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July 13, 2021

Lindsay Lohan's jailing could mean big bucks for her clothing line

(Author’s internal monologue: how best to write a money-related story about Lindsay Lohan without getting skewered by readers? Hmm, let’s try this … )

For whatever reason, news that Lindsay Lohan was sentenced to 90 days in jail earlier this month damn near shut down the Internet.

No, really. Here, try this Bing search for “Lohan jail” and you’ll see what I mean. Nine hundred and seven thousand results! Crazy.

But why the hell are you reading about such tabloid gossip in this space? Well, as it turns out, there’s a financial spin for everything.

979960_prison Indeed, while the 24–year-old actress (we say “actress” here in the same sense that you’d still call Carrot Top a “comedian”) will soon head to jail for violating terms of her probation stemming from a 2007 DUI, her prison stint couldn’t actually come at a better time for the starlet’s clothing line.

Lohan runs an apparel company called 6126, a collection of handbags and the sort with estimated annual sales of a modest $5 million.

But the ravenous publicity from Lohan’s jailing might just bump 6126 to another tier of the fashion business.

“Lindsay has mind share right now, so people will be interested to see what the merchandise looks like,” Jeff Vansinderen, a senior retail analyst at B. Riley & Co., told something called Women’s Wear Daily. “Times are tough right now in the retail environment and if I’m a retailer, I’m going to put the merchandise out there and try to sell it.”

Vansinderen sees no absence of irony in this story, noting the “twisted” way Lohan’s time in the clink could help 6126 sales, but there’s even more to that end.

With good behaviour, the Mean Girls star could be out of jail in 23 days, according to WWD, right at the same time 6126’s clothes start hitting stores.

And for what it’s worth, when Paris Hilton similarly went to jail in 2007, her release caused shops that carried her own fashion line to have to close their streets because so many fans wanted a piece.

I don’t know … is this story ridiculous? Yes. Yes, it is. But it’s amazing to think that someone like Lohan could actually profit from her time in a correctional facility.

Add to that that the redhead won’t get anything less than a reported $1 million for her inevitable prison release interview, and one thing becomes clear: it pays to be dysfunctional. A dysfunctional, alleged cokehead.

By Jason Buckland, MSN Money

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Gordon PowersGordon Powers

A long-time fund company executive, Gordon Powers now heads up the Affinity Group, a financial services consulting firm. Gordon was a personal finance columnist for the Globe & Mail for many years, has taught retirement planning...

Jason BucklandJason Buckland

The modern-day MC Hammer of money, Jason can often be seen spending cash that isn’t his with the efficiency of a Wilt Chamberlain first date. After cutting his teeth as a reporter for the Toronto Sun, he joined the MSN Money team with...