Describe your experience growing up in Chicago compared to how you view the city now as a high-profile Chicagoan.
I was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago in Blue Island, as most would assume me to be your basic white girl, that is so far from my reality.
I actually grew up in my Hispanic neighbor’s house down the street. I was actually a minority in a minority community but was embraced like one of the family. I saw and lived with the inequalities all around me, but I truly did not grasp the systematic racism that permeated communities then and now.
I moved out of Blue Island 32 plus years ago at age eighteen and really did not go back, jumping into the high-profile life of an international model. Within a year I was on a plane to Tokyo to work as a model, then Munich and back to Chicago. Modeling gave me opportunities and introduced me to a world that was vastly different than my upbringing and yet thinking back, full of similarities.
Chicago is a city of opportunities but one also with an undertone of systemic racism; often these two characteristics create significant strife and stress for us that live here. But then, as now, the city is full of people doing their best to put differences aside and move forward, sometimes out in the open and sometimes behind closed doors.
Several years ago, you partnered with Celebrity Chef Art Smith to open a restaurant (Table 52) in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood. Although the venue closed long before COVID-19, what did you learn from working in the restaurant industry?
Table 52 was an amazing, challenging and rewarding experience but definitely one full of hurdles and frustrations on the path to success. Owning a restaurant takes juggling what can feel like an overwhelming number of responsibilities. To truly do it well you need to leave your ego at the door. Hard work and perseverance are the foundations for success in the restaurant industry – focusing on the people and processes, contingency plan, and a hoping for bit of luck avoiding the big negative surprises. Having lived through it and felt the warm glow of success, my heart goes out to all the restaurant owners and employees impacted by COVID-19; local establishments are such an important part of every neighborhood and I hope my fellow Chicagoans get out and support their local favorites to help them get back on their feet.
Describe your experience as a professional model and what you learned along the way that has helped you with your business.
Being a professional model afforded me the ability to travel and live internationally, to emerge myself into cultures that I would not have otherwise been exposed to – a truly eye-opening experience. Working and living in Japan I learned to live and survive in a country where I didn’t speak the language nor read or understand the writing. It was my first endeavor as an “entrepreneur” and because I was “the product”, in order to be successful, I had to figure out how to develop and manage my own business in a hurry. Modeling pushed me to be comfortable with the uncomfortable, something I believe continues to fuel my business mindset to this day.
How has the George Floyd protests, and Black Lives Matter movement personally impacted you and the way you envision conducting your real estate business in Chicago?
The George Floyd protests, and Black Lives Matter movement has motivated me to continue speaking up where I see racial injustices and to put my money where my mouth is.
With Celebrity Chef Art Smith