Meet Paola Gil of POW-LA, _I Crop Collective, and @powla.invogue in Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Paola Gil.

So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My story in the Media started when I was barely five years of age. I started modeling at this age after participating in two big Colombian Beauty Pageants. The recognition of these pageants booked me a couple of print commercials for famous brands including coca-cola and a renowned Colombian perfume brand, among others. From these pageants, I was also invited to several fashion shows throughout the country to model new upcoming clothing, including bathing suits and elegant dresses. When I was eight years old, I was called to audition for Niña Norte de Santander, a pageant very similar to Miss Colombia but for younger girls. I won this pageant and traveled to Santa Fé de Bogotá to represent my department Norte de Santander in the national pageant of Niña Colombia, placing in second place. After the Niña Colombia pageant, I accepted invitations to several fashion shows inside and out of the country. I also became the brand ambassador for a couple of clothing brands at that time.

At the age of 14, I was enrolled in an acting academy in Bogotá, and I studied there for three years. I was very close to graduating when personal/political problems led our family to make the difficult decision to pack up and move to the United States. As you may know, Colombia in the ’90s wasn’t exactly the safest place. Even though it was not so easy to get accustomed to a new culture, I am always grateful to be here. I graduated high school when I was 15 years of age back in Colombia, and right after that when I turned 16 we moved to Los Angeles, CA. For a couple of months, I taught myself the English language at home and by the time I was able to enroll in college, I was placed in English 1 on my assessment test. I remember how I would turn on the captions on the TV to learn how to pronounce the language, watched Inglés sin Barreras VHS videos, and learned all the grammar on this super old book my mother brought back from home with her. During the time I was homeschooled, I attended modeling, acting agency for Latinos, but it didn’t work out so well. I always liked school, so I got my Associates Degree from Santa Monica College on Liberal Arts, my Bachelor’s Degree from Loyola Marymount University in Graphic Design with a minor in Art History and earned a Master’s Degree from Otis College of Art and Design in Graphic Design. Starting my third year of Grad School in 2015, I got the opportunity to work for three months at Studio Dumbar, a prestigious Graphic Design studio in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. This was the place and the time where I discovered so much about myself that I did not know before. I was also very impressed with the working environment at Studio Dumbar and how they valued a high quality of life. They were all one big family of extremely talented people and every day they would stop working right at noon to come together and eat lunch at a big table they had in the studio.

While going to school, I continued acting and modeling on the side. I participated in a couple of projects from USC film students, and the University of La Verne participated in a couple of fashion shows and went to auditions for Sabado Gigante, music videos, and I was also one of the dancers for Univision’s TV show: Caliente. I stopped acting for a while and got a 9-5 job but It wasn’t very fulfilling for me so I enrolled at Otis and during my Grad School time I met a wonderful person who would become my sister and business partner, her name, Carolina Ibarra-Mendoza. We worked so well together during our Master’s program that as soon as we graduated we started a design collective with another Otis Colleague and good friend, Chelo Montoya in 2016. We work independently and collaboratively which gave us a lot of freedom. We pick our own hours, we travel on our own terms, and we work with valuable clients in the Arts such as USC, ELAC, Theatricum Botanicum, The Vincent Prize Museum, 18th Street Art Center in Santa Monica, and much more. We are still in business today. We recently updated our website and we continue growing as a collective and as a fun, loving partnership.

