Welcome to Fashion Industry Broadcast’s Top Ten countdown for our upcoming TOP MODELS ‘It Girls’ Vol. 61 series involving the biggest names in the modelling world. We love giving you a little taste of what we’ve been up to, so each week we’ll be counting down to the launch of our brand spankin’ new glossy.
This ‘It Girl’ started blossoming down the path to stardom at a very young age. Born Jelena Noura Hadid (more commonly known as Gigi) on April 23rd, 1995, she is an American fashion model and TV personality. The young and hypnotic Hadid began her modelling career at an early age: after being discovered by Paul Marciana of Guess at age two.
She started modelling (unbeknownst to her, of course) as a child for ‘Baby Guess’ and has certainly made a name for herself in the world of high-fashion since then: today, she has a very impressive list of elite fashion labels seeking her to personally front their campaigns. After her introduction into the world of modelling as a child, Hadid put her angelic beauty to work.
Her career peaked after her former model mum and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, Yolanda Foster, encouraged Gigi and her little sister Bella, also a model, to follow in her footsteps to stardom by finding them both an agency that fit: “I took each of them on 17th birthday and found them an agency that was right for them. It ended up being the same agent for both, IMG. And I told them to work hard.” Growing up, sisters Gigi and Bella were surrounded by all of the key ingredients for supermodel success: wealthy parents, socialite friends and strong connections with celebrities such as the Jenner and Kardashian Klan.
Their career success was forecast as inevitable. After signing with IMG Models in 2011, Hadid has proven to be extremely savvy at navigating her way around the fickle world of fashion. She followed on from her baby steps year earlier and was named the face of Guess. So far, she has starred in three of their advertising campaigns as an adult. Hadid has not only fronted various campaigns, but would be considered a veteran of the runway.
She is well-known for ‘flirting’ with her audience, and her signature move of blowing a kiss at the top of the runway earned her defining press coverage at her catwalk debut during the 2014 New York Fashion Week where she featured in Desuguals and Jeremy Scott’s runway shows. Since then, Hadid has accomplished many significant achievements which have permanently embedded her name within the world of fashion. She has not only been named one of the 12 Rookie Models in the Sports Illustrated annual issue in 2014, but has graced the pages of numerous international fashion bibles like Vogue, Grazia, Cleo and Elle.
Hadid has featured in many runway shows for prestigious designers: walking the runway for Marc Jacobs during the 2015 New York Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and then for Giles at the 2015 London Fashion Week. During the famous 2015 Paris Fashion Week she walked for Jean Paul Gaultier, Sonia Rykiel and Chanel. Other accolades include being named as the Model of the Year at the Daily Front Row Fashion Awards in Los Angeles in 2015, and its’ significant moments like these that mark the difference between a fashion muse to a solidified ‘It Girl’.
Her plump bee-stung lips and exotic looks have proven to be some of her best assets due to the amount of high-fashion house advertising campaigns she has featured in or became the prominent face of because of. She was famously the face of Tom Fords fragrance line ‘Velvet Orchid’ and has also appeared in his eye-wear campaign alongside actor and model Patrick Schwarzenegger. In January 2015, Hadid was named as the newest face of Maybelline, an iconic international American beauty and cosmetics brand. But it doesn’t stop there as Hadid can also add one more high-profile brand to her growing resume: the face of Seafolly, an Australian brand of swimwear and women’s beachwear.
It comes as no surprise that Hadid has not limited herself to modelling and has made several cameo appearances on the popular reality television show The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in which her mother, former Dutch model Yolanda Forester, is a pivotal cast member. In 2014, Hadid spread her acting talent to the music industry by appearing in Australian pop singer Cody Simpson’s music video ‘Surfboard’, as well as playing the love interest of an American Grammy-winning artist, Miguel, in the music video ‘Simple Things’. Hadid even dated Simpson for a short while and came under controversy when it was revealed that she was vetting his photos from the public by tabloid publication, Daily Mail in the UK.
Gigi Hadid has walked on the most illustrious catwalks and is an outstanding leader of the fashion elite of her generation. She has mastered the world of runway, has the kind of street style that every girl tries to emulate and is widely considered within the industry to possess the kind of qualities that lend itself to ‘muse’ status.
Check out who made number ten on our list here. Stay tuned for our upcoming TOP MODELS ‘It Girls’ Vol. 61 coming soon!