We’re not there yet, but inclusivity in the fashion industry continues to shift in the right direction. With consumers having long grown tired of being told what is beautiful, we are seeing more models that portray the diversity of the world: from hijab-wearing models to models with disabilities; non-binary models; older models and, not just plus-sized girls - but those that represent every size.
Over the past five years, setting the trend of change, we have seen Edward Enninful OBE become the first black editor-in-chief of British Vogue (2017). Halima Aden wearing a hijab and burkini on the cover of a Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue (2019) - and high-street stores, including Marks & Spencer, Asos, H&M and Zara, have introduced modest lines and, in some cases, online shopping searches.
Also in 2019, luxury brands including Gucci, Chanel and Burberry hired diversity and inclusion officers. And, in 2018, Tyler Mitchell shot Beyoncé for American Vogue’s, September issue - the first ever black photographer to shoot a cover for the US title. Then there are the high-fashion brands, including Saint Laurent and Celine, booking women aged over 50 to front campaigns.
Apace with these changes has come a whole new roster of unselfconscious models (perhaps thanks to Instagram) with individual personalities, interesting hobbies and, for some, jobs they carry out alongside modelling - representing so many other people out there. Here, we speak to our four cover stars from boundary-breaking agency Milk Management, who are exactly that.
NANDI MACALOU
Nandi Macalou, 23, was scouted at such a young age, she doesn’t know what other career path she’d have taken if she hadn’t become a model. At 13, she was discovered by a student at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Antwerp, who asked her to walk in
