Becoming a model was never something Ethan Lollman sought out, but based on his success, you would never know it.

At 21 years old, the Plainview graduate has modeled for Hermès, Canali, Balenciaga, and a number of other top designers. Currently living in Paris, he’s busy advancing his career, and recently even walked the runway during Paris Fashion Week.

“If you talk to any of the other male models, most have pretty much the same story,” he said. “A lot of us weren’t seeking it out, but modeling kind of fell into our lap, and one day we got signed.”

He shared the story of how it happened to him.

“My mom posted some family pictures on Facebook back in 2018 or2019 and the Kim Dawson Agency in Dallas reached out to her,” he said. “She just came to my room one day, and she said ‘get into the car we’re going to Dallas to interview with a modeling agency.’

“I ended up getting signed that same day, and that’s actually still my agency in Dallas. It’s just grown from there.”

In 2024, Lollman moved to New York to pursue better opportunities. Earlier this year, he decided to try his luck in Paris.

“Part of the reason I went there is because of my girlfriend,” he said. “She’s a fashion business major, and her school has a campus in Paris, so we went for a month last June to check it out.

“I decided to try to get signed in Paris, and I did. I ended up walking my first runway with a big brand, and decided it was where I wanted to be.”

One of his favorite clients to work with is Hermès who book him regularly and selected him to walk the runway during Paris Fashion Week. He was also selected by Balenciaga.

“I got to walk for Balenciaga and then did a shoot for GQ afterwards which was really cool,” he said.

Lollman said he enjoys doing runway because of all the energy and excitement. But he stressed it’s a lot of work.

“There’s a lot of work leading up to it,” he said. “There are rehearsals, and the day of the show you’re there the entire day. Even if you’re show isn’t until 8 at night, you’re there at 9 a.m. doing hair and makeup and taking behind the scenes pictures.”

He particularly enjoys editorial shoots.

“The editorial shoots are definitely the most fun,” he said. “You don’t have to pose a certain way, and you can even adjust the clothes a little bit. There’s a lot more creativity, and it allows the models to have a say in the way the shoot goes.”

The most consistent money, however, comes from doing shoots for brands’ online stores.

“You can do that for a week or two, and you can wear 60, 70 outfits a day,” Lollman said. “Those are where a lot of the most consistent money comes from in this industry. If you can get in good with a brand and become their in-house model, you can basically work 24 hours a day 7 days a week.”

Unfortunately, he isn’t able to keep any of the clothes.

“I wish I got to keep things,” he said. “I’m lucky if I get to make it out with a pair of socks. I asked if I could keep a really cool Hermes bag I was walking with, but my stylist told me it was $25,000. Needless to say that didn’t happen.”

Lollman said he plans to spend the next few years living in Paris continuing to build his career.