[Top Agency Series] Breaking the Mold in Modeling With Bill Giofu

Bill Giofu is the Founder of Sophia Models and Talent, a premier modeling and talent agency based in Calgary, Alberta. With a modeling career that began in 1986 in Regina, Saskatchewan, he has worked across North America, Europe, and Asia, and has appeared in over 40 television commercials, videos, and film productions. In 1996, Bill opened the Calgary office of Mode Models, serving as Agency Director and developing it into one of Western Canada’s most successful modeling agencies. In 2010, he established Sophia Models, leveraging over 35 years of industry experience to develop and promote highly sought-after talent.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

• [03:12] Bill Giofu explains the mission of Sophia Models and Talent and its global reach
• [04:30] The transition from working at another agency to launching Sophia Models
• [5:30] The process of scouting and recruiting new modeling talent
• [6:56] How major brands like Wrangler and Amazon find and work with Sophia Models
• [10:08] The evolving standards of the modeling industry and the push for diversity
• [12:55] International modeling opportunities and how models secure global contracts
• [15:25] What it takes to be selected for high-profile campaigns
• [17:58] Bill’s unexpected journey from aspiring athlete to modeling agency owner
• [23:12] The challenges of running an agency
• [28:48] How industry stigmas around body types and diversity have changed over time
• [32:08] Bill’s personal challenges, overcoming adversity, and the role of mentorship

In this episode…

Breaking into the modeling industry can feel like an impossible task. With countless aspiring models vying for limited opportunities, how do you stand out? And for brands looking to hire the right talent, how do they ensure they’re working with professionals who can deliver?

Bill Giofu, a successful entrepreneur in the modeling industry, shares his expertise in navigating the ever-changing modeling landscape. As a former international model turned agency owner, he has firsthand knowledge of scouting and developing talent while adapting to industry trends. Bill emphasizes the importance of a diverse portfolio, professional representation, and building strong industry relationships. He also highlights how brands can benefit from working with agencies to find the right talent efficiently and avoid common pitfalls in the hiring process.

In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz interviews Bill Giofu, Founder of Sophia Models and Talent, about the business of modeling and talent representation. Bill discusses how he built his agency, the changing standards in the modeling industry, and how he helps talent secure international opportunities. He also shares insights on working with major brands, the challenges of running a talent agency, and how social media has impacted the industry.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Bill Giofu on LinkedIn
• Sophia Models and Talent

Related episode(s):

• “[Top Agency Series] Growth Through Acquisitions – What is Your KPI and Northstar? With Jason Swenk” on the Inspired Insider Podcast
• “Building a Great Team and More Helpful Insights with Jason Swenk Host of The Smart Agency Master Class Podcast” on the Inspired Insider Podcast
• “[Top Agency Series] Navigating a Merger and Becoming an End-to-End Digital Partner With Kevin Hourigan of Spinutech” on the Inspired Insider Podcast

Quotable Moments:

• “We promote models locally and internationally to markets like Milan, China, Japan, and Korea.”
• “Social media has really affected our industry because clients can now go directly to individuals.”
• “Modeling is acting — you have to react, whether you’re seeing a bird in the sky or flowers.”
• “We’re excited that brands now ask for all types of models, including plus-size and diverse talent.”
• “If I hadn’t sobered up when I did, I don’t know where I would have been.”

Action Steps:

1. Build strong relationships with modeling agencies: Aspiring models should connect with reputable agencies to gain professional representation and secure better opportunities.
2. Diversify your modeling portfolio: A strong portfolio with different looks, poses, and styles increases your chances of getting booked.
3. Understand industry trends and requirements: Keeping up with trends can help models and agencies position themselves for more opportunities.
4. Leverage international markets for greater exposure: Expanding beyond local markets can increase visibility and career longevity.
5. Maintain professionalism and reliability on set: Brands prefer working with models who are punctual, prepared, and easy to direct.

Episode Transcript

Intro 00:00

You are listening to Inspired Insider with your host, Dr. Jeremy Weisz.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 00:22

Dr. Jeremy Weisz here founder of inspiredinsider.com where I talk with inspirational entrepreneurs and leaders. Today is no different. I have Bill Giofu. And Bill, before I introduce you, he runs Sophia Models. You can check him out at sophiamodels.com, the first ever modeling agency I had.

This is part of the Top Agency series. So it’s good to start now. And Bill, here’s a couple episodes people should check out that are interesting in this top, you know, Digital Marketing Agency series, we had Jason Swenk, Jason Swenk actually built up his agency to eight figures and sold it. And then he started buying up agencies. So there’s two separate episodes actually, and he talks about how he built it up, the valuation space, the agency space, and just the business space as well.

I had Kevin Hourigan of Spinutech. Bill Kevin started his agency in 1995. So it was interesting to hear the landscape of the Internet of Business and agencies like throughout the past couple decades. So that was a really cool episode as well. So check those out on inspiredinsider.com.

This episode is brought to you by Rise25. Rise25, we help businesses give to and connect to their dream relationships and partnerships. How do we do that? We do that by helping you run your podcast.

We’re an easy button for a company to launch and run a podcast. We do the strategy, the accountability and the full execution. So kind of bill, we call ourselves the magic elves that run in the background and make it look easy for the hosts. They can create amazing content and amazing relationships, most importantly, run their business. You know.

