A day in the life of supermodel Tian Yi

We have to admit: we were a little bit scared of following supermodel Tian Yi for a day. Tian, currently ranked number 38 in the world of models at models.com and featured in Louis Vuitton’s spring/summer 2013 campaign (and many more) is one of the world’s most in-demand models. Would there be Campbell-esque tantrums?

We should not have worried.

Turns out that Tian Yi is, apart from (obviously) beautiful also one of the nicest and most pleasant people you could possibly imagine. The fact that she’s currently pretty much everywhere and looks at you from billboards, magazines and websites left right and centre isn’t a coincidence and we felt pretty chuffed that we were invited to spend the day with her at Paris Fashion Week for Global Blue.

And what a day it was. Not having her schedule for the next day confirmed until midnight, Tian’s hectic 24 hours started with a show for designer Dries Van Noten, followed by castings, fittings and more shows. Speaking to Tian along the way, we found out what it really means to be a model – yes, you get to travel lots, wear nice clothes and meet some fascinating people, but forget seeing your family or friends at home or nice food backstage. Luckily, at least for the latter there is a solution: when the going gets tough, driver-cum-agony-uncle Philippe knows a delicious secret restaurant or two for his famous guests. Maybe he means Davé – we can only guess…