Sasha Groening:The Face behind Face Models

 They also offer choreography services for fashion shows and beauty pageants as well as creative direction in promotional photo shoots. The agency provides a fun and comfo-rtable atmosphere to encourage freedom of expression from every individual and boost confidence. Our central aim is to use fashion as a platform to raise awareness to various national epidemics, a concept already successfully implemented since the agency’s inception.

Director of Face Models Sasha Groening recently won the Believe, Become, Begin business plan competition by Techno Serve that saw her take E60 000 towards her business. Style had a few questions for the young entrepreneur.

I drew a lot of inspiration from Gail Mawocha (Director of Mustard Seed) and admired her creativity and passion. This challenged me to seek my purpose and pursue my new found passion for modelling.

I received counsel from church and close friends, and found that starting a modelling agency was the best route for me.

It would enable me to have staying power in the industry long after I stopped being a model myself. Most importantly it was an opportunity to help aspiring models penetrate and grow within the industry that was dead at the time.

Meanwhile I  was analysing the local industry to see if it was viable. At the time there was no other active agency.

I thought to myself, ‘great no competition, now how can I revolutionise the conservative approach to modelling?’ So I came up with awareness modelling, which is modelling with or for a cause and I decided I wanted fuller figured models in the agency. I figured there would not be adequate job opportunities and I resolved to create my own shows through awareness modelling. I wanted to work with real people who were equally passionate.

Being a model, I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know beautiful, self-driven young ladies who desired to be professional models but didn’t have anyone to manage them and help them secure work.

So I decided I wanted to be that person. In all the work I had done as a runway and catalogue model, hostess or promoter, we were considered the face of each brand we were selling. And so FACE seemed an appropriate name for the agency. (Not to be confused with Face (facial) modelling). It can also be translated to Fashion and Casting Enterprise.

I worked with Vincent Caudry a web designer for House on Fire, on designing a logo for the agency. I then penned down the business concept, my mission and vision statement as well as code of conduct.

The first person who had the privilege of reading my draft was Jiggs Thorne (Director of House on Fire and Bushfire), someone I respect and whose opinion I regard highly.

He was very supportive and encouraged me to pursue my vision. From then on I worked on registering the company and prepared model contracts.

I approached some of the girls I had worked with about joining the agency and they were more than happy to do so. The very first model to sign on to FACE was Nandi Alexander, a brilliant model who is now based in South Africa. She is actually in the July issue of Cosmopolitan magazine, page 35, I’m so very proud of her.

The start-up journey wasn’t a difficult one for me. What I do is more like a hobby than a job and I thoroughly enjoyed doing it. Fortunately, work opportunities continually present themselves and I am able to network and build contacts with the industry’s best.

Everyone sells it differently and they need to avoid mimicking other models but embrace their own x-factor. Personality counts for a lot when choosing promotion models as they have to be friendly, approachable and engaging.

So you may find that a model is insanely gorgeous with an A+ personality but struggles on the runway and in front of the camera, therefore better placed as a promoter or hostess.

Of course, the models go through training so by the time we are done you will find that they become versatile brands and master in all types of modelling.

Reason being, we do not want to sign on too many models and not have adequate work opportunities for all of them. The next model casting is scheduled for the 2nd weekend of July and we will put up notification on all major public notice boards as well as our Facebook Page (FACE Modelling and Casting Agency).

This will also be a re-casting for existing models as we are having a major facelift and introducing new training programmes.

It is a big investment for the agency and we need to know that we are working with individuals who are serious about a career in modelling.

That’s how nervous we were. We were really glad we didn’t chicken out after our names were called (lol).

I was really proud of myself, I’ve never been too confident to enter competitions but I’m glad I entered this one. It was so much fun; I learnt so much, met amazing individuals and walked away with a lifelong experience and of course FACE is E60 000 richer.

We will have definitely penetrated the international market by then and no doubt with a stream of international references on our fashion belt. FACE Models will be the ones to beat as first-reference models in the industry.

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