Interview: Paul Fisher Talks Remodeled

Read our exclusive interview with Paul Fisher, who can currently be seen hosting the CW series ‘Remodeled,’ which airs on Wednesday nights at 9/8pm C. The show gives Fisher the leverage to change the industry from the inside out. He brings together hundreds of small agencies around the world in a new venture called The Network, which has two missions: to make sure agents in small towns aren’t taken advantage of, and to empower models to take control of their careers and lead healthier lives. ‘Remodeled’ follows Fisher as he visits struggling Network companies across America to fix them and create the largest agency in the world. Fisher discuses with us, among other things, why he decided to film ‘Remodeled,’ and why The Network feels its important to move away from the idea that smaller models are better.

ShockYa (SY): You’re currently hosting ‘Remodeled’ on The CW. What was your motivation in starting The Network, and chronicling it on the show?

Paul Fisher (PF): Many people ask me what my reality show’s about, and I always say to them, it’s not really a reality show. It’s really a docu-series. What The CW’s doing is documenting what we do in our normal business. That’s the one rule that we had with The CW, don’t tell us what to say, don’t try to suggest to us what to do. You’re allowed to document us in our everyday business.

I decided to open up The Network about two-and-a-half years ago for a couple different reasons. I found my faith about nine years ago, and in my faith, I had to go back in this very dark industry and beg, beg, beg for forgiveness. When I was “famous modeling agent Paul Fisher,” representing Naomi Campbell, Stephanie Seymour, Kimora Lee Simmons, Brooke Burke, and I can go on and on, I was a jerk. I had a big, huge ego. I did drugs, and I wasn’t a nice man.

I decided to go back into this industry, on the one hand repent, and to beg for forgiveness for the man that I used to be. On the other hand, I wanted to teach young girls around the world that if they don’t treat their physical features as a blessing from God, it will be the one thing that haunts them for the rest of their lives. If they don’t take some of the money that they’re earning, and give it back to the world, and become role models, then the universe will take their career as fast away from them as it was given to them.

I’m really trying to give a safe environment to young women. I’m trying to convince young women around the world about how to give back and share with the world, how to take their physical features as a very serious responsibility.

Then I’m trying to empower small agencies in small markets to fully live out their dreams. Then they can actually feel and taste what it actually feels like to make somebody famous, and be part of the star-making process.

SY: Like you said, The Network has two missions-to make sure agents in small towns no longer get taken advantage of, and to empower models to take control of their careers and lead healthier lives. Why are these missions important in the modeling world, and has The Network brought a change in the way agents and models have been taking control of their careers?

PF: I believe that when parents are taking a young, 15-, 16-, 17-, 18-year-old person, and saying here’s my daughter or son, take care of their careers, take care of their youth, I take that as a very serious responsibility. I know that I’m not curing cancer, but I do think that when you’re dealing with impressionable young people, you can put drugs in front of them, and these kids will do the drugs.

Or you can put in front of them, foundations, charities, feed the homeless, give back to the world, and they may just do those types of things. Those types of things might just resonate with them.

I think eating disorder rates are going up, I think anorexia is going up. I think that our industry must take social responsibility for those things. I think kids are sticking their fingers down their throats because of the images they see of our kids walking down the runway. I think me, as a person in our industry, that I must take a responsibility for those types of things.

Is The Network having an effect on these things? You know, we have a website, thenetworktalent.com, where people can check out our drug experts, our health and wellness experts, our parenting experts, our body conscience for women experts. We’re dealing with eating disorders, depression issues, self-esteem issues every single day.

My biggest joy isn’t when I got a kid a product campaign. My greatest joy is when a parent calls me up and said my daughter quit sticking her fingers down her throat because of you, Paul, or because of your company. So I do believe that we’re having an effect.

Now are we having the type of effect in a global way that I dream? Not yet, but we will. It will take time, but we’ll get there.

SY: You’re also aiming to create the largest agency in the world, with the cameras of ‘Remodeled’ following you as you visit struggling Network companies across the US. Has the show helped you in your effort to merge the agencies?

PF: It’s beginning to. We’ve received many, many phone calls and emails from agencies around the world that now want to be part of our network, and our message is really resonating with them. We’ve been so busy with the show, that we haven’t taken on any new agencies in about a month, since the show’s been airing. But we’re about to, we’re about to dive into those things.

I’d say agencies around the world, models around the world, kids from all over the world, because of the CW show, are calling us. We are getting stronger and bigger every single day. But once again, because of the show, and because we’re so knee-deep in promoting the show, and hopefully getting people excited to see us and tune into The CW, that we’re just starting to feel the effects of the show now.

