Diane Gilman, born in 1945, is an American designer and entrepreneur who became famous for her clothing line sold on the Home Shopping Network channel. She is known as the Jeans Queen, and was credited with being the first designer to introduce washable silk to the market.
So how much is Gilman’s net worth? As of early 2017 based on authoritative sources it is reported to be $5 million, acquired from her years working as a designer and selling her creations in various stores and platforms in the US.
Diane Gilman Net Worth $5 Million
Born in Beverly Hills, California, Gilman always had a penchant for creating her own clothes, that’s why it is no surprise that she became a designer. From sewing her own clothes when she was younger, while studying at the University of California, Los Angeles, she and her girlfriends opened their own clothing store.
During the 1960’s, Gilman’s clothing store I’m A Hog for You Baby started a buzz in Los Angeles with their loud prints and twiggy-inspired patterns. All of a sudden stars like Cher and Anne Margaret were dropping by her stores and buying the girls’ creations. Her early years in the fashion world opened many doors for her in Hollywood, and also established her net worth.
With the success of her first clothing line, Gilman decided to move to San Francisco and follow the growing music scene in the city. She dated a recording agent during the late ‘60s, and soon found herself in the same room with Janis Joplin. Unknown back then, Gilman created custom jeans for Joplin and they became a hit. Soon other musicians took notice of her creations and wanted pieces for themselves, too. Some of the artists that she worked with included Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and the Doors, Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead, Grace Slick, and Jefferson Airplane.
After her success in San Francisco, Gilman then decided to move to New York in the mid ‘70s to infiltrate the fashion capital. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to hit it off right away, so started working at Bloomingdales selling foundation.
When Gilman came across the store’s fashion coordinator, she mentioned that she designed clothes and wanted to show some of her creations. Soon, Bloomingdales placed thousands of orders to Gilman, and the store started selling her garments. She introduced her signature design, Cabal and later on she was credited as the first designer to introduce washable silk onto the US market. Her success in New York catapulted her to become one of the most famous designers of her time, and tremendously increased her wealth.
Despite the fame, Gilman faced major challenges when her partner died of cancer. At 50, she suffered depression and gained weight. When she decided to get back to designing clothes, she found out that not many stores offered clothing for women her age and her generation, the Baby Boomers. So in 1994 when Gilman came back to designing, she introduced her new line that caters to women like her, on the Home Shopping Network, designing jeans, tops, dresses, and shorts among other items. Her clothing line became a hit, and first sold out in a matter of minutes during her first appearance on HSN.
Aside from HSN, she has also appeared on other shopping networks like The Shopping Channel Canada, QVC in UK, Italy and France, and TVSN Australia.
Today, Gilman is still selling her line in HSN, was able to publish a book in 2013 entitled “Good Jeans: 10 Simple Truths about Feeling Great, Staying Sexy, and Aging Agelessly”. She also regularly writes for HuffPost 50.
In her personal life, her unnamed husband died in the late ‘90s, but otherwise nothing is known of Diane’s private life.
