Meet model Georgia Fowler, the next generation’s Elle Macpherson

Georgia Fowler is the latest Kiwi to be claimed by Australia - and it’s little wonder given her enormous success in the modelling world.

When it comes to New Zealand’s most famous exports, Australia has a tendency to steal the credit. You only have to look at Russell Crowe, Keith Urban and legendary racehorse Phar Lap to realise that, more often than not, we try to pass off these Kiwi success stories as our own.

So, given that Georgia Fowler is being described as her generation’s answer to Elle Macpherson, with a physique to rival even “The Body”, it’s hardly surprising that Australia is trying to claim her. Although she was born and raised in New Zealand, Fowler jokes that her nationality has even been a point of contention between her parents.

“The whole ideal of beauty is so varied, and I think brands are slowly starting to show that. We still have a long way to go, though.” (Picture: Simon Lekias)

“The whole industry needed to evolve. Things needed to change.” (Picture: Simon Lekias)

“It depends on if you ask my mum or dad,” she says with a laugh. “My Kiwi family are a bit like, ‘Huh?’ every time I’m [referred to as an Aussie], but my dad is Australian and I’ve always had such deep ties here. So, yeah, I’ll say you guys can take me!”

From the outside, Fowler’s rise to the top of the fashion industry may appear swift, but the 28-year-old is one of the most tenacious veterans in the business. After being discovered by an agency in New Zealand at the age of 12, she was modelling for international fashion houses just three years later.

“I see 15-year-olds now, and they’re just babies,” she tells Stellar.

“I can’t believe I was so brave and fearless at that age, but that’s what the industry encouraged. It’s really hard mentally for a young woman to be on the other side of the world, away from family, dealing with things like body issues. It’s too much. We should all just enjoy being kids for as long as we can because, my God, there’s a lot of time to be an adult.”

Once Fowler started walking runways, there was little to slow her trajectory. At the age of 19, she got her big break walking in the 2012 Chanel show in Versailles. From there, her career exploded.

“I’m happy for Australia to claim me as your own.” (Picture: Simon Lekias)

“We should all just enjoy being kids for as long as we can because, my God, there’s a lot of time to be an adult.” (Picture: Simon Lekias)

The biggest names in the industry came calling, with Miu Miu, Armani, Balmain, Max Mara, Off-White and Elie Saab adding her to their line-ups, and magazines such as Vogue Italia and Vogue Paris clamouring to have her gracing their pages.

Fowler quickly became a constant face on the fashion-week circuit, but her success wasn’t just because of her looks and modelling prowess.

Vogue Australia editor-in-chief Edwina McCann believes it’s Fowler’s down-to-earth attitude and modesty that really set her apart from her peers. “As well as that X factor, she’s so personable and genuinely kind to everyone, which isn’t always the case with models of her stature,” McCann tells Stellar.

“It’s clear that people want more than just celebrity or beauty – that’s not enough anymore – so without a doubt, she’ll remain at the top of the industry.”

In 2016, after five failed auditions, Fowler ticked off the biggest item on her professional bucket list: the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. It was an accolade that, as she says, “didn’t just make you a model, but a household name – it was the pinnacle”.

“It didn’t just make you a model, but a household name – it was the pinnacle” (Picture: Getty Images)

However, after three consecutive years appearing in the glittering lingerie extravaganza, Fowler hung up her angel wings, admittedly sooner than she had hoped.

Off the back of an industry-wide push for diversity and body inclusivity, Victoria’s Secret suspended the show indefinitely – a move that while disappointing personally was a step in the right direction, Fowler admits.

“The whole industry needed to evolve,” she says. “Things needed to change. We all loved [the show], and miss it, but the whole ideal of beauty is so varied, and I think brands are slowly starting to show that. We still have a long way to go, though.”

Last March, when Fowler flew to Sydney for a quick visit from the US – where she has homes in both New York and West Hollywood in LA – she wasn’t exactly anticipating that she would still be in Australia nearly 10 months later.

With jetsetting to international shows off the cards for the foreseeable future, she’s been forced (albeit happily) to lay down some roots. Being thrown together in lockdown fast-tracked her relationship with her boyfriend of one year, Nathan Dalah, co-founder of the Australian chain Fishbowl, a Japanese-style salad bar.

“All of a sudden, in a year, I’ve got a very normal life. I’ve really found my happy place.” (Picture: Supplied)

It also resulted in a new family member – a groodle puppy called Chilli, who Fowler says is “definitely good training for babies. All of a sudden, in a year, I’ve got a very normal life. I’ve really found my happy place.”

Her home life may be the quietest it’s been in years, but the same can hardly be said for her career. Fowler’s ability to thrive in the midst of a global pandemic is testament to her chameleonic versatility, says celebrity commentator and entertainment writer Jonathon Moran.

“Georgia has a look that, for want of a better word, is inoffensive,” he tells Stellar. “She’s beautiful but it doesn’t polarise anyone. She looks like the girl next door but she also does high fashion, so that makes her very attractive to all types of brands.

“She’s having to tread that fine line of being everywhere and at the same time being exclusive, but so far, she’s nailed it.”

Georgia Fowler stars on the cover of this Sunday’s Stellar.

Now fronting Seafolly’s latest campaign, which sees her long limbs splashed across billboards and buses, Fowler has clearly reached new heights in her career.

Joining the ranks of former Seafolly faces such as Miranda Kerr and Gigi Hadid is not only the fulfilment of a childhood dream for Fowler – “it was all I ever wanted” – but it’s also sparked the realisation that perhaps she’s truly made it.

“I guess it never really hits you that you’re in that league,” she says with a laugh. “But maybe it’s best not to let it.”

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Originally published as Meet model Georgia Fowler, the next generation’s Elle Macpherson