SY: ‘Remodeled’ has premiered to rave reviews. Why do you think people are embracing the show so much?

PF: You’re going to make me cry when you say that, because it’s really a labor of love. I think, I hope, that people can tell that it’s real, that this is something that we take very, very seriously. My team and I are not actors. I really believe, to be honest, that we have a movement. We’re not building a business, we’re building a movement. A movement that young women are beautiful, even if they’re 160 pounds, black, white, Spanish, Chines, it doesn’t matter. They’re beautiful souls, and I think it’s a movement.

I think people, our audience, are a part of change, whether or not they know it. They’re part of our movement that is resonating with people. I think when you speak the truth, and speak from your heart, I think that resonates with people around the world. I think people are digging our show because it’s necessary, and it’s part of change. Not even that they realize they’re part of change. They’re helping us create a safe environment for kids, and I think that’s resonating with people.

SY: The Network promotes the new ideal of using “the average-size woman” as models. Why is it important to move away from the idea that the smaller the model is the better?

PF: Well, I don’t think a girl at 15- or 16-years old who weighs 111 pounds and is doing a campaign is reflection of our society. I think it’s important for the advertisers and the magazines to start to use beautiful women and sexy women and healthy women and natural women, because I think we have a responsibility.

One of my dreams is a year from now, to be sitting front row at Versace’s show, and the designers that I look up to so much, and I admire their work so much. I hope and pray they realize that the responsibility that they have is to the masses, and not just their bottom line. I hope they start to use women that are beautiful and sexy and reflect today’s world, and not to the kids who are 110 pounds, 5’11”, 12 years old.

SY: Has The Network achieved its goal of bringing together major modeling agencies, cosmetics companies, designers, and industry insiders form around the world to transform how beauty is defined and marketed worldwide?

PF: Not yet. I always tell people, we’re the largest in the world as a modeling network. We manage about 58 agencies around the world, and about 14,000 young models. I’ll believe that when we’re at about 150 agencies, and we’re 12-18 months away from that, and we’re five times bigger than our competition, and we’re representing 30-40,000 kids around the world.

I think that kind of weight, and the online presence-I believe social media is the new currency of the world-I think the weight of all of our models all over the world, that with the social media, we’ll be able to catch 20, 30, 40 million people at any one given moment and time. I think we’re not there yet, but I think our following is growing. Our social media and online presence is growing. I think once we reach certain numbers, we truly will be able to effect change, not just in this country, but all over the world.

SY: Like you said before, you have created more stars than any other agent in the history of the modeling industry, launching the careers of, and representing, such supermodels as Naomi Campbell, Kimora Lee Simmons, Brooke Burke and Nicky Hilton. What is your process like spotting and signing the models to your agency?

PF: Everyone says, oh, Paul Fisher, he can make anyone famous. It’s not in my hands, that would be my ego. It’s in the woman’s destiny, it’s in her DNA. Whether it’s Naomi or Stephanie Seymour or Brooke or Kimora Lee Simmons, I didn’t make anyone famous. That was their path, that was their journey. That’s who they were supposed to become. My job was just to create an environment to make it possible, and a little bit easier, for them to reach what they were supposed to reach anyway.

I sometimes think, that one’s going to be the star, and that girl becomes the star. My job is a weird job. I have to try and figure out what (fashion photographers) Steven Meisel, Mario Testion and Terry Richardson think is beautiful. My job is to figure out what other people think is sexy and beautiful.

Sometimes I’m right, and sometimes I’m wrong. When I’m right, they think I’m a genius. If I’m wrong, they think I’m an idiot. I happen to be neither one. I just happen to be studying what other people think is beautiful.

SY: What advice do you have for people interested in starting a modeling career?

PF: The first thing I would say is don’t. Run away from guys like me. The second thing I would say is go to thenetworktalent.com, and learn why you should not be a model. It’s probably the only site on the planet that says don’t do this.

We suggest kids not to model. We think it’s very difficult and damaging on their psyche. You get rejected five times a day, 100 times a month, 1,200 times a year, you start looking in the mirror and seeing things that aren’t there. First of all, don’t model, it’s not a great profession, unless you can kill it and become famous and become an incredible role model and give back to the world. If you really want to check it out, go to thenetworktalent.com, look around and submit your pictures to us. We’ll tell you right out of the gate if we feel you have something or not.

Written by: Karen Benardello