I Dumped Trump & This Is What I Got

This is January 2017, Donald Trump won the election for President of the United States. As bizarre as this sounds, there was a part of me that was entirely amused by that: "the boy from the south of Brazil, who had not a penny to his name, now worked for the President of the United States, who would've ever guessed it?" That's about all the amusement I could feel for what seemed to be the beginning of the end of our days.

At the time I worked for Trump Models, a very small but successful and rather respected modeling agency, in business for almost 20 years. We had already been under severe attack by the media and people who saw an opportunity to show face in the media and therefore made up all sorts of crazy situations to their own benefit but without thinking, our harm.

At Trump Models, we all, a small staff of 12 total, were extremely passionate about our jobs and we always dedicated our time to helping as many people as possible; whether they were on their way up, or on their way down. It is our understanding that the world is already tough enough as it is and there aren't enough people out there to lend a hand when most need. It's a give and take and regardless of who you were or where you came from, if we heard you needed a job or a place to live, you can be sure you would have thge team of 12 calling people for you. Most of us were foreigners, or from some place else, and all of us had dedicated our etire lives to this industry; I started my first job at age 16-17 and that is not uncommon; so we knew first-hand how hard it is to try to build a life alone in this businness in a place like New York. It is our duty to help and pay it forward.

The most successful (and least talked about) coup against a Trump owned businenss was the one against Trump Models. We knew it was coming, but we never imagined that we would be so mistreated and rejected and lied to by the very people we helped up along the way and many times called "friends". The boycott was set off by an unverified source, based on a facebook status update, and worse, a status update by a professional who had images of our models splattered all over his social media. He called out for an industry-wide boycott against all models and anything related to Trump models, a so-called news source published it, without verifying, without fact-checking, without thinking. This was initiated from a Facebook update of someone who was being supported and having his career pushed forward by us, the very object of his attack. We never stood a chance, the industry and the media wouldn't listen nor they were interested in the facts. We were left to our own devices, 12 people of all different backgrounds, countries, religions and sexual orientations, with families to raise and bills to pay; people who NEVER shared Mr. President's viewpoints and ideologies, in fact the exact opposite, our jobs and who we are reside i the direct opposite direction of Donald Trump, but we were caught in the middle of his mess, normal hard 9-5 workers.

What  nobody took in consideration is that by boycotting the agency they were only harming us 12, not Donald or his business, as we represented nno more than 1% of the total revenue of Trump's global businesses.

We saw our revenue drop by 90% within a month and by the end of that fashion week season in February, the wreckage was so widespread that the scene in the office daily was of people crying and in intense emotional distress, fearing for their future. At the same time I saw this unraveling before my eyes, my sister laid in a hospital bed in coma after a horrific motorcycle accident that was supposed to have taken her life immediately, but for a miracle (words of the doctor) hadn't. I was faced with a harsh reality: I would either spend my last penies and go visit my family to be by their side, in Brazil - or I would stay behind and try to save not only my job and my future but also that of those who worked with me on a daily basis. I chose to stay, and on that day I decided I would take charge for once, and if I were to do so, it would be to do something that was the opposite of everything our president stands for and everything that our industry had so taken for granted and toiled away, to a point of nearly ending itself.

On March 13th, 2017 I founded ANTI management, a modeling agency focused 100% on the model and their interests, approaching careers with a positive and wholesome outlook, creating opportunities around the individual, not a trend dictated by an industry that won't support their own creations. My intention was to show that from a bad situation, a hopeless situation, there was also room for something beautiful to grow.

With advice from more experienced people in business administration, investment, and the modeling industry itself I wrote a business plan, I went after raising capital and worked around the clock, as there was no time to be wasted with the end of Trump Models looming around the corner. 

I opened ANTI with a personal loan of U$40,000.00 - I didn't have any money, my broke-ass could barely pay its way to Jersey, let alone start a new business. I trusted my gut, it never failed me, especially after all the studying I did and all the advice I received, I knew this plan was iron-clad.

At the time I had to raise 500k in order to stay open for a year without having to struggle to cover my costs, but it wasn't as easy as I thought. 90% of the people and companies who said they would jump on board and invest in the end didn't, and I was left to my own devices to launch and administer the business and somehow keep it financially afloat.

Between April and August we were in a soft-opening stage, still setting up the business and going after clients to represent. From September until late October we still were not 100% set up, but as our website unveiled, our phones did not stop ringing and we saw the volume of work more than triple.

