Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Valeria Sizova. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Valeria, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

My pageant journey started unexpectedly. I entered my first competition at 23 ( late by industry standards ) with no coaching, no community, and no real understanding of what I was walking into.
What I didn’t expect was how much that world would open up. Pageants led me into modelling, and within a short time I was booking three to four shoots a week without agency representation. I figured it out the hard way — through repetition, observation, and a lot of trial and error.
Over the years I went on to win several pageant titles and had the honour of representing both Russia and Australia. My modelling work appeared on the covers of L’Officiel, Grazia, Harper’s Bazaar, and MAXIM, with features in Women’s Fitness, CQ, and StarCentral, among others.
But even at that level, I noticed something missing. There was no structured, comprehensive resource for women entering this industry – nothing that combined technique, presentation, mindset, physical conditioning, posture, networking, and personal brand into one system. Not in Australia, and based on conversations I had with top representatives from other countries at international competitions, not really anywhere.
That frustration was widely shared. These were serious, accomplished women saying the same thing.
That’s what led me to build The Crown Blueprint – a complete preparation system for beauty pageant competitors. A dedicated modelling course will follow as the next stage of the platform. The goal is simple: give women the knowledge and structure to perform at their best, feel confident in what they’re doing, and build a reputation that carries them forward long after the competition ends.

Valeria, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I came to Australia at 17, on my own, with no English and no safety net. That experience shaped everything I am today. When you have to build a life from scratch in a country where you can’t yet communicate, you develop a particular kind of resilience – and a deep respect for what structured effort can produce.
Before pageants and modelling, I built a broad professional foundation. I studied at the University of Sydney, completing a Bachelor of Arts in Politics, majoring in Government and International Relations. I worked across human resources management, real estate, and eventually moved into a head of marketing role. I also ran my own dance agency for eight years while working full time during the day, as well as dance coaching children and adults, and hold Certificate III and IV in Fitness. These weren’t unrelated detours – they built the strategic, operational, and people skills that now underpin everything I do.
My entry into pageants was unplanned. I started competing at 23, which is considered late in the industry, with no coach and no network. I learned through hard work and close observation. Over time I won multiple titles and had the honour of representing both Russia and Australia on international stages. That same discipline carried into modelling — I was booking three to four shoots a week without agency representation, and my work appeared on the covers of L’Officiel, Grazia, Glamour, and MAXIM, with features in Women’s Fitness, CQ, and StarCentral, among others.
In 2024 I competed on Australian Survivor: Titans v Rebels, placed in the top nine, and served on the jury lasting on the show all 47 day. That experience reinforced what I already knew – performance under pressure is a skill, and it can be taught.
What I kept noticing throughout my career was a gap. There was no structured, comprehensive preparation system available to women entering pageants or modelling in Australia – nothing that addressed technique, presentation, mindset, physical conditioning, posture, networking, and personal brand in one place. I heard the same frustration from top competitors representing other countries at international events that made me think about online base system – to get the global reach to women who needs that.
That’s what led me to build The Crown Blueprint – a complete preparation system for beauty pageant competitors, built on everything I’ve learned as a winner, a professional, and someone who had to figure most of this out alone. A dedicated modelling course will follow as the next stage of the platform.
I’m most proud of the fact that nothing I offer is theoretical. Every part of this system comes from direct experience at a high level, across multiple industries, in multiple countries. That combination – competitive results, professional breadth, and a genuine understanding of what it takes to perform – is what sets this apart. With each course, I draw not only on my own experience but also on interviews I personally conducted with beauty pageant winners across different systems and industry leaders to bring the most informed perspective possible.
What I want people to know is straightforward: I built this because it didn’t exist, and because I know exactly what it costs to go into this industry without it.

Can you talk to us about your experience with selling businesses?

Yes – I sold my dance agency last year after building it for eight years.
The hardest lesson took me a long time to learn: you have to make the business operate without you. I struggled to delegate. I struggled to trust others to execute to the standard I held myself to. But you cannot be a one-person team indefinitely, and the sooner you accept that, the faster your business grows.
Finding the right people is genuinely difficult. People will rarely care about your business the way you do – that’s just honest. So your job as a business owner is not to expect that level of ownership, but to create an environment where your team feels trusted, valued, and like a meaningful part of something bigger. All of us want to feel needed, useful, and purposeful. When people feel that, they perform better.
Delegate work that plays to people’s strengths and genuine interests – not just what’s convenient for you. When someone is doing work they’re good at and want to do, the results show.
The other major lesson, particularly for businesses built on personal branding: you must introduce other faces and demonstrate that the business runs well without you constantly present. That is the real proof of a successful operation – not that you’re indispensable, but that you built something that stands on its own.
I still watch the agency I sold last year – growing its team, booking events, putting on productions – and I’m genuinely proud of that. I built a platform that created real jobs for talented artists and continues to bring value long after I stepped away. That, to me, is what a successful business looks like.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

One book has stayed with me longer than anything else – How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. It was written decades ago, but human behaviour doesn’t change, and that’s exactly what makes it so relevant.
The core insight is simple: your business is built on how you treat people. Your staff, your clients, and even a stranger you meet briefly – any one of them can influence the trajectory of your business in ways you won’t always see coming.
People are your most valuable resource. Carnegie understood that, and the book gives you a practical framework for creating environments where people feel respected, heard, and motivated to do their best work. Some might call it influence – I’d call it intelligent leadership. When you understand what drives people and respond to that thoughtfully, everything functions better – your team performs better, your clients trust you more, and your business grows from a foundation that actually holds.
It’s the one book I’d recommend to any entrepreneur, regardless of industry.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: valeria.sizova