Skims Hits $5 Billion: Kardashian’s Shapewear Empire Bags $225M to Bulk up Stores, Activewear — and Beauty

The New York Times, the Guardian, Bloomberg, Business Insider, and Reuters contributed to this report.

Kim Kardashian’s Skims just notched a fresh $5 billion valuation after raising $225 million, a new milestone for the 2019 upstart that began with shapewear and now plays across loungewear, intimates, and a fast-growing activewear lane. The new cash, led by Goldman Sachs Alternatives with participation from BDT & MSD Partners, will fuel broader intimates and shapewear lines, a deeper push into apparel and activewear, and a bigger retail and international footprint.

The timing lands as the brand increasingly behaves like a full-scale retailer rather than a DTC darling. Skims operates 18 U.S. stores plus two franchise locations in Mexico and says it’s laying the groundwork to become a predominantly physical business over the next few years. It’s also leaning into performance: a women’s activewear partnership with Nike is in motion, part of a broader strategy to meet customers well beyond the underwear drawer.

Kardashian, Skims’ chief creative officer, called the raise a springboard to “take Skims to the next level” and keep setting the category standard. CEO and cofounder Jens Grede framed it as a vote of confidence in the long-term plan and “disciplined execution,” even as he’s downplayed any near-term IPO talk despite saying the company “deserves” to be public someday.

On the numbers, Skims says it’s on track to top $1 billion in net sales in 2025. Earlier this year, the company consolidated brand reach by acquiring Kardashian’s beauty line SKKN from Coty, and it has since tapped Diarrha N’Diaye (founder of Ami Colé) to build out Skims Beauty — another sign the label is angling to become a multi-category juggernaut.

The scale is already eye-catching. At a $5 billion valuation, Skims now stands larger than Victoria’s Secret and Under Armour combined by market cap, underscoring how far a celebrity-led brand can go when it pairs viral marketing with inclusive sizing and relentless category expansion. Forbes now pegs Kardashian’s net worth at roughly $1.9 billion, with this deal adding about $200 million to her fortune.

From a single shapewear rack to a sprawling omnichannel brand with global ambitions, Skims is betting that the next phase of growth will be built in real stores, powered by new product categories — and amplified by one of the world’s biggest social platforms wearing the CEO title.