We recently connected with Alice Laura and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Alice, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
Our models go beyond beautiful faces and are valued for what they bring to the table. Our mission is to break down the prejudice of models being beautiful but empty shells. Our team wants to encourage young people to focus on their education, learn new languages, travel abroad, open their minds and learn from different ways of living. Moreover, our models make valuable connections with companies and learn about different industries while working with us. We hope to be an inspiration for a lot of young people and, actually, have already inspired a lot of our models to work on their foreign language skills and to feed their minds apart from taking care of their outward appearance. We are receiving a lot of letters from parents thanking us for our work. This is the best reward we can get and gives sense and meaning to the work we do. It is extremely important that our models are treated respectfully and are being appreciated for the value they create for our clients. Moreover, our goal is to work with ethical businesses and sustainable/organic brands. We only have one planet and that is why we want to use the tools of beauty and intelligence wisely, supporting a good cause.
Finally, we have partnered with “One Tree Planted”. “One Tree Planted” is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit dedicated to global reforestation. They plant trees to restore nature and biodiversity. They also raise awareness about the importance of trees, and motivate younger generations to do something positive for the environment. For every booked model our agency will plant a tree!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Alice Laura Models is an international premium staffing & modeling agency located in Dallas, Texas. Our company specializes in placing high fashion models skilled in sales, brand promoting and hosting for upscale events, trade shows, product launches, live marketing and fashion events. We are known for the class, elegance and intellect of our models. The idea for Alice Laura Models originally came up in Berlin, Germany, while completing my Master’s Degree. To understand my company and the philosophy behind it, you should first know a little more of my personal story:
Before starting my studies, I was working as a volunteer in the Dominican Republic teaching English and French, while working in environmental education and ecotourism. Then, through merit scholarships, I studied abroad for 2 years (1 year in Havana, Cuba and one year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). All these experiences and many years of studies allowed me to learn six languages fluently and to open my mind to different realities and perspectives on life.
While in university, I started working as a model/hostess on many national and international conventions, events and fashion shows. It was a great side income to have as a student and allowed me to finance my travels. Thanks to my modeling jobs, I was able to focus more on my university studies, since I did not have to work a “fixed” job. Especially, the work at international trade shows and events allowed me to gain insight into all kinds of different industries, network, learn and grow with every job. While working as a model myself, I noticed the need for intelligent, beautiful and hardworking people. Many times, models would just stand around and smile, but would not create value for the company.
Personally, I went above and beyond, helped clients with translations, filtered important customers and explained their products. Thus, I became a valuable member of their team. Clients would not notice that it was my first time working with the company. Satisfied with my work, more and more companies approached me looking for professional talent to add value to their company and brand. I began connecting companies with highly educated models who were students, as I was at this time. This is how the idea of the agency came to life.
In Dallas we launched the agency around 5 years ago. We have found our niche focusing on elegance, class and competence, rather than short dresses. A high degree of education, knowledge of foreign languages and a very attractive look, are only a few qualifications that are required of our talent. We want to provide value for the companies and brands we work with. We want our models to help our clients with sales, lead generation, translations, etc. Beauty is great and opens doors, but one has to be able to hold a conversation, be educated and have a good heart to really make an impression. We only work with direct clients and bookings. This is a huge privilege for our models since they do not need to go to a lot of castings/auditions and compete with other models for jobs. We have worked with clients such as Teri Jon, Sam Edelman, UBeauty, Ese Azenabor at events and international trade shows like People Magazine Launch Party, IFA Berlin, BSC Expo London, AAHOA Dallas, Modefabriek Amsterdam or SIAL Paris, to only name a few. In Dallas we have organized shows and events at the most beautiful sites such as The Hall of State or the Perot Museum. We often collaborate with artists as well since we love to support their thought- provoking work. We have placed our models at several incredible artistic film projects and events.
My proudest achievement so far has been being able to grow the business in the US market. It was a completely foreign terrain for me and I came across a lot of cultural differences and personal challenges. Before, I had studied and worked in different countries, but I had never before launched my own business in a foreign country. It has been a challenge for sure, but I am proud to say that I have been able to make valuable connections and partnerships. Now, I have a better understanding about US business life and culture and we were able to expand the business to other US cities apart from Dallas.
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
Communicate your values. I believe it is extremely important to be aware of your values when founding a company and to design your company around these values. People are emotional beings and they will connect better with your company and product when they can connect emotionally and identify themselves with it. After having your foundational values outlined, it is important to communicate and list the organizational values. Organizational values are rules that govern the expected attitudes and behaviors required of the team members for day-to-day collaborations to run smoothly. This is something you can elaborate with your team while always keeping them aligned with your foundational values. If you build a team that aligns with both of these sets of values, it will be passionate about what it is doing, the why behind it and, therefore, maintain a high moral. Furthermore, you will attract more like minded people while growing the team. Trust your team, delegate and try not to micromanage everything. I did this for a while and it is definitely not the way to go. It prevents your team from taking on more responsibility and does not allow you to free your schedule to either focus on growing the company, nor think about the bigger picture.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
I believe the most important aspect about growing your social media is to provide value for your followers. People want to learn and grow while consuming your content. For our agency, we use a lot of inspirational quotes and write longer, more personable texts to introduce our models. Furthermore we include educational posts about different topics like healthy eating, fitness, etiquette, etc. I think it is important to inspire people to work on themselves constantly. Videos and direct interactions work great as well. It is important to be in constant communication with your audience and make them feel heard and valued. You can send direct messages, answer questions in your stories and also include behind the scenes of the work you do. Do not make it all about you or your company (brand), but mostly about your audience.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.alicelauramodels.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alicelauramodels/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alicelauramodels
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/alice-laura-models/
- Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/alicelauramodel/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/alice-laura-models-dallas
Image Credits
Danny Campbell Photography