The Navy is deeply invested in every move Rihanna makes. Boardroom takes a closer look at the biggest businesses and investments that make up the Rihanna empire, from Fenty to Tidal and beyond.
When Rihanna crooned the lyrics “work, work, work, work,” she took them to heart. The Barbadian billionaire has become one of the savviest businesswomen in the game, creating an enviable portfolio.
This week, she became the first female artist to have 10 singles surpass the 1 billion streams marker on Spotify. She taunted the Rihanna Navy with a celebratory post on Instagram, where she captioned the news, “Bad Gal billi …wit no new album…lemme talk my shit 😜🇧🇧.”
While it’s been a minute since Rih has put out a new album — ANTI came out in 2016 — the nine-time Grammy winner has taken the musical break to jumpstart a business empire that has boosted the value of her individual wealth to an estimated $1.7 billion. Through a combination of savvy investments and industry-changing business endeavors, she’s built a portfolio worthy of the myriad Forbes lists on which she finds herself.
Let’s do a curated rundown of the Rihanna businesses and investments empire, from Fenty to Tidal and beyond.
Rihanna Businesses & Investments Overview
NOTE: This list is Boardroom’s curation of the most important Rihanna’s businesses and ventures and is not to be considered exhaustive.
Fenty Beauty
- Type: Cosmetics & Skincare line
- Role: Co-founder and co-owner with a 50% stake
- Founded: 2017 (with LVMH)
- Valuation: $2.8 billion as of 2022
- Fun fact: When Rihanna flashed a Fenty compact in the middle of her Super Bowl LVII performance, the company brought in an estimated $5.6 million over the next 12 hours.
Savage X Fenty
- Type: Fashion brand
- Role: Co-founder, founding CEO, and current Chairman
- Founded: 2018 (with TechStyle Fashion Group)
- Valuation: $3 billion as of 2022
- Fun fact: The inclusive fashion label, which specializes primarily in loungewear and lingerie, has become known for its star-studded runway shows, each of which have streamed on Prime Video. Past catwalks have featured the likes of Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, Cara Delevingne, Erykah Badu, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Simu Liu, and so many more.
Puma
- Role: Creative Director
- Duration: 2014-2018, returned 2023
- Fun fact: Rihanna revived the classic suede silhouette and took home honors for Shoe of the Year by Footwear News in 2016.
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Tidal
- Company Type: Music streaming platform
- Role: Investor
- Invested: 2016
- Estimated valuation: Sold to Jack Dorsey’s Square for $302 million in 2021.
- Investment payout: $9 million
- Fun fact: At the time of her investment in Tidal, Rihanna was the biggest streaming artist on its top rival, Spotify.
Uber
- Company Type: Rideshare app
- Role: Investor
- Invested: 2016
- Estimated valuation: $87.21 billion
- Fun fact: Uber has a laundry list of celebrity investors that includes Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Leonardo Dicaprio, Ashton Kutcher, and Gwyneth Paltrow
Partake Foods
- Company Type: Black-owned Vegan food company
- Role: Investor
- Invested: 2021
- Fun fact: Rihanna joined Jay-Z’s Marcy Venture Partners and H.E.R. Partake foods was the first Black-owned food company to raise over $1 million, and has brought in $21 million in investments, as of 2022.
Therabody
- Company Type: Tech wellness company
- Role: Investor
- Invested: 2021
- Estimated Revenue: $75 million
- Fun fact: Rihanna joined a star-studded investment round, which also included Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman’s 35V, Jay-Z’s Marcy Venture Partners, and Aaron Rodgers’ growth equity fund Rx3 Growth Partners
Destree
- Company Type: Fashion Brand
- Role: Investor
- Invested: 2022
- Fun fact: Rih participated in an all-woman funding round that also included Beyoncé, Jessica Alba, and Reese Witherspoon.
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