Port City Ultimate Image-Wardrobe/Fashion/Image Consulting Firm  (make-overs, closet updates, personal shopping, workshops, pageant coaching)

See Press Herald Business Thursday Interview at MaineToday.com

Press Herald Photo by Derek Davis

Q: What advice do you have for someone attempting to break into the modeling business?
A: The best advice that I can give is to start slowly and do not drop out of school. Work with a local agency even if you are from a small town. Keep in mind that within each market there are specific "looks" that are in favor at any given time and some models fit the "look" of the moment better than others for that market. Try another near-by city if you are determined and your 'look' isn't right for your particular city. Gain experience modeling or acting part-time, while ultimately setting your sights on New York. Work with some local photographers to gain experience and confidence and see what kind of feedback you get. Give yourself time to get used to working in front of the camera.

Q: What do you think are the current trends in Modeling?
A: I think that in the new Millennium we will continue to see that diversity is beauty. At the present time a model with an interesting, unique look can be considered just as beautiful as the traditional classic beauty. There is an openness for all types of looks. Variety is what it's all about, as with everything in life.

Q: What separates one model from another? How important is personality?
A: Personality is extremely important, as important as having the "right look". A model has to have something inside that makes him/her come alive…an inner drive…an "attitude". When someone walks into an open call at  Port City Models & Talent, who has all the qualifications that we need: height, great bone structure, good skin and hair, as well as great personality, energy and confidence he/she has a much better chance of making it in this business. Beauty alone is not enough. What a model puts into this business is what he or she will get from it!!!

Q: How has the Internet impacted the Modeling Business?
A: Port City Models & Talent offers portfolios of our models and actors available on-line. Clients call from around the country or from Europe and ask to see a model's book/portfolio and do not want to wait several days to see it, if they can view it instantaneously on-line. The web is a great tool/resource offering immediate access, however does not always substitute for seeing the model in person or in an actual photograph. It is an invaluable for booking talent for last minute jobs and for when we are under strict time constraints.

Q: In what direction do you see the Fashion Industry heading for Spring 2008?
A: With growing political unrest worldwide, deteriorating environmental conditions and rising Internet crime permanently headlining the news, it's not surprising that a strong trend to emerge during NYC's Spring 2008 Fashion Week was an emphasis on Fantasy & Escapism. The rising Eco- & Political-Awareness in pop culture also influenced designers. Some used only organic fabrics with natural dyes, encouraging people to reconnect with nature, others used recycled fabrics and materials, such as parachute cloth, which looked like clothing cut from a green plastic garbage bag... but styled in the hippest possible way and still others addressed concerns regarding the effects of global warming with chic High-Tech Anoraks and full-on Protective Facial Masks. The Escapism trend also translated to an ongoing vein of nostalgia showcasing retro Old-School Hollywood Glamour with High-Waisted Pin-Up Girl Shorts and Swimwear, Shimmery Sequin-Covered Garments for day and Disco Ball Shiny Silver Dresses, for evening. While Black is always the New Black, what's interesting is how much of it was being shown for Spring 2008, as well as Black and White Oversized Mod Houndstooth Prints and exuberantly loud color mixes of Vibrant Reds, Blinding Yellows, and Blues of every shade. Today there also seems to be a trend of ageless dressing, more than at any other time in the past... more democratic... social/societal norms of the past are breaking down. A highlight of the shows was Pop Star/Style Icon Gwen Stefani's debut as a Designer with the presentation of her L.A.M.B. clothing line, where a cadre of celebrity guests could be seen seated in the front row.

Q: What/who dictates the current trends in Fashion?
A: I think it is the Designers who dictate the trends and make the Fashion business glamorous. We are all in this business because of our passion for clothes/fashion/art. Designers have shifted their inspiration from the fringe to pop-culture with a spotlight on the young talents who are shaking up music, movies, the society pages and the street. We have a generation of street smart, innovative talents--musicians, actors, designers, and stylists who mix creative passion with a 'right on' sense of what will also be a commercial success. Designers have had an enormous influence on models' careers by using well-known magazine models and celebrities, instead of lesser-known house models to showcase their designs on the runway. It's the Designer who through making a particular model his muse can make that model a legend and the model/celebrity, in turn can make that designer's line a hot commodity.

Q: What is e-Fashion?
A: A new Fashion paradigm has evolved called e-Fashion. The way modeling agencies do business today is changing. Every company in the Fashion industry is starting to implement an e-Strategy in order to keep pace with its competitors. New electronic services allow modeling agencies and their clients to become more efficient and to lower their costs. These services give us faster access to global markets, while providing better service to our models/actors and clients.