How Much Can an AVERAGE Model Expect to Get Paid? (PLEASE READ POST #1 BEFORE POSTING)

[crankypants]

First editorals, never pay more that 175 dollar....NEVER no matter which model

Second. lisa cant doesnt make 600k in a show season,maybe 100k a season before taxes and commision, from NYC, Milan, Paris.

third. All of most good nyc shows pay in trade ie marc, luella, proenza, calvin pays 1k a girl mybe 2k but not to often.

milan pays good, prada 2k, dolce 4k good money,

paris is bad for money taxes are to high angency takes 70%

a top girl like daria could take home 250 for a show season

a midrange girl like lisa cant could get close to 100k

Okay, sorry. I should have tracked down my source instead of just trying to remember. Turns out I remembered a six, but it was supposed to be six-figures, not 600K.

So here is the snippet from "Living it Up at Full Volume," which appeared on Sept 15 in the New York Times. Written by Guy Trebay.

"The inspiration begins at the deep end of the ocean and then goes into a kind of exotic fish palette, with details from mermaid's tails and then the whole thing kind of washes off to shore," Esteban Cortazar, the 21-year-old designer from Miami, explained to a reporter backstage at his show last weekend as the model Lisa Cant stood near a clothes rack doing financial projections for a four-city runway season, which, based on last time, might yield her something in the vicinity of six figures, factoring in five shows a day for as much as $5,000 a pop in Milan. "I'm doing all right for my age," said Ms. Cant, who turned 20 this year.

 

[Melisande]

The idea that Japanese fashion doesn't favor the look of their own people is hideously outdated...that may have been somewhat true decades ago, but no more. Many Japanese models here are extremely in demand and the majority of magazines feature only Japanese models. If foreign models find jobs here it is because we lack ethnic diversity in our population, and simply because very few Japanese are tall enough to model European-made fashion...logistic problems here.

I think Eurocentricism in fashion may be seen in some other countries who are just recently starting to see a surge in economic development and "Westernization" recently.

Asia is a the largest continent in the world...one really can't say "It's like this in Asia," yeah?

Oh, and when young models travel here on their own they often stay in a sort of "family" of models, with a house mother taking care of them and all.

 

[irresistable_loz]

ok I am not sure where the money comes from but I know gemma ward gets a lot more than that. I was working at Vivien's Modelling Agency (her Australian agency) and they got a cheque for $250,000 for the quarter (you know 3 months) just from her earnings that IMG arranged, as a mother agency commission. Therefore she must be earning quite a bit more than a mil a year. Or so I guess

 

[yourbestfriend]

Mother agencies get 10% of the models earnings right?

commission 20% = 500,000

means she made 2.5 million in those 3months...argh

 

[irresistable_loz]

Thats what I was assuming.. I'm not totally sure bout their commission %... i wasn't even sure if i was supposed to know bout that stuff ... but yeah, that was back in march, so with the Calvin Klein campaign she Now has.. she could be worth a fortune. plz note: not sure if that was in US$ or AUS$.. but i think it was direct from IMG so Im assuming US$

 

[yourbestfriend]

Even if it was aussie dollars it would still be around 1.7-1.8 million australian...that commision may have came off of the CK contract cause it was in march when they were shooting the models for the fall campaigns.

 

[irresistable_loz]

True... well either way shes an extremely lucky girl... wish I was earning around ten million a year..

 

[it's happening]

getting paid as an independent model

I hope this is the apt place to ask this

if you do a show, specifically a hair modeling show, and they say the rate is $150 and don't specify in the ad that it's only $150 if you are with an agency, and $50 if you are independent, is that wrong or illegal?
Why in this case would agency models get paid so much more considering agencies only take up to 20% commission?
i think this practice is really unfair.

 

[fashionkitten7]

I think they always pay the least the can It's just easier for them to argue the rate with an independent model than with a business an agency is because the latter usually has the minimum rate which signifies that the model at that agency won't do anything that is below that mark while independent models don't have anything like that.

Also, the business is better skilled when it comes to agruing the rate than an independent model is, besides, those people are adults while way not all models are.

And, finally, there is one more aspect to this. If a model is represented by an agency, the agency will usually work hard to find her jobs while independent models have to find jobs themselves which results in that they usually have less of a choice as to what jobs to do. The clients know that and they use that, basically.

