Model agencies and perception

Working as a model agent messed me up.

But I didn't realise it at the time. In fact, I loved the job. I worked with incredible people, learned so much about the industry, and genuinely enjoyed what I was doing. But looking back, I can see how it altered my perception of reality. And not in a good way.

I worked at an agency that focused on international, which meant dealing with top agencies worldwide and that the models were really young, really thin, really tall, and really beautiful.

That was it. The diversity was minimal. Sure, there were variations, everyone is unique, but the models all fit within the same narrow definition of beauty. And when you're surrounded by that standard every single day, it starts to feel like that's just the way the world is.

When, of course, it isn't.

But when you see something over and over, it starts to feel like truth. It becomes normal because it's your normal—despite knowing that fashion images are curated and beauty standards aren't real life.

It's similar to social media now. We're constantly exposed to an unnatural number of extremely beautiful people. We know it's curated. We know it's not reality (and that filters exist!). But repetition makes it feel real.

And that's what happened to me as an agent.

Realising this was a turning point. It made me see how unhealthy the industry could be. And it made me see that I want to be on the healthy side of fashion.

To me, fashion should be about self-expression, individuality, and diversity, not about shrinking ourselves to fit into a single, unattainable mould. That's why I do what I do.