Ashley Graham launched her wine brand and realized raising money was 'very hard and humbling'

• Supermodel turned businesswoman Ashley Graham spoke at Business Insider’s The Long Play on Thursday.
• Graham has invested in startups and launched her own ventures, including Lucci sparkling wine.
• She said that raising money for the alcohol brand was “very, very hard and humbling.”

Ten years after making history as the first plus-size model on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, Ashley Graham has built a business portfolio spanning skincare and clothing to baby care and alcohol.

The 38-year-old supermodel turned businesswoman spoke at Business Insider’s The Long Play event in New York City on Thursday to discuss her breaking barriers in fashion and navigating the difficult world of investment and entrepreneurship.

“I realized quickly that my body is my business,” she told Business Insider’s Leena Rao. “So how can I scale this?”

That crossover appeal has helped her build a massive social media audience — nearly 30 million followers across platforms — with whom she connects and brings along as she expands her ventures.

Among her latest projects is Lucci, a sparkling Italian Lambrusco wine brand she co-founded in February. Graham said Lucci was started from the ground up and was the first time she had to ask investors to come in.

“Asking people for money is very, very hard, and humbling,” she said, adding later that it’s been a “great learning curve” as it was the first time she had to answer to investors for the ‘why’ behind decisions.

From swimsuit model to leading a brand empire

In 2016, Graham appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit issue, becoming the first plus-size model to do so.

The following year, she was named one of TIME’s most influential people of the year, had a Barbie doll modeled after her, and released her first book, “A New Model: What Confidence, Beauty, and Power Really Look Like.”

Forbes listed her as one of the highest-paid models in 2017, with an estimated income of $5.5 million; she was the first plus-size model to break the top 10. Her namesake JCPenney collection, which launched in October 2025, is made exclusively for customers who wear size 14 and up.

Building beyond the runway

After the SI cover launched her to international fame, Graham said she monetized on the viral moment by releasing swimsuit and lingerie lines. Today, she still regularly releases collaborations with intimate brands like Knix, for which she serves as Global Ambassador and investor.

“When your body is your brand, you’re always talking about it,” she said.

She’s also become an investor: Graham has backed the period-care brand Rif Care, the infant-formula company Bobbie, and the sustainable skincare brand Fig.1 Beauty. In 2022, she joined Fig.1 as both an investor and a partner, saying she wanted involvement beyond a typical celebrity endorsement.

As the years have passed, Graham said she’s learned from past mistakes, learned how to say no, and has leaned into being very intentional about building teams around her that she can trust.

Graham also said she was surprised by “just how ruthless [VC] can be,” as well as by how much success there can be.

Her most recent exit as an investor was with Wonderbelly, a clean antacid startup, which was acquired by Procter & Gamble in January.

Balancing a business with raising 3 children

Graham has managed to balance that growing career with motherhood. She and her husband Justin Ervin, whom she wed in 2010, welcomed their first child in 2020, followed by twin boys in 2022.

In 2024, she walked the Victoria’s Secret runway for the first time. In making the decision to join the fashion show, she said she asked the company about its plans to expand its size range.

“I don’t want to just come on as a token,” she said. “I don’t want to be the one-trick pony.”

During the years she was having her children, she said, her investments also took on a family focus, leaning into brands she “felt like they were in [her] zeitgeist at the moment,” including babycare and women-led brands. Now, her businesses are growing with her kids.

At Business Insider’s event, she teased about her next business venture launching next summer: A home company partly inspired by her children.

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