I dealt with all the mistakes that every new business owner makes, bad hires, bad decision-makinng, listened to advice that seemed sound and in the end came to bite me in the ass and nearly took me for all the money we had. With all that I still never stopped, i paid attention and i learned and will hopefuilly continue to learn. On average now I was pulling in 20-22 hours of work daily without earninng a penny to myself and seeing my health deteriorate rapidly; but everything got done.

The social mission of the agency too, of integrating good and pay-it-forward in everything we do attracted some of the most exciting and engaging models I have ever represented, people who had experience and knocked on my door daily asking to be represented and who had  beautiful life stories and such wealth of heart. Our models are more than just a pretty facem they are beautifully engaged in life and the world around them, they have deep involvements with social causes and fight for all that's good and right inn this world. The talent represented includes chefs, nutritionnists, personnal trainners, sound engineers, filmmakers, comedians, writers, designers, tv hosts, actors, coffee roasters, architects, the list goes on. All of these people are one way or another giving back to the world in any way they can and they ghave my full support. Wether they organize a march to raise awareness on climate change in Washington, or speak at universities on topics such as gender, or body dysmorphia; or they have a gorgeous project of bringing gourmet medicinal meals to children with cancer; our models are more concerned about the world that's being shaped for our future generations than in taking a pretty picture.

ANTI management today as it is is revolutionary in ways never imaginable. We are bringinng to the floor conversations that were always uncomfortable and avoided by most in the industry. I am constantly asked why is it that the modeling industry, with such allure around itself, is now inn such a critical state of red alert. the short answer to that is: the industry itself has pushed the self-implosion button, byt creating models whjo are a phenomenon for one or two seasons and then become obsolerte and ignored. The corporate machine that took over our industry did not understand the philosophy set forth by the inventor of modeling agencies, Eileen Ford. in 1946, Eileen Ford opened The Ford Modeling Agency with one thing in mind, and one thing only: to protect and fight for the rights and interests of the models, who were then being paid six months to a year after performing a job, if ever. Almost every concept created by Eileen then, is still in practice today.

Ourt inndustry is srtuck in time and not moving with the same speed and dynamism that the world is evolving. People these days think, dress and shop differently and they are not so much focused on making choices inn the same way they did in 1998, it is onw 2018, it;s time to change. If we don't create careers that are memorable and long lasting than how can we demand that they appear in magazine covers or make the same kind of money they did inn 1996, when so many of the models were fanous and recognizable?

patience, hard work and dedication from the age ts is the jey in there. Because most agencies have boards of investors to report to, the focus of the work has shifted from the model, to the customer, meaning: nevermind the quality of the qwork, as lonng as the money keeps rolling in. Who has time to build a career, let alone a brand!? Nobody; which is why i propose this new format. I have done it a decade ago and it wored, why shouldn't it now?

At this very moment we are performing very well, however because in the core of our businness we have a fixed profit margin, keepinng only 30% of all an any money that comes into our accounts, what we are earning now, five months into being really open, is ont enough to cover all ourt costs.

I have had enough of chasing after investors who disappear with their billionns of dollars in the bank and leave me ghosted and waiting for answers and hurting financially. So -- before i get myself in even more financial distress I have decided to start this go fund me page; it is time to take matters in my hand again. if ewverybody donates a little bit, we can get there, and I ca fianlly rewalixe my ultimate goal, whcich is to form profound alliances with organizartions like ACLU, Trevor Peroject, GMHC, God;s Love We Deliver, Free Tibet, ewtc. My inntention is to engage our models and the agency and help bring visibility to causes that matter and to also put our boots on the ground throughout the year to go help these p[eople in whatever way we can.

I need to bring monney into the agency to support us through these first months of the year, and then hopefully by June 2018 we will have hit break-even and surpassed all our intial projections for profit, which is pehnomenal. Once we arrive at that pojnt we will hopefully be standing on our own financiually anmd will non longer ever have to ask for a penny from anybody. On the other hand if i don't - then that means I will have literally lost EVERYTHING i  worked for my entire life, since 17 years old.

Please help ANTI management continue to do the qwork we intend to do so  by keepiong us open with the capital ijection needed so that we can go back to oly focusinng on the managemewnrt  and no on bureaucracy. please let me show to Donald Trump that being a amillionaire is not the only way a pewrson can succed and ghrow in this city, that wit creativitiy positive attitude and good  work erhics we can build a