I'm not an insider to the industry, but I hope that helps !

 

[it's happening]

I think they always pay the least the can It's just easier for them to argue the rate with an independent model than with a business an agency is because the latter usually has the minimum rate which signifies that the model at that agency won't do anything that is below that mark while independent models don't have anything like that.

Also, the business is better skilled when it comes to agruing the rate than an independent model is, besides, those people are adults while way not all models are.

And, finally, there is one more aspect to this. If a model is represented by an agency, the agency will usually work hard to find her jobs while independent models have to find jobs themselves which results in that they usually have less of a choice as to what jobs to do. The clients know that and they use that, basically.

I'm not an insider to the industry, but I hope that helps !

"those people are adults while way not all models are"--are u referring to independent models or the clients?

the clients use the fact that non-agency models have less of a chance at getting work?
if that's the case, then why do they post the ad publicly and then to agencies? since it's publicly available and anyone can apply, everyone should get paid the same amount.

i thought the whole idea of an agency was to get work that is not posted anywhere else, that the work they get is so good that it has to be exclusive. With hair shows, they're posted everywhere not just to agencies. Why the pay varies doesn't make sense.

 

[fashionkitten7]

"those people are adults while way not all models are"--are u referring to independent models or the clients?

I was referring to agents. It's more difficult to fool them than it is to fool the young girls (any models, including independent).


Well, I really don't know much about it, but it looks like they pay the proper amount when they can't avoid paying less than that. And they can't avoid it when they're dealing with an agency while they can do so with independent models. Or, maybe they think that the non-agency models are not as good as the agency ones, so they should be paid differently. I agree it isn't fair, but that's what all kinds of business have, not just modeling.

 

[purreow*]

People should remember the modeling world is a "dream" industry when you're not in it. I modeled when I was 18-21 and while it was nothing big, it was not consistent pay and I always had to have a backup job. I would make anywhere from $300 + products for a small shoot for a hair care line, to $5000 for a 2-day catalog shoot for a department store. After taxes and agency expenses, it was measily. I doubt I made over $30k altogether for a few years of work here and there. People on the outside expected me to have a lot of money at the time only because I was a "model".

I now work as an independent graphic designer and make a 6-figure salary. So, while my industry is not advertised to be as glamorous as modeling... I can at least make enough now to buy the clothes that the models are promoting! While modeling can be fun if you're up for it... never lose sight of the big picture of your future!

 

[zionforsell]

Mostly modeling is for teenagers who don't have a lot to worry about. Their parents are still supporting them. Modeling is for earning extra money for college and stuff. You can't actually EARN a living by being a model alone (exception to a VERY few). Gemma Ward is one of the exception.

 

[Mr. Fabulous]

do male models make the same amount of money as some females?

 

[green.tea]

Mother agencies get 10% of the models earnings right?

isn't it 20%? that's the percentage mine takes...

 

[katerina]

That's Surprise For Me

 

[yourbestfriend]

isn't it 20%? that's the percentage mine takes...

Do you have another agency besides your mother agency? If your mother agency is your only one its 20%...

Letsay you are with IMG, and you get paid 100,000 for smoething. IMG will take 20,000 (20%) and 10% of the 20,000 is sent to your mother agency.

So IMG in the end would get 10,000, your mother agency 10,000.

 

[model_mom]

Most agencies charge 20%....and most of the time they charge the client 20%.....someone is making a lot of money or there would not be so many agencies or so much competition among them.

 

[ChinaLove]

I read an article in GQ that said Shawn Decater (Is that his name? Something like that) was paid $200,000 for his Hugo Boss campaign, and that the men make about $4,000 for doing the Gucci runway.
I think you get loads doing the Gucci campaign too... I remember a Gucci poster boy from the past saying he was paid $250,000.
Also, there was a Tommy campaign a few years back with Karolina, Adina, Liya, etc., where a new male mod said he wasn't going to do the campaign until he was told he was being $50 G's for it.

 

[model_mom]

Some of the girls on the Tommy Jean campaign the same year were paid $15,000(US dollars) a day for the campaign. Some worked two days and some worked four.