great to be able to tell you that female models get paid more because they work harder and are more valuable but in reality, it comes down to marketing and money. And look, you’re going to have to forgive me for all of the stereotypes in this article because unfortunately, a lot of them are a reality.
When a man goes shopping, he walks into a store he likes, he picks up two pairs of jeans, a few t-shirts, button up shirts, maybe a couple of trendy jackets and there, he’s set for the year. Women on the other hand, visit multiple shops, have dresses, shirts, skirts, shorts, pants, jeans and accessories to buy and all of that again for a different occasion. Men keep it simple whereas women research before they buy, they’re more influenced by trends and brand names and they have a tendency to indulge a little more than men.
Fashion brands know this. They know that there’s a lot of money out there in females’ wallets waiting to be spent and they know they have stiff competition in the market. So what do they do? They choose a model that aligns with their key market, someone the people they are selling to like, and stick their face all over their ad campaigns in the hope of influencing women to shop with them.
Major fashion conglomerates pay millions of dollars to sign a model on to be the face of their brand. When you look at their figures though, the cost of buying a models representation is only a fraction of what they stand to profit off of the relationship.
It’s not just ad campaigns that contribute either. There are significantly more fashion brands for women and we dedicate two months of every year to parading females down runways in the latest designs. It comes back to the fact that women spend more and require more versatility so the industry gives it to them. It means that for every job a male model can get walking a runway, a female can get 20.
Then there’s the beauty industry. The beauty industry is an estimated $445-billion-dollar industry that is continuing to grow year after year. When you’re talking numbers like that, it only makes sense that A) these companies have the big bucks to be spending on high profile models and B) investing in their advertising is only going to make them more money. And who do cosmetic company’s brand their product toward? That’s right, women. Most men don’t need mascara and foundation and lipstick and advanced skincare. And women are obviously more likely to buy from another woman. So these brands tap female models and actresses
It all sounds a little more sinister then it really is. Marketing is at the core of everything that goes on in the fashion industry and really, we’d be lost without it. But it goes to show that female models get paid more because there are more opportunities for them and more competition within their market.
