Kim Kardashian signs deal with Israeli eyewear company

In $30m. plan, Carolina Lemke is entering the US market and bringing the international supermodel to Israel in March.

By AMY SPIRO
Updated: SEPTEMBER 13, 2018 01:15
Kim Kardashian West (L) and Bar Refaeli (R). The pair will appear in an ad campaign in March 2019. (photo credit: EDUARDO MUNOZ/REUTERS & LUKE MACGREGOR/REUTERS)
Kim Kardashian West (L) and Bar Refaeli (R). The pair will appear in an ad campaign in March 2019.
(photo credit: EDUARDO MUNOZ/REUTERS & LUKE MACGREGOR/REUTERS)
Supermodel and reality TV star Kim Kardashian West will be heading back to Israel next year.
Israeli sunglasses company Carolina Lemke Berlin announced on Wednesday that Kardashian West has signed a deal to join Bar Refaeli – the face of the brand – in an upcoming collaboration.
The supermodel will fly to Israel in March “for a visit as part of our cooperation,” the company said. In addition to appearing in advertisements for the brand, Kardashian West will also design her own line of glasses for a limited-edition series sold by Carolina Lemke.
In a press release on Wednesday, the company said it selected Kardashian West, “the most famous woman in the United States, to be the face of the brand for at least two years, beginning in summer 2019.”
The company said it will also be launching a website aimed at selling its products in the United States.
Until now, the brand has been focused on Israel and Europe.
In details of the agreement revealed by Castro, the parent company of Carolina Lemke Berlin, Kardashian West will receive 10% of the shares of any company set up in the United States by the brand. Castro revealed that the brand is expected to spend between $20 million and $30 million to enter the American market.
In addition to a 10% share of the US launch, and a set fee for two years, Kardashian West will also receive just under 5% of the proceeds from the line of eye wear that she designs herself.
Carolina Lemke Berlin announced back in March that it was in “advanced negotiations” with Kardashian West to bring her on board for a new campaign. At a press conference on Wednesday, Refaeli – who also holds a financial stake in the company – said she personally called the supermodel to explain her vision, and then flew out to Los Angeles to visit her.
On Wednesday, Refaeli posted a photo of herself and Kardashian West on Instagram, writing: “Friends and now partners! Kim Kardashian joined my Carolina Lemke Berlin family. Welcome my love.”

In recent years, Refaeli has appeared in ads for the sunglasses brand alongside “hot felon” Jeremy Meeks and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler.
Kardashian West was previously in Israel for a brief trip in 2015.
She and her husband, rapper Kanye West, visited the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City to baptize their eldest child, North.
Earlier this summer, when Kardashian West launched a new line of her makeup brand, she selected Israeli model Yael Shelbia as one of the faces for the new campaign.
It’s clear that she has gotten a taste of Israel, and is ready for more.


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