Thursday, 7 July 2011

The Beauty World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels; Jessica Stam

















The Beauty World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels; Jessica Stam

Jessica Stam (born April 23, 1986) is a Canadian model. Jessica Stam is considered to be part of the crop of models described as "doll faces" alongside Gemma Ward, Vlada Roslyakova, Lily Cole, Caroline Trentini, Lisa Cant, Devon Aoki, and Heather Marks. In 2007, Forbes named her fifteenth in the list of the World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels, earning at an estimated total of $1.5 million in the past 12 months.

Jessica Stam was born in Kincardine, Ontario and grew up on a farm alongside her six brothers. Jessica Stam came from a religious family and attended Sacred Heart High School in Walkerton, Ontario. Her original intention was to become a dentist. Stam was discovered in a local Tim Hortons coffee shop by Michèle Miller (an agent at the International Model Management agency in Barrie, Ontario) who found Jessica Stam on the way back from Canada's Wonderland (a theme park just outside Toronto).

Jessica Stam won the Los Angeles Model Look contest in 2002. Photographer Steven Meisel jump-started her career and soon after cast her in every advertisement campaign of his. "I guess I'm his muse", Jessica Stam has said. Jessica Stam has appeared on the cover of UK, Turkish & German Vogue and in advertisements for Marc Jacobs, Anna Sui, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, DKNY, and others. In 2004, Jessica Stam appeared in the short film Agent Orange. Jessica Stam was once sued by New York Model Management in 2004, because of a breach of contract.

Fashion designer Marc Jacobs created The Marc Jacobs Stam, a bag inspired and named after her. For the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in 2006, New York Model opened the fourth runway theme "Pink". The appearance also included a featurette showing a Victoria's Secret commercial shoot and what a model sees when walking the runway. In the January 2006, Jessica Stam appeared in the Rochas ad campaign, shot and directed by Bruno Aveillan.

For Spring 2006 Ready-to-Wear, Stam walked a total of 64 shows combined during the New York, Milan, and Paris Fashion Weeks. During Paris's Spring/Summer 2007 Haute Couture fashion week she walked for Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Christian Dior, Givenchy, and Jean Paul Gaultier. In the May 2007 issue of American Vogue she was featured on the cover with fellow models: Doutzen Kroes, Caroline Trentini, Raquel Zimmermann, Sasha Pivovarova, Agyness Deyn, Coco Rocha, Hilary Rhoda, Chanel Iman, and Lily Donaldson as the new crop of supermodels. Stam fell at the Chloé Fall 2006 show in Paris, while wearing "ridiculously high patent-leather pumps" that got caught on each other as her feet crossed on the runway. Her fall received millions of views on YouTube and it even took first spot on the "Top Five Runway Falls" list by New York Magazine. She later recalled, "I fell and got back up," she says. "I kept walking. It happens, and it's no big deal."

She was presented on the May 2007 cover of American Vogue as one of the "World’s Next Top Models." In July 2007, earning at an estimated total of $1.5 million in the previous 12 months, Forbes named her fifteenth in the list of the World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels. Currently she stars in campaigns for Bulgari, Dior, Lanvin and Escada. She also appears in the F/W 2007 Christian Dior, DKNY, Miss Sixty, Loewe and Roberto Cavalli ad campaign. She has also walked in the 2006, 2007, and 2010 Victoria's Secret fashion shows. For F/W 08 Stam can be seen in ads for Giorgio Armani "Onde" fragrance, Dolce & Gabbana and Bulgari. The Wall Street Journal featured Jessica Stam in their article on "How to Walk Like a Model" and taught a DKNY intern her runway moves.

In 2009 she returned as the face of Bulgari and in March she appeared on the cover of Tokyo Numéro. She starred in the fall Fendi campaign, shot by Karl Lagerfeld. She starred in Nina Ricci's new floral fragrance named Ricci Ricci for summer 2009. Stam guest starred in CW’s The Beautiful Life, S01E04.

She was chosen to model the Nina Ricci spring 2010 campaign since Olivier Theyskens's departure from the label. Stam has transitioned from modeling into designing, first collaborating with Rag & bone on pieces for the spring 2010 collection, and then signing up with Rachel Roy to co-design a capsule collection consisting of jeans, a bag, and a cardigan for her Rachel Rachel Roy label, launch in October 2011. Stam models for Victoria's Secret Giles Deacon's show in Paris. She appeared on the inaugural cover of Vogue Turkey, launched March 2010. Stam designed and modeled four pieces for Rachel Roy's lower-priced line, RACHEL Rachel Roy, which launched August 2010 at Macy's.

Stam currently ranks No. 8 on MODELS.com's Top 50 Models list.

As of 2009, Stam was working towards getting her pilot's license. Stam previously dated Toronto Maple Leafs hockey player Aaron Voros formerly of the New York Rangers and Anaheim Ducks.