Rising Stars: Meet Merille Raagas

Today we’d like to introduce you to Merille Raagas.

Hi Merille, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My reason for being here in LA is to pursue modeling but it all started in Australia, where I am from. Almost a decade ago I decided to get into modeling so I can pay for law school and my living costs. A photographer from Queensland discovered me and got me signed with my first modeling agency. The rest is history.

I enjoyed modeling so much that I turned it into my career. It was always a part-time job for me in the beginning because becoming a lawyer was always the goal. Then I started traveling to different countries for bookings and met amazing people in the industry along the way. I took a tiny break from modeling when I became a lawyer back home. Got a few years under my belt as an attorney and thought I might as well take a break from the law now while I’m still young and take modeling seriously. It was five years ago when I moved to the US to model full time and now here we are.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
My journey was definitely not smooth, it never is but if it was, it wouldn’t be as fun anyway. It took some time for my career to “pop off” so to speak. The modeling industry is a fickle one in that it follows certain trends. It took some time before diversity in the industry became common but now more and more brands are supporting it. And as a model, I was already battling with time since the industry favours youth. Luckily, I could still be part of this progress.

The standards for modeling is slowly changing as well and representation is becoming its main focus. As an ethnically ambiguous model, this is great news as I am given the chance to represent!

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I work as a fashion model in LA and NYC. I’m always proud of all the jobs I get to do for modeling but at the moment I’m very excited about my international campaign for Google Pixel. Someone spotted me in France and I thought that’s the coolest thing ever because that doesn’t happen every day. When I walked for the show Making The Cut in front of Heidi Klum, Jeremy Scott and Nicole Richie was also one for the books.

What predominantly sets me apart from other models is my maturity. I see it as a business more than a competition. Gone are the days when I took rejections personally. Now I am just thankful for every modeling job that I book because it’s a very rewarding career.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I would like your readers to find inspiration and motivation from my story. Take every challenge with a stride, learn from it and develop thick skin from it. I feel as though it’s the only way to reach success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.statemgmt.com/los-angeles/models/women/mainboard/1269259/merille
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/merilleraagas
• Other: https://models.com/models/merille-raagas

Image Credits
Photo 1 – Justin Truong Photo 2 – Justin Truong Photo 3 – Olya Helga