In Australia, it’s fairly commonplace for people to roll their eyes and dismiss influencers – the (cruel) general assumption is that influencers don’t work hard and “should get a real job”.

However, those who have doubted how hard influencers work will get a hard reality check when they take a look at this year’s Australian Financial Review rich list. With personal fortunes ranging from $41 million to $381 million – not bad for not having a “real job”.

While each of the men and women mentioned below are influencers, they’ve all leveraged their audience and created businesses that have thrived.

Check out the top ten Australian influencers who made the Australian Financial Review Rich List, and how much they’re worth.

Name: Tammy Hembrow

Rank: 93

Wealth: $41 million

Her AFR rich list bio says: “Hembrow grew up in an old wedding reception hall, where her family used tables to create walls. The bath was outside. Now the social media fitness star lives in a multimillion-dollar Gold Coast mansion where she posts images of her life, including the newest addition to her family, daughter Posy. She has more than 15 million Instagram followers and told the How I Made It podcast she wants to attract as many as 20 million people to her account. Her influence generates a healthy income from endorsements and she also owns clothing label Saski Collection.”

Name: Don and Matilda Robertson

Rank: 78 & 79

Wealth: $52 million

Their AFR rich list bio says: “Cult activewear label Stax was born out of a business failure in Perth. Don Robertson kept the last half of the name of his failed supplements business, Musclestax, and turned his hand to apparel in 2015. His wife, Matilda, later joined the business, which is now based in Sydney and turns over more than $30 million. Stax is worn by celebrities from Megan Fox to Lizzo and claims to sell a pair of its Best Black Tights every 60 seconds. Just three years ago, the couple were surviving on Matilda’s full-time wage at her recruitment industry job.”

Name: Jane Lu

Rank: 77

Wealth: $53 million

Her AFR rich list bio says: “Showpo, the online retail business Lu founded in 2010, shook off the past year’s supply chain cost headwinds to launch collaborations and chase expansion after trimming costs. It signed up for an innovative trial with Facebook owner Meta, using Al models to showcase its clothing on models of different sizes. Lu started her business after quitting an accounting job at EY that she hated. She faked going to her job for about two years, unable to tell her parents she had thrown in a promising, stable career in the middle of the GFC for the thrill of a retail fashion start-up.”

Name: Natasha Oakley

Rank: 63

Wealth: $83 million

Her AFR rich list bio says: “In 2012, Sydneysider Oakley was in Hollywood trying to establish a production company, but it was a side project that led to her success. With friend Devin Brugman, she took pictures wearing bikinis and posted to their blog, A Bikini A Day. Soon swimwear brands were paying for exposure, and by 2014 Oakley and Brugman launched their own label, Monday Swimwear. It turned over $40 million in 2021-22. Oakley, who boasts 2.5 million Instagram followers, is also behind The Pilates Class, a joint venture with Jacqui Kingswell offering at-home programs. She has endorsements with Lancome, American Express and Pantene.”

Name: Emily Skye Anderson

Rank: 59

Wealth: $97 million

Her AFR rich list bio says: “The Gold Coast fitness queen, better known as Emily Skye, has steadily built her investment portfolio since selling a stake in her workout app to Quadrant Private Equity. The co-founder of James Cosmetics, which sells eye masks, hair care and serums, has expanded into property with a caravan park in Lismore and a commercial development in Burleigh. She remains an ambassador for athleisure brand Women’s Best. In 2010, she was posting workout tips on a Blogspot account. Eight years later, she debuted on the Young Rich List after cutting a deal with Quadrant for her fitness app, Emily Skye Fit.”

Name: Tobi Pearce

Rank: 36

Fortune: $165 million

His AFR rich list bio says: “The fitness aficionado made his fortune selling fitness app Sweat to US group iFit last year after his split from fiancee, co-founder and Sweat head trainer Kayla Itsines. It was Itsines’ 28-minute high-intensity workouts that the pair commercialised in 2014, initially as a guide women would print off and take to the gym. Now it is a major fitness app boasting an array of trainers and is used all over the world. Pearce is an investor in EzLicence, an online platform for people to choose and compare driving schools. He splashed $5.23 million on a penthouse apartment in his Adelaide home town in December.”

Name: Kayla Itsines

Rank: 35

Fortune: $165 million

Her AFR rich list bio says: “Australia’s fitness queen amassed another 2 million Instagram followers in the past year, taking her fan base on the social media platform to 15 million. Itsines sold Sweat, an app she developed with former fiance Tobi Pearce, to iFit last year. Pearce and Itsines’ property portfolio has been carved up and a number of properties are now in the ownership of companies controlled solely by Itsines. Sweat evolved from Itsines’ desire to create a shareable training guide for women outside of her home town of Adelaide. They had been in touch wanting similar results after seeing her post before-and-after photos of her clients on Instagram.”

Name: Jessica Sepel and Dean Steingold

Rank: 20 & 21

Wealth: $381 million

Their AFR rich list bio says: “The JSHealth juggernaut went into overdrive this year, expanding into Britain via pharmacy chain Boots. It entered the skincare and haircare markets and added Chemist Warehouse to its retail outlets, expanding on its dominance at Priceline, a business where Sepel worked as a teenager. Its growth comes amid higher costs and lower sector multiples. JSHealth Vitamins evolved from a blog Sepel penned while studying nutrition and finding crash diets were detrimental to her health. She wanted to help get women off the scales and eating a balanced diet. She works on formulations while husband Steingold focuses on business.”

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