Candice Swanepoel one of top 10 highest paid models

South African stunner raked in R26 million last year.

She has walked the catwalks for only the best in the industry, and now Candice Swanepoel is getting paid handsomely for that.

At 23 years old, Swanepoel is a Victoria’s Secret model, a title carried by a select few (including Tyra Banks and Gisele Bündchen, among others). She is also the youngest model on the list and the only African.

Swanepoel’s modelling credits includes covers for Vogue (Greece), Elle (Germany) and advertisements for Nike, Diesel, Guess and Versus Eyewear. She has walked the runway for Tommy Hilfiger, Dolce & Gabbana, Sass & Bide, Betsey Johnson, Diane von Fürstenberg and numerous other designers, as well as for Victoria’s Secret.

The Kwazulu-Natal-born model was discovered in a supermarket in Mooi River. She is currently based in New York and is a regular at fashion weeks all over the world. According to Forbes, Brazil's Gisele Bündchen earned R376 million during the year. She has been at the top of the list for eight years running. Forbes states that chief marketing officer of Limited Brands (the parent company of Victoria's Secret), Ed Razek believes the top 10 models have deservedly earned their cash, as supermodels are hard to come by.

“In the entire history of the Victoria’s Secret fashion show, 140 separate women have walked that runway. There are seven billion people on the planet. That makes each of them not one in a million, not one in five million, not one in ten million. That literally makes them one in 50 million humans.”

In addition, Forbes states the combined earnings of the top 10 highest-paid models, from Bündchen to Swanepoel, totals just under $100 million (R827 million).

The Forbes list of the top 10 highest-paid models in the world is as follows:

1. Gisele Bündchen – R376 million
2. Kate Moss – R76 million
3. Natalia Vodianova – R71 million
4. Adriana Lima – R61 million
5. Doutzen Kroes – R57 million
6. Alessandra Ambrosio – R55 million
7. Miranda Kerr – R33 million
8. Lara Stone – R31 million
9. Carolyn Murphy – R29 million
10. Candice Swanepoel – R26 million