Kaia Gerber ‘Didn’t Realize’ How Much of an Icon Cindy Crawford Is

Kaia Gerber missed the memo when it came to her mom Cindy Crawford’s icon status.

“I was like, ‘I didn’t realize. I knew you were iconic, but…’ I didn’t understand when I was younger,” Gerber, 22, said in her WSJ. profile published on Tuesday, February 13, adding she was “starstruck” by Crawford, 57, after watching Apple TV+’s The Super Models series. “What she made of her career, there wasn’t really someone’s footsteps to follow.”

The Super Models highlights Crawford’s career, along with Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington. By the 1990s, the women, along with Claudia Schiffer and Kate Moss who did not participate in the docuseries, were given the moniker “The Big Six” after taking over runways, magazine covers, fashion campaigns and more.

Elsewhere in her cover story, Gerber addressed being labeled as a “nepo baby” because of her famous parents. (Kaia’s dad is Rande Gerber, a former model and cofounded Casamigos tequila with George Clooney and Michael Meldman.)

“I don’t think it’s a topic that will go away, so I’ve clearly reached a point of acceptance,” Kaia said. “I personally am very aware of all the wonderful things it has done for me, and I would never, ever say anything negative about it, because that is my truth about it.”

Just like her mom, Kaia has dominated runways for major designers, including Miu Miu, Prada, Saint Laurent, Alexander Wang and more. Most recently, she rocked a cutout white minidress while strutting on the Valentino catwalk during Paris Fashion Week in October 2023. She paired the outfit with a white leather purse featuring gold hardware and strappy sandals.