After begging her father to be a model when she was young, Alanna Arrington’s dreams are coming true, in large part thanks to Jeff and Mary Clarke, the St. Louis duo behind Mother Model Management. The couple—who helped launch the careers of Karlie Kloss and Ashton Kutcher—discovered the Iowa native when she was just 10 years old. Today, Arrington’s career is taking off: She was featured on Vogue.com earlier this year, and she’ll travel to Paris in early December to walk as an angel in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.
“Getting to be a part of the show means everything to me,” Arrington says. “This has been one of my biggest dreams since I started modeling. To get the opportunity to walk almost feels unreal.”
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The Clarkes were recently at dinner when Arrington’s manager called with the news. After a teary FaceTime chat with Arrington, it was time for Mary to start making travel accommodations—for both Arrington and herself.
Before they fly to Paris, though, the Clarkes and Arrington will reunite on November 19, when the 17-year-old model returns to St. Louis for Mother Model’s Tribute 2016 Fashion Show.
“Tribute is a reminder of how great working in this industry is, bringing people together and showing the beauty everyone has,” says Arrington, who first walked the runway here. The show will feature both fresh faces and experienced models—including Arrington.
“Sometimes, somebody can have a great season coming right out of the gate,” says Mary, “but a superstar is somebody who can maintain that and every season up their game, which is exactly what Alanna did.”
Arrington was featured in St. Louis Magazine’s fall 2015 fashion portfolio. See behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot:
