Bella Hadid always knew the value of a dollar. At 14, she got a job at a juice shop, paying $7 an hour. A fashion force, after hitching a ride on the designer coattails of her older supermodel sister, Gigi, Hadid is the frequent Vogue cover girl. She has a thing for pre-loved clothes and vintage fashion — a deep love of Jean Paul Gaultier, a vast collection of old Hermès, Versace, Mugler, and a sneaker addiction.  

She embraces her Arab roots–-her real estate mogul father Mohamed Hadid is a Palestinian–-and previously wrote on Instagram: “I am proud to be Palestinian.” 

Raised in California, she’s more than someone who looks great in a crop top. Like her steely, dead-serious looks, the Dutch-Palestinian supermodel is dead-serious about her support for Palestine. Recently, in an interview with GQ, Hadid said she is unafraid to lose modeling jobs to continue for the Palestinian cause. 

An advocate of mental health and animal rights, the 25-year-old recently started her entrepreneurial journey, building a line of non-alcoholic, adaptogenic drinks.

A phenomenon in the fashion world, Hadid is now busy with product development, sustainability initiatives, marketing, and rolling out new products for her company. And to be up to speed on her, if you are not already a keen student of Hadidology, here are five things you need to know about her.

SHE MEANS BUSINESS

In 2021, Hadid joined Kin Euphorics, a tonic and wellness drink brand, as the co-founder and partner, alongside Saudi Arabia-raised Jen Batchelor. According to the reports, Hadid loved the products so much that she created decks and presented them to Ari Emanuel, CEO of Endeavor, IMG’s parent company, who pitched Hadid to the brand. 

She’s not just the face of the brand; in addition to her investment, she helps with branding and social initiatives. According to reports, the supermodel plans to infuse Kin drinks with lavender grown on the Hadid family farm in Pennsylvania. The company has raised more than $10 million in funding since launching in 2018. 

SHE’S WORTH MILLIONS

When it comes to the biggest brands in the fashion industry, Hadid represents them on the runway-–and, as you can imagine, representing Victoria’s Secret and Moschino pays pretty well. 

Supermodels are known for more than just their runway work-– featuring in reality TV shows, releasing books, beauty lines— and it’s easy to see how Hadid is pulling in millions of dollars a year. Amid a rumor of launching her clothing, she’s making her acting debut as a guest star in the Emmy-nominated Hulu’s comedy-drama series Ramy.

She signed with IMG Models in 2014, when she was just 16 and is now one of the highest-paid models in the world — her net worth in 2021 was $25 million. 

In 2018, Forbes named Hadid, the eighth highest-earning model; she earned $8.5 million in one year. Today, that number may be much higher. She has partnered with designers and brands like Calvin Klein, Diane Von Furstenberg, Savage X, Moschino, and Alexander Wang, and done major campaigns for Michael Kors, Fendi, Jean Paul Gaultier, Dior makeup, Burberry, and Versace. She is also a member of the VS Collective, Victoria’s Secret’s rebranding effort. 

SHE RULES INSTAGRAM

Her life is documented on Instagram. Often, she is working: lit by flashbulbs backstage at Dior or playing dress-up with Ramy Youssef, the Egyptian-American stand-up comedian. Or, we see her pleading for animal rights (she recently expressed interest in caring for the New York City carriage horse that collapsed on a Manhattan street and got flogged), working out in the gym, or striding with a handful of shopping bags. 

Hadid uses the platform to delve deeper into important social issues. Earlier this year, raising awareness of the discrimination Muslim women face for wearing the hijab, the supermodel shared a series of Instagram posts. Under one of the images, which shows Muslim women dressed in brightly colored outfits, she wrote: “Although different forms of the hijab and head coverings are starting to make an appearance in fashion, let’s still remember the daily struggle, abuse, and discrimination Muslim women regularly face because of their faith and what they stand for.

“To each woman’s body, stand their own opinion on what they should do with it. That is no one’s decision except for theirs.”

Major celebrities like Hadid can make a killing off a single Instagram post. In 2018, Hopper estimated that just one of her sponsored posts would cost $27,000; however, it’s worth noting that Hadid’s following is now larger, at over 54 million. According to some reports, she earns about $49,000 per sponsored post. Hadid’s sponsored posts include Michael Kors and Calvin Klein. If she posts about twice per month, she can pull in over $1 million per year from Instagram. However, her social media sponsorships are just a drop in the bucket of her massive net worth.

SHE’S AN ECO-SHOPPER

Hadid loves all things vintage. She’s been spotted numerous times trawling vintage stores in New York City and has been vocal about her love for second-hand pieces. But it’s not just her love for pre-loved clothes that makes her an eco-conscious shopper; she supports independent brands—Re/Done (it began with a mission to give old Levi’s a second life), Aya Muse (it uses 95% recycled yarns) and Ninamounah (it deconstructs pre-existing pieces into its designs and reclaims deadstock materials)—that are championing sustainable practices, too. 

A BOLD ADVOCATE OF PALESTINE

In the past few years, Hadid has become increasingly vocal about her support for Palestine. Her father, a Palestinian, fled to Syria with his parents during the war in 1948 before settling in the US. “I have this overwhelming anxiety of not saying the right thing,” Hadid said at the Rep podcast. “I know my family enough, I know my own history enough. And that should be enough.” In a recent Instagram post, she reaffirmed her commitment to fighting for Palestine, writing, “I will never allow anyone to forget about our beautiful Palestine or our beautiful people.” Earlier, she revealed that her advocacy for the Palestinian cause had caused some companies to stop working with her.