Wolfgang Joop Net Worth in 2023 Career & Relationship
| Estimated value: | €40 million |
|---|---|
| Age: | 77 |
| Born: | 11/18/1944 |
| Country of origin: | Germany |
| Source of Wealth: | entrepreneur |
| Last updated: | 2021 |
Short introduction
Wolfgang Joop was born on November 18, 1944 as the son of Gerhard and Charlotte Joop in Potsdam. He spent his early childhood on the Bornstedt estate, which belonged to his grandparents and was located near Sanssouci Palace.
In 1954 the family left the estate and moved to Braunschweig. Joop passed his Abitur here in 1964 and then began studying advertising psychology. However, Joop broke this off and changed the course to art education. After some time he also finished his studies and started to work as a restorer instead.
In 1970, Wolfgang Joop married Karin Benatzky, who was studying art at the time. The couple took part in a fashion competition organized by Constanze magazine. Joop received the first three prizes and began working as a fashion editor for the Hamburg women’s magazine “Neue Mode”.
Joop spent the following years as an independent fashion journalist and designer. In 1978 he finally made his international breakthrough as a fashion designer with the presentation of his own fur collection. The New York Times gave him the title “Prussian Designer”.
Career
Wolfgang Joop’s career began in 1978 after he made his breakthrough as an international designer. In the years that followed, he worked on expanding his name under the JOOP! to make known.
His first women’s collection appeared in 1982, followed by a men’s collection in 1985. A perfume collection followed in 1987, which JOOP! as a coveted lifestyle brand. The company’s products found a targeted placement in the middle price segment in order to appeal to as large a target group as possible. In the 90s, JOOP! finally on the marketing of various licensed products.
As business differences became apparent over time, Joop slowly withdrew from the company. In 1998 he sold 95 percent of his company shares for around 150 million DM to the Hamburg-based company. He initially remained as the brand’s chief designer, but left the company entirely in 2001 and sold his remaining five percent.
In 2003, Wolfgang Joop founded the fashion brand “Wunderkind” together with his life partner Edwin Lemberg. Although the fashion label has struggled with ups and downs since then, it has managed to garner international attention. In 2004, the label’s first international fashion show took place at New York Fashion Week. The fashion of the designer brand was also shown at the three following Fashion Weeks. After the label was seen at Paris Fashion Week in 2006, the first presentation of a complete collection followed there in 2012.
Joop sold 50 percent of his shares in 2007 and even resigned as managing director in 2010. In 2011, however, he reacquired his shares and returned to the post of sole managing director. “Wunderkind” is considered a non-profitable fashion label that Joop carries at his own expense, but his fashion brand is very important to him.
In addition to this label, Wolfgang Joop supported the jury of “Germany’s Next Top Model” in 2014 and 2015. He appeared as a judge in seasons nine and ten, but subsequently parted ways with his peers.
In addition to his work as a designer and entrepreneur, Joop is also an author, illustrator and actor. While an autobiography of the fashion designer was published in 2013, his graphic works are in an exhibition at the Hamburg Museum of Arts and Crafts. Since 2010, Wolfgang Joop has also been working as a creative consultant with “Galeria Kaufhof”.
Career highlights
Wolfgang Joop received the Fil d’or in Monte Carlo in 1983. In 1984 he was awarded the “Golden Spinning Wheel” fashion prize by the city of Krefeld and the European Silk Commission. The Forum Prize followed in 1995, which Joop received from the trade journal Textilwirtschaft. In 2005, the Bild newspaper honored the German fashion designer with the Osgar Media Prize. In 2009, the Bambi followed as a “special prize from the jury” and in 2011 Wolfgang Joop received an award as Men Of The Year from GQ magazine. In the same year, Joop also received the Radio Regenbogen Award, which was presented to him in the “Media Man” category. In 2012, the Designer Prize of the Federal Republic of Germany honored Joop’s “life’s work”, while the Vienna Awards in the fields of fashion and lifestyle extended this honor in 2018 as a “style icon”.
Famous quotes
– “The feeling of loneliness shows that you are unique.”
– “The man has discovered himself as a lust object and no longer waits for Mom to put him on.”
– “The nice thing about fashion is that it wears out so quickly.”
Amazing Facts
In 1985, Wolfgang Joop received a position as a guest lecturer in design at the Berlin University of the Arts. Among other things, he took over the management of the seminar “Fur fashion with accessories”.
In addition, Joop is involved in various social institutions, such as the Dark Digit eV, the Hamburg Beacon and the German Bone Marrow Donation File. He is also patron and financial supporter of the animal shelter in Potsdam.
Last but not least, Wolfgang Joop is of the opinion that a division into gay or straight does not make sense. In 2014 he told the Bild newspaper that sexual orientation is completely irrelevant in modern times.
| Estimated value: | €40 million |
|---|