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Puerto Rico Joan Smalls is an internationally recognized model and television personality, celebrated for her trailblazing career in fashion and her impactful collaborations with global brands.
In 2023, Joan Smalls starred in Anne Klein's Fall campaign alongside Candice Swanepoel. This partnership highlighted Smalls' continued presence in high-profile fashion campaigns.
Early in her career, after signing with Elite Model Management, Joan Smalls secured a series of catalogue campaigns for the department store Nordstrom, contributing to her initial commercial modeling experience.
In 2017, Joan Smalls collaborated with the Smart and Sexy brand to create a line of lingerie and swimwear. This collection was made available for sale at Walmart, extending her design influence to a wider market.
W Hotels Worldwide officially appointed Joan Smalls as their first Global Fashion Innovator. In this role, Smalls helps to create, shape, and innovate W's global fashion platform through special appearances, collaborations, and exclusive content, integrating her style into the W Hotel guest experience.
The supermodel launched a 16-piece capsule collection with True Religion, a design collaboration based on her chic off-duty style. This marked her first-ever design collaboration, featuring items like raglan sweatshirts.
In 2011, Estée Lauder signed Joan Smalls to its line-up of global beauty ambassadors, making her the first Latina to represent the brand in a worldwide campaign. In 2015, Smalls further collaborated with Estée Lauder to create 12 new matte lipsticks, providing inspiration for the shade selection that included reds, pinks, chocolate browns, and a dark burgundy, all added permanently to the brand’s line.
In late 2017, Jeremy Scott, the creative director of Moschino, unveiled Joan Smalls as the new face for the brand's Fresh Couture Gold fragrance. This campaign, shot by Giampaolo Sgura, was Smalls' first fragrance campaign.
Joan Smalls Rodriguez, born on July 11, 1988, in Hatillo, Puerto Rico, developed an early interest in modeling. After completing her bachelor’s degree in psychology with magna cum laude honors from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, she relocated to New York City to pursue her modeling aspirations. Initially signed by Elite Model Management in 2007, she undertook commercial modeling work for brands such as Nordstrom, Liz Claiborne, and Sass & bide. A pivotal moment in her career occurred in 2009 when she moved to IMG Models, refocusing her efforts on runway modeling. In January 2010, Smalls was selected as a Givenchy exclusive by Riccardo Tisci for his Spring/Summer haute couture show, a move that significantly accelerated her career progression.
Her career continued to ascend, leading to appearances on runways for eminent designers and fashion houses including Chanel, Prada, Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Tom Ford, Burberry, Versace, Louis Vuitton, and Balmain. Smalls has also garnered extensive editorial features and international covers for publications such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, and GQ. In 2011, she became the first Latina model to be signed as a global beauty ambassador for Estée Lauder. By 2012, Smalls was named the world’s number one model by Models.com, a position she maintained until 2014 when she was designated a ‘New Supermodel.’ In 2013, she achieved recognition on Forbes magazine’s ‘World’s Highest-Paid Models’ list, ranking eighth with earnings exceeding $3 million.
Beyond modeling, Smalls has diversified her career into television and design. She co-hosted MTV’s fashion series ‘House of Style’ and has made guest appearances on shows like ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race.’ Her design ventures include collaborations with True Religion for a denim collection in 2015 and with Smart and Sexy for a lingerie and swimwear line in 2017. Smalls also appeared in music videos for artists such as Ricky Martin, ASAP Rocky, Beyoncé, Kanye West, and Juanes. In 2017, W Hotels Worldwide appointed her as their first Global Fashion Innovator, leveraging her influence to shape their global fashion platform.
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