For me, the number one thing in my life is relationships. I’m always looking at ways and how I can give to my best relationships, and I have found no better way over the past decade to profile the people and the companies I most admire and share with the world what they’re working on. So if you’ve thought about podcasting, you should. If you have questions, go to rise25.com, or you can email us at [email protected]. I am super excited to introduce Bill Giofu and he is the founder of Sophia Models International.

And you can check him out Sophiamodels.com. And he’s actually a former international model and they have over 50. You have over 50 TV commercials and film productions. They’ve actually worked with companies like Amazon, Chanel, Crocs, Columbia, Gap, Louis Vuitton, and there’s many, many more. You can go and we’re going to pull up their site in a second, because it’s so visual of the different models, the talent and different clients they’ve worked with. So Bill, thanks for joining me.

Bill Giofu 02:59

Thank you Jeremy.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 03:01

Let’s start off and I’m going to pull up Sophia Models. So if you are listening to the audio there will be a video component to this. But talk about Sophia Models and what you do.

Bill Giofu 03:12

Well Sophia Models basically is an agency that promotes models to locally and also international markets also such as, you know, Milan, China, Japan, Korea. We have a girl leaving next week for Korea. We also promote models locally here that do you know jobs for locally here WestJet is the is the company here in Calgary that’s based in Calgary. I’m sure everybody knows about WestJet. And then the other companies also that we’ve worked with, Dick’s Sporting Goods has come up to Canada and shot here in Alberta.

You know, Tiffany Sportchek marks, of course, we work for Wrangler and also Toyota. We’ve done stuff for Visa. Amazon just shot here last month or sorry, last year in November I believe it was. So yeah, we’ve worked with some top agencies or clients I should say, and our agency is definitely pumped about doing more work for those clients and also others.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 04:21

I want to hear about how you first started. What was the idea behind Sophia Models?

Bill Giofu 04:30

Well, actually, we split off from another agency to start Sophia Models, so I was with another agency in 1996. I started my company and I was working at like a, like a franchisee was called a licensee. And so I worked with that agency. And then we split in 2010. And when we did that, over 98% of the local models came with us.

And we’re really, you know, excited to see that many individuals come over with us. So it was pretty cool.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 05:06

Marketplaces, I find are tough, right? Because you have the model, the talent and then also the client side. Let’s talk about them kind of individually building up the talent pool. Like who’s you know obviously I see apply. How does it work to become one of the talent or models for Sophia Models?

Bill Giofu 05:30

Well, there’s numerous ways. Of course, like you said, we can hit on the apply on our website. Also, we have open calls. Actually, we’re having an open call this Saturday from 2 to 4 right at our office here in Calgary. And you know, anybody can come between you know, we look for, you know, people that can work now type thing.

So anywhere between 16 years old and up. So they can come on to that casting call. Like I said, it’s this Saturday. Also, we see people on, on, on the street or, you know, in stores. One of my assistants, my assistant Elena, she found a girl in a consignment store was staring at her as she was purchasing her items and gave her a card.

And, you know, four months later, she was off to Japan or, sorry, China. So, yeah. So it works like that. I’ve actually, you know, seen, you know, models go right from Calgary to other locales in the world and have done great work. So that’s basically how we find people.

We get referrals to, you know, some of our models have friends or, you know, relatives or whatever, and they refer our agency to them.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 06:47

I want to walk through a little bit of how it works. Let’s take maybe Wrangler, for example. Let’s talk. How did they even find you?

Bill Giofu 06:56

I believe they just did. They were actually in Calgary and did a search, of course, for the agencies, and we applied for the demographic they wanted, and we had two models on their particular gig. And it was a fantastic gig. It was probably one of the largest we’ve done. So we had two models on that particular production, and they did two days work for $750 Canadian here in Calgary.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 07:30

That’s why they film in Canada, because it’s cheaper.

Bill Giofu 07:32

That’s right, that’s right. So 750 a day they got for two days and then they did a buyout. Buyout and usage fee is the same thing. So they’ll say we’re going to use this particular production video or pictures for two years and pay. They paid $6,000 for that two years for the usage of it.

And then they came back two years later and bought it out again for another $6,000. So, you know, the models in their pockets probably got around, you know, $13,000-$14,000 in their pocket for a two-day gig. So that’s one of our better jobs that we’ve had. And Wrangler was excited to have it. And of course, they, you know, bought it out for the second two years, so they must have liked it.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 08:19

How does it work? Bill, does Wrangler come to you and go, hey, we need two, you know, females around, you know, 36? I mean, are they giving you exact specs or are they just how does it work when they approach you? What do they need from you?

Bill Giofu 08:33

Yes, exactly. Doctor Jeremy, we, you know, go from what? The clients, you know, request from us. You know, maybe somebody between 22 and 32. You know, they don’t nowadays we don’t get a lot of, you know, height requirements or size Requirements.

It has been fantastic, actually, because we used to have models that were, you know, five, five and we couldn’t promote them, but now we can promote girls and guys that are five, two, you know. So it’s really good in that way we can the diversity has really helped us in promoting people that, you know are not the typical model. Look, we still want those type for the international markets because that’s what they require. But locally here, you know, that’s the requirement that say Wrangler may ask and say yeah between 22 and 32. They don’t these times.

They don’t ask too much for height or anything like that. They’ll definitely say diversity is required.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz 09:37

Like they’ll say like I want a buff older man. And they see Alejandro here and then they want to hire him..

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