Anoushka Batra

       Kylie Jenner. When you hear that name there are many things that can come to mind. You may think about the very popular reality t.v. show, Keeping up with the Kardashians which follows the Kardashian-Jenner clan as they show off their everyday lives. You may think of Jenner’s new makeup line-KylieCosmetics.

        Kylie Cosmetics is most popular for its $29 lip kits. It was founded in 2016 and has been operating for two years. It has been said that within those two years Jenner’s cosmetic line has generated over $900 million dollars, automatically naming Jenner as one of the youngest ¨self made¨ female billionaires in America.

       It is not surprising that Jenner has produced such a large amount of money in sales as she is the sole owner Kylie Cosmetics. The controversy that Kylie Jenner is currently facing is not over how she made the money so quickly, but over if she really is as Forbes claims ¨ self made.¨

      Over the summer, Forbes Magazine tributed Jenner by placing her on the cover of their July issue, declaring her ¨the youngest-ever self made billionaire,” claiming  her current value to be $900 million. As soon as Forbes released this cover there was much  debate on whether or not Kylie Jenner really deserved to be on the cover of Forbes Magazine, which was devoted to ¨America’s Women Billionaires.”  Sure, Kylie Jenner does 100% own Kylie Cosmetics and sure it was completely her idea, but Jenner never had to start completely from nothing.

     Kylie Jenner was born into the Kardashian family which instantly made her well known among society, as she has been appearing on television and walking red carpets with her famed family since the age of 10. She also has 115 million followers on instagram alone making her very well known by the public.  

     I do believe that Kylie Jenner deserves to be named as one of the youngest female billionaires, but I would have to strongly disagree with the idea that she is self made. If Jenner did not have her family’s wealth as a cushion, I think she would be looked at a lot differently.  She may even be more respected, because she would be putting all she has on the line with her cosmetics business.

    By definition, Kylie Jenner is not a self made billionaire; however, she surely is one of the youngest female billionaires America has seen. Putting someone as well known as Kylie Jenner in a category so diverse as this one can be seen as unfair to the women who really did start from nothing and despite the odds made names for themselves and legacies that will last forever. Kylie Jenner is unquestionably a success, but she didn’t get there by herself and her story is certainly not unique.