How Selena Gomez's Health Condition Impacted Her Billion-Dollar Business

Selena Gomez is — like so many of her female industry peers — a creative jack-of-all-trades. The actor and singer launched her cosmetic brand, Rare Beauty, in 2020 with the intent to celebrate individuality and support mental health. But the brand is also a quiet advocate for a group of makeup and skin care users who struggle with the traditional presentation of cosmetic supplies. Rare Beauty's spherical, smooth-textured packaging is the trademark quality of the products. Not only are they visually appealing, but Gomez says they are easy to open for those who have limited mobility in their hands — something the "Wizards of Waverly Place" actor struggles with herself.

"I have arthritis in my fingers, and that's due to my lupus," Gomez told Amy Poehler on the comedian's podcast "Good Hang." "So, I remember before the brand, I was trying to open a water bottle and it hurt really bad before I was on the right medication." This inspired the "Come & Get It" singer to consciously produce beauty products with simple and accessible packaging. "We somehow inherently made the products easy to open," she recalled of the initial branding. "And then we realized: 'wait, they kind of have to be that way.' And then we started to make every product with the intention of [supporting] anybody who [has] dexterity problems."

Gomez's brand is a huge success. In 2024, the "Only Murders in the Building" star's company was valued at over $2 billion, according to Bloomberg. Her net worth — with over 80% stemming from her stake in Rare Beauty — is at an estimated $1.3 billion, as of this writing.

Selena Gomez may have found success in the cosmetic industry in 2020, but a few years prior, the celeb was secretly struggling with a major health issue. In 2015, Gomez was diagnosed with lupus, an autoimmune disease that causes the body's immune system to attack healthy tissue and organs. In the same year, Gomez opened up about the illness that forced her to take a hiatus from the entertainment industry after her time away from the spotlight became tabloid fodder. "I wanted so badly to say, 'You guys have no idea. I'm in chemotherapy. You're a**holes,'" she told Billboard at the time. "I locked myself away until I was confident and comfortable again."

In 2017, Gomez underwent a kidney transplant due to her lupus. Luckily, her best friend, Francia Raisa, was a match to donate her kidney. "There aren't words to describe how I can possibly thank my beautiful friend Francia Raisa. She gave me the ultimate gift and sacrifice by donating her kidney to me," Gomez wrote in an Instagram post after surgery. The pair has had an on-again, off-again friendship, but as Raisa described it, their connection is more like a sisterhood (via E! News). Raisa even came to support Gomez at the 2023 Rare Impact Fund benefit, where she told USA Today that she is "super proud" of her friend's mission to support mental health and inclusivity through Rare Beauty.