Every woman wanted to be Claudia Schiffer back in the 90s. She was one of the highest-paid models and she started out like many other top models back them: an agent reached out to her when she was hanging out in a club in Germany at just 17 years old. Her resemblance to the legendary Brigitte Bardot got everyone's attention, but she proved she was much more than that.
Despite being one of the original supermodels, and one of the most famous faces in the fashion industry, there are many things that the public ignores when it comes to the model. Here are some facts about Claudia Schiffer.
10 Claudia Schiffer Wanted To Be A Lawyer
It is no secret that Claudia Schiffer was discovered while she was in a club in Dusseldorf, and since then, she took over the world and became one of the most famous top models of all time. However, it was not her "plan A" when she thought about the future. In many interviews, the German beauty says that she wanted to be a lawyer, just like her father.
It seems that life does not always go as we plan, but in Claudia Schiffer's case, it was even better.
9 She Can Speak Three Languages
It is a stereotype that models only care about their appearance and aren't very smart. Claudia Schiffer is living proof that those rumors are wrong. The model can speak three languages fluently: German (her mother language), English, and French.
Just a quick search online will bring up interviews with the model in the three different languages, and she is always confident in all three and doesn't seem to struggle at any moment.
8 She Has Been On Over 1,000 Magazine Covers
Claudia Schiffer was omnipresent during the 90s. She was the face of high-profile brands like Chanel, and also on the cover of many magazines. According to her biography, in the last three decades, Schiffer has been on over one thousand covers, and she is still, occasionally, a cover model.
She was the favorite model for Vogue magazine, on 60 covers of the publication so far, most of them during the 90s. The last time fans saw her on the cover was last year when she posed naked, covering herself with a bag and some shoes.
7 She Had A Restaurant Chain
Claudia Schiffer is also an entrepreneur, and she knows her image is an important asset when it comes to selling products. Back in the 90s, she teamed up with supermodels Naomi Campbell and Elle McPherson and opened a restaurant chain called Fashion Cafe. However, their image was not enough to make the endeavor successful.
According to The Independent, they had problems with low-capital and closed in 1998. The model never invested in a food business again.
6 She Appeared In A Few Movies
The world could not get enough of Claudia Schiffer during the 90s, and she was invited to play small roles in some movies. Her debut was in 1992, in a TV movie called Inferno, which also featured other models, such as Kate Moss and Tyra Banks. A few years later, she appeared in Richie Rich as an aerobic instructor.
In 2000, she starred In Pursuit (not a success) and the last time fans saw her on the big screen was a cameo in Love Actually.
5 She Didn't Have Her Ears Pierced
Claudia Schiffer has been part of the fashion industry since the late 80s, so many people would be surprised that she didn't pierce her ears until 2006, when she was approximately 35 years old.
The first time she appeared wearing real earrings was for an Accessorize campaign, and it seems it was not an issue for her, since she never commented about it. Most of the time when she appears in public, she wears just small earrings, and hardly ever anything that draws too much attention.
4 She Dated David Copperfield
If you didn't grow up in the 90s, you probably had no idea that Claudia Schiffer dated the stage magician David Copperfield. They were together for six years and got engaged, but they broke up in 1999. The couple often got all the attention when they stepped on the red carpet, but they tried to keep their personal lives away from the spotlight.
The magician found love with another model, the French model Chloe Gosselin, and Claudia Schiffer married Matthew Vaughn in 2002.
3 She Has A Net Worth Of $60 Million
Claudia Schiffer was one of the highest-paid models in the world during the 90s, and she knows how to manage her money. The German top model has a fortune evaluated at $60 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Her career slowed down in the 2000s, but she never talks about retirement, and fans can occasionally still see her on magazine covers or in advertising campaigns.
2 She Lives In A Mansion In England
Claudia Schiffer could choose any city in the world to settle down, but she decided to buy a mansion in Suffolk, England, and live away from the spotlight. The place was built in the 16th century and is a lavish property that sits on 530 acres. She lives there with her husband and their three children.
The model was initially afraid to live in the big house because she used to hear weird noises during the night, so she invited a medium to check if there were any ghosts. "We had a medium go around, and she told us that actually, all the ghosts in the house are lovely," she said. "No one needs to be scared."
1 She Had Problems With Stalkers
Being one of the most famous models in the world has some negative points. Although Claudia Schiffer tries to live away from the spotlight, she had problems with stalkers in the past.
In 2004, a Canadian man was deported after stalking the model, and the police found out he was staying illegally in England. The model refuses to talk about the case with the press. Prior to this, in 2002, a man was arrested for stalking her and said that the Pope told him to marry the model.