Karlie Kloss

Karlie Kloss
Born	Karlie Elizabeth Kloss 8/3/1992
Birthplace	Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Model, entrepreneur, television host
Known for	Victoria's Secret Angel, Kode with Klossy, Project Runway host
Education	New York University
Spouse(s)	Joshua Kushner (m. 2018)
Children	3
Awards	CFDA Fashion Icon Award

Karlie Elizabeth Kloss (born August 3, 1992) is an American supermodel, entrepreneur, and television host who rose to prominence as a teenager on the runways of New York Fashion Week and went on to become one of the most recognizable faces in international fashion. After making her runway debut in 2006 at the age of fourteen, Kloss quickly established herself as a fixture of high fashion, walking for major design houses and appearing on dozens of international Vogue covers. She served as a Victoria's Secret Angel from 2013 to 2015, a period during which she was among the most in-demand models in the world. Beyond the runway, Kloss has built a career as an entrepreneur and advocate, founding the nonprofit Kode with Klossy to provide free coding education to girls and non-binary teens, acquiring i-D Magazine in 2023, and hosting the reality competition series Project Runway beginning in 2019. She is married to businessman Joshua Kushner, with whom she has three children.

Early Life

Karlie Elizabeth Kloss was born on August 3, 1992, in Chicago, Illinois. She grew up in a family that included three sisters—Kristine, Kariann, and Kimberly—in what she has described as a close-knit household. Her family later relocated to the St. Louis, Missouri, metropolitan area, where she spent much of her childhood and adolescence.

Kloss was discovered at a charity fashion show in St. Louis when she was thirteen years old. Her striking appearance and natural presence on the runway drew the attention of modeling scouts, and she soon signed with Elite Model Management. Her early entry into the fashion industry marked the beginning of what would become a rapid ascent through the ranks of professional modeling. At an age when most teenagers were focused on schoolwork and extracurricular activities, Kloss was already traveling between her home in the Midwest and the fashion capitals of the world, balancing her education with the demands of a burgeoning career.

Her upbringing in the American Midwest, far from the traditional fashion centers of New York, Los Angeles, and Europe, contributed to a public image that media outlets often characterized as down-to-earth and approachable. Despite beginning her professional career at a young age, Kloss has spoken publicly about the support she received from her family during the transition from a normal childhood to life as a working model.

Education

Kloss attended school in the St. Louis area during her early modeling years, managing her academic responsibilities alongside an increasingly demanding professional schedule. In 2015, she made the notable decision to step back from some of her modeling commitments to enroll at New York University, a move that drew significant media attention. At the time, she had been serving as a Victoria's Secret Angel and was at the height of her modeling career, making her decision to pursue higher education a subject of public interest and discussion within the fashion industry. Her enrollment at NYU reflected a broader interest in entrepreneurship and technology that would later manifest in her business ventures and philanthropic work.

Career

Early Modeling Career

Kloss's professional modeling career began in 2006, when she was just fourteen years old. She made her runway debut at New York Fashion Week, an unusually early start that immediately set her apart from many of her peers. Her first major runway appearance was for Calvin Klein, a prestigious booking for a newcomer to the industry. The show established her as a model to watch, and her career accelerated rapidly in the seasons that followed.

By the time of the February 2008 fashion week season, Kloss had become one of the most talked-about young models in the industry. New York magazine profiled her as a standout during the shows, noting her growing presence on the runway circuit. Fashion critics and industry observers recognized Kloss for her distinctive walk and ability to convey a range of moods and attitudes on the runway, qualities that made her a favorite among designers.

Teen Vogue featured Kloss in its casting call segment in September 2007, identifying her as a rising talent in the modeling world. The magazine's early attention helped introduce her to a broader audience beyond the fashion industry's inner circles. As a teenager navigating an adult profession, Kloss's trajectory was closely followed by fashion media, and she became a recurring subject of profiles and features in publications ranging from Teen Vogue to Vogue.

The fashion website The Cut published a profile of Kloss in April 2008, further cementing her status as one of the most promising new faces in modeling. By this point, she had already walked for numerous major fashion houses and was being booked for editorial shoots in leading fashion magazines.

Rise to Supermodel Status

Throughout the late 2000s and early 2010s, Kloss transitioned from a promising newcomer to one of the most established supermodels in the industry. Her career was marked by consistent bookings at the highest levels of fashion, including appearances on dozens of international covers of Vogue. By 2019, she had appeared on 40 international Vogue covers, a figure that placed her among the most prolific cover models of her generation.

In September 2012, Kloss signed with IMG Models, one of the world's leading modeling agencies, in a move that signaled her continued ascent in the industry. Over the course of her career, she has been represented by several prominent agencies, including Elite Model Management, Next Management, IMG Models, and The Society.

The Wall Street Journal profiled Kloss in a 2013 feature that examined her position within the fashion industry and her growing influence beyond the runway. The article underscored her status as one of the most commercially successful and editorially respected models in the world.

New York magazine maintained an ongoing profile of Kloss that tracked her career milestones and industry impact, reflecting her sustained relevance in the fashion world over a period of years.

Victoria's Secret

In 2013, Kloss became a Victoria's Secret Angel, joining the lingerie brand's roster of elite contract models. The role was one of the most high-profile positions in commercial modeling and brought Kloss to a broader mainstream audience through the brand's annual fashion show and advertising campaigns. She held the Angel title until 2015, when she stepped back from the role to enroll at New York University. Her departure from Victoria's Secret coincided with a period of significant personal and professional transition, as she increasingly turned her attention to education and entrepreneurial ventures.

