Top finishers at Vietnam beauty pageants boost earnings as models

By Trang Shaelyn    April 11, 2019 | 05:02 pm PT
Vietnamese women doing well at beauty pageants can significantly boost their modeling incomes to $5,000-$15,000 for a single show.

Miss Vietnam 2014 Ky Duyen has said that she can earn more than $5,000 for participating in a fashion show. 

Vu Khac Tiep, manager of famous model Ngoc Trinh, known for modeling lingerie, love scandals and brazen outspokenness, said she can get contracts worth $10,000-20,000 to catwalk in a show. 

Other beauty queens who do well at international beauty pageants, like Top 5 Miss Universe finisher H'Hen Nie, can see their paycheck go up a dozen times their previous earnings. 

Top 5 Miss Universe finisher HHen Nie can see her paycheck go up a dozen times her previous earnings. Photo acquired by VnExpress

Top 5 Miss Universe finisher H'Hen Nie can see her paycheck go up a dozen times her previous earnings. Photo acquired by VnExpress

Before she was crowned Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 and competed in Miss Universe 2018, the highest pay H'Hen Nie got was lower than $1,000. 

Nam Em, another beauty queen, is also able to earn up to $10,000 for a show after earning a Top 8 spot at Miss Earth 2016. 

"Fashion brands can accept a model's pay package ranging from $5,000-15,000, which would include wearing branded clothes on the red carpet, modeling as a vedette, and engaging and posting on social media. 

"A vedette’s paycheck depends on various factors like title, reputation and experience. It can also vary based on the relationship between beauty queens and designers," a media representative of IVY Moda, a domestic brand, told VnExpress iOne

"Beauty contest runners up may get lower payments of $2,000-$5,000. Such earnings, though higher than professional models, are common."

Ky Duyen has said that she can earn more than $5,000 for participating in a fashion show. Photo acquired by VnExpress

Ky Duyen said that she can earn more than $5,000 for participating in a fashion show. Photo acquired by VnExpress

Well-known fashion designers Do Manh Cuong and Ha Duy also said that a $10,000 paycheck for a model is not rare if it was not an individual fashion show, and a brand wanting to cast beauty queen as a vedette can certainly pay that much. 

Some beauty queens can accept a lower payments because of their close relationships with designers. 

Fashion designer Ha Duy said: "Normally, I invite beauty queens who are on good terms with me and have modeled in my shows as a vedette several times, so the pay can't be that high. 

"Sometimes, they are even willing to be on the catwalk show for free."

Model Ha Kino, a contestant at Vietnam's Next Top Model 2012, said the average paycheck for other models at the show was just VND2 million, or $86.41. 

 
 
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