(FORTUNE Magazine) – While the rest of the world has been slogging through a recession, an elite group of women including Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, and Claudia Schiffer have proved immune to the downturn. These supermodels charge -- and get -- $10,000 a day and more. In advertising, says Monique Pillard, president of Elite modeling agency, which represents Crawford and Evangelista: ''Supermodels are taking the place of movie stars because they're more accessible and more real to the public.'' Say what? It helps that some supermodels become famous in their own right. Schiffer, back again on behalf of Guess? jeans, has her own calendar and is a regular in glossy magazines and gossip columns. ''Claudia's image is important to us no matter the cost,'' says a company spokeswoman. ''We can't break from her if she's free or if she costs us millions.'' In fact, there's little research to prove the Schiffers of the world sell products better than movie stars. But Tom Pirko, president of Bevmark, a Los Angeles firm that counsels makers of various beverages, expects to see more models as pitchpersons. Says he: ''Their personas blend directly into the image a company wants to portray. Traditional celebrities tend to distract.'' *