Television: Project Runway

In 2019, Kloss became the host of Project Runway, the long-running reality competition series focused on aspiring fashion designers. The show, which had previously been hosted by Heidi Klum, underwent a significant rebranding when it moved networks, and Kloss was selected as the new face of the franchise. Her role as host allowed her to leverage her deep knowledge of the fashion industry in a new medium, and the position further expanded her public profile beyond modeling.

Entrepreneurship and Business Ventures

Kloss has pursued a range of business interests outside of modeling and television, establishing herself as an entrepreneur with interests in technology, media, and fashion. The Business of Fashion recognized her as a notable figure in the industry's business landscape.

In 2023, Kloss acquired i-D Magazine, the influential British fashion and culture publication, and became its chief executive officer. The acquisition represented a significant step in her transition from model to media executive, placing her at the helm of a publication with a long history in fashion journalism and youth culture.

Her interest in technology and education led to the founding of Kode with Klossy, a nonprofit organization that provides free coding camps for girls and non-binary teens. The initiative grew out of Kloss's own experiences learning to code and her recognition of the gender gap in technology fields. Kode with Klossy has expanded since its founding to offer programs across the United States, providing participants with instruction in programming languages, web development, and app creation. The organization has been cited as an example of high-profile figures using their platforms to address educational inequities in STEM.

In 2022, Kloss launched the Gateway Coalition, an organization established to provide support to abortion clinics in the Midwestern United States. The initiative reflected her public advocacy for reproductive rights and positioned her as one of the more prominent figures in the fashion industry to engage directly with the issue of reproductive healthcare access.

Continued Modeling Work

Even as she expanded into business, philanthropy, and media, Kloss has continued to work as a model. She has maintained a presence in fashion editorials, advertising campaigns, and social media, where she shares glimpses of both her professional work and personal life. In early 2025, she was photographed during a trip to Paris, sharing images from the French capital with her social media followers. She has continued to be featured in style coverage and fashion media throughout 2025.

Her career longevity is notable in an industry that frequently cycles through new faces, with Kloss maintaining relevance across multiple decades since her debut in 2006. As of the mid-2020s, she continues to balance modeling with her roles as a media executive, nonprofit founder, and public figure.

Personal Life

Kloss married businessman Joshua Kushner in 2018. Kushner is a venture capitalist and the founder of Thrive Capital; he is also the brother of Jared Kushner, who served as a senior adviser to President Donald Trump. The couple's relationship has been a subject of media interest, in part because of the political dynamics involved.

Together, Kloss and Kushner have three children. Their first son, Levi, was born in 2021, followed by a second son, Elijah. In 2025, the couple welcomed their third child, a daughter named Rae. The name was chosen in honor of Kushner's grandmother, a Holocaust survivor. Kloss has shared candid reflections on motherhood, including her postpartum and breastfeeding experiences, through her social media platforms.

Kloss has been publicly associated with a friendship with singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, with whom she was frequently photographed in the mid-2010s. Media outlets have reported that the two are no longer as close, though the nature of their current relationship has not been publicly detailed by either party.

Recognition

Kloss's career has been recognized by several major institutions within the fashion industry. She has been named to various lists of influential models and has received attention for her work both on and off the runway. The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) has acknowledged her contributions to the industry, and she has been cited by organizations including the Business of Fashion as a figure of significance in the intersection of fashion, business, and technology.

Her work with Kode with Klossy has garnered recognition in both the technology and education sectors, with the program praised for its scale and accessibility. The initiative has been covered extensively in media outlets and has positioned Kloss as one of the more prominent advocates for women in STEM within the entertainment and fashion industries.

Kloss's 40 international Vogue covers, accumulated by 2019, represent one of the more significant benchmarks of editorial success in contemporary modeling. Her sustained presence in high fashion editorials, combined with her commercial work for brands including Victoria's Secret, has established her as one of the defining supermodels of the 2010s.

The CFDA included Kloss among the supermodels highlighted in its retrospective of New York Fashion Week history, recognizing her as one of the notable models to have made a significant first runway moment at the event.

Legacy

Kloss's career spans nearly two decades, from her debut as a fourteen-year-old on the New York Fashion Week runway in 2006 to her continued work as a model, media executive, and entrepreneur in the mid-2020s. Her trajectory reflects broader shifts in the modeling industry during this period, including the increasing expectation that top models develop personal brands and business interests beyond traditional modeling work.

Her founding of Kode with Klossy represented an early example of a high-profile fashion figure investing directly in STEM education, and the organization has served as a model for similar initiatives launched by other public figures. The program's focus on providing free coding education to underrepresented groups addressed a recognized gap in technology education and contributed to a broader cultural conversation about diversity in the tech industry.

Kloss's acquisition of i-D Magazine in 2023 marked a notable development in the relationship between models and the media outlets that cover them. By taking on the role of CEO of a fashion publication, she moved from being a subject of fashion media to a figure shaping its direction and editorial vision.

Her advocacy for reproductive rights through the Gateway Coalition placed her among a relatively small number of figures in fashion who have engaged publicly with politically charged social issues. This activism, combined with her educational and technology initiatives, has contributed to a public profile that extends well beyond her work as a model.

As both a practitioner and a business figure within the fashion industry, Kloss has occupied a distinctive position among models of her generation, combining editorial and commercial success with entrepreneurial ventures in media, technology, and philanthropy.