All the meanwhile I had my modeling dream in the back of my mind at all times and it wasn’t until I discovered the beauty of Social Media as an entrepreneurial business platform that I found a way to get back to it. In 2012, I was incredibly passionate about reading articles about Instagram and Bloggers. I was following a couple of fashion bloggers and was amazed by the lifestyle, mainly because it brought the opportunity for anyone to create their own content and share it on all online platforms and channels. I started to research back then, and I was completely sure that I wanted to start blogging since I was modeling from such an early age. There were some obstacles that got in the way, but when 2016 hit I was ready to embark on this new entrepreneurial adventure of the influencer, blogger, and Instagram Model. I started my blog about fashion, because of my modeling background, and natural practices, because I was raised with the mentality of health, wellness, and fitness. I have found great opportunities within the natural conscious beauty movement and it’s something I’d like to share with the community by working as an entrepreneur. I also gave my Instagram a whole new make-over, switched it to business, and created my own filter and aesthetic to communicate a certain mood. There is a benefit to the influencer business, which is the opportunity to inspire, advise, and educate on contemporary topics the audience/community/tribe that you are bringing together. You are that trusted voice, and it becomes a huge responsibility. I’d like to leave a positive legacy, and make my mark on the world, and I believe it in my core that Influencing is the way to go. Little by little, I am getting offers from companies that want to collaborate with me, some of them include, a Clothing Boutique from Newport Beach @xomandysue, a swimsuit company @brightswimwear, a skincare company for active women @athiaskincare, an eco-friendly jewelry company @6thbouroughboutique and currently received an offer to collaborate with a sustainable company that sells Bamboo products! A great opportunity to write and influence about reducing the use of plastic which is killing our marine life. I also became an independent consultant/brand ambassador for Arbonne, a company that is giving me the opportunity to take my influencer business to the next level. I am in the process of branding myself and create amazing content within the niche of fashion, beauty, wellness, and sustainability. I also recently got certified as a yoga instructor, and cannot wait to share this new content with you.

I believe in my heart 100 percent that we are able to create what we want even more now with the internet. Being an influencer is a job just like any other, with the difference that you are free to make your own content and make your own decisions. You can travel the world doing what you absolutely love, it is really a dream lifestyle. I would like to take this opportunity and advise new influencers out there, do not let others tell you that you are not ready to do what you love. I have received some criticism, but people who have criticized my work do not really know my story, my trajectory, and my actual vision to make positive changes in this world. All influencers out there work super hard every day to bring their audiences the best content, it is an actual job, like any other. So do not let anyone tell you this is not the job for you, there are many benefits and incredible opportunities as a blogger and influencer. Always FOLLOW your dreams no matter what people tell you. Your passion in life is what God intended for you to share with the community. That is why you were born with that dream: it is in your heart and soul. Criticism is always going to be there, ignore it and keep going! Because we are all here to do something great! To leave something great behind for the next generations to come.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Life is all about the ups and downs. Many obstacles get in the way, but it depends on you and only you to continue your journey through life spreading your passion with the strength that is needed. For me, it was financial problems, some health problems, some devastating breakups, and some extremely difficult clients.  It is essential to keep going because dreamers are the ones who actually change the world, in my opinion.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the POW-LA, _I Crop Collective and @powla.invogue story. Tell us more about the business.
I run three businesses, one design collective with two business partners, my own freelance design practice and my own business as a blogger, brand ambassador, and influencer. Crop Collective is a design collective of 3 people working together as a team of empowered individuals providing creative and strategic branding services. I have a good eye for typography and for creating branded identities from scratch. It is important to discover the true essence of a company or client who needs a professional and clear brand. POW-LA is my personal brand, I use this name for my own freelance designs, my design portfolio, and my blog. I write articles about fashion and natural practices, mostly fashion at the moment but currently working on adding new and exciting content about natural lifestyle, wellness, sustainability, self-care practices, natural beauty practices, yoga practices and philosophy. The name POW-LA is my birth name, Paola, but I write it phonetically for my brand. The POW means power, and the LA, of course, relates to where I live: Los Angeles.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Huge credit goes to Carolina Ibarra-Mendoza (@i.m.carolina), a social impact graphic designer. She has been a great and understanding friend in addition to being a great business partner and life collaborator. We collaborate on our design collective, and it has always been a pleasure to work with her. Of course, my family, they have been so supportive and so loving. I want to give special thanks to Shereen Karam: (@blossom_into_fitness) a behavioral therapist, yoga instructor, personal trainer, and my Arbonne business partner. Shereen is such an inspirational woman, I have never met a human being as understanding, and as compassionate as her. We share the same influencer dream, and we help each other succeed. She introduced me to Arbonne to help grow my influencer business and has been coaching me throughout my Yogi teacher training program.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.pow-la.com/blog, www.cropcollective.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @powla.invogue

Image Credit:
Civic Center Studios

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