Today we take a look at one fashion model based in New York City who is making an impact on the
industry with her stunning photos and impressive background, Alessiya Merzlova. Against all odds,
Alessiya has made a name for herself in a short time with features in some of the most established media
outlet giants, including magazine covers for Harper’s Bazaar. What makes Alessiya so special is her
unique story that has brought her all the way from Eastern Russia to the most iconic fashion hub in the
world, New York City.
Alessiya Merzlova is a 26 year old model who was born in the far East region of Russia. Around 2014
Alessiya made a substantial effort to move to the United States and build her life, chasing the American
Dream and her aspirations to make a name for herself in fashion. Decidedly Alessiya settled in New York
City – the perfect geographical location to pursue her goals within her niche. The opportunity to make the
move had arisen after she was signed to some of the best modeling agencies around the world, providing
the opportunities to travel, to live in many beautiful countries and finally to make her move to the United
States. A move of this nature and size was difficult for young Alessiya who had to leave many of her
friends and family members and her peers who had become close to her along her travels during her
modeling career. Regardless, it was an important decision that helped shape the rest of her future.
Alessiya’s modeling career began after she graduated from high school in 2013. Alessiya had been
scouted by many talent and modeling agencies along the way and after a few key conversations she
quickly recognized that the opportunity was for her and that she perhaps had an affinity for the role. Her
first trip was to Singapore where she lived for four months, worked and built her career rather
successfully. Within the first year of her modeling career Alessiya astonishingly landed the cover of
Harper’s Bazaar (Singapore) in late October. She had the special opportunity to participate in Singapore
Fashion Week and got the chance to network and work with some of the most influential members of the
fashion industry. For Alessiya, things were moving very quickly, the world around her was changing, her
lifestyle was shifting dramatically and her goals were developing as she took on the role of becoming a
notable fashion model.
Alessiya’s stint in Singapore solidified her career path and she was provided the opportunity to work in
Paris under contract with the Women Modeling Agency – one of the largest and oldest agencies globally.
Alessiya was represented by the agency along with a suite of supermodels – putting her in the big-leagues right off the bat. Alessiya noted that “Paris was a very interesting experience for me. I started with
Fashion Week and stayed there for many months at different time periods. Paris is my second home after
New York City. I’m feeling very in love with French culture, food and language.” Alessiya found a great
deal of success in Paris and given how quickly her career was taking off she remained humble, grateful
and above all excited about the future. Her time in Paris was very special to her but she always dreamed
of New York City and she set her goal to end up there – something she was able to successfully pull off by
2016 – less than three years into the launch of her career as a model.
Alessiya’s move to the Big Apple was not easy. She had originated from Russia, moved to Singapore to
start her career, relocated to France to work in Paris and finally she was making the move across the
Atlantic to the United States to pursue what she considered her greatest opportunity. But Alessiya was
homesick at times, the difficulty weighed on her at times. Regardless, she set her goals high and aimed to
achieve great things – resulting in her representation with Ford Models, one of the largest and most
notable agencies globally with a substantial footprint in New York City. Alessiya commented on her move
to the United States saying “I can’t imagine my life any other way. I built a very successful career there
with Ford Models and started spending some time helping other people in the United States.”
Alessiya tends to remember the difficult times of her past despite the drastic, positive changes that
happened in her life. She regularly volunteers at the New York food bank and helps serves meals to the
homeless and needy. In addition she is part of a charity campaign dedicated to educating the public on
real issues women battle with while having cancer. Alessiya aims to educate and start conversations
about cancer to show support for women who struggle with the terminal illness. She remains grateful that
she is able to utilize her platform to reach so many levels in her career in the United States as well as
leverage her platform to create awareness for good causes. Charity was always a substantial factor in
Alessiya’s life and with the resources she is so happy to serve her community when and however she
can.
The United States changed Alessiya’s life dramatically and she was working with some of the most
substantial brands in the world including Micheal Kors, Victoria’s Secret, Laura Mercier, Nars, Badgley
Mishka, Calvin Klein, Pamella Roland, Macy’s – well, the list goes on and on… Alessiya’s cover for
Harper’s Bazaar (Serbia) in November 2020 further ignited her career as a cover model – a special
pinnacle in her history – as did her feature in Marie Claire (Ukraine). Alessiya is represented around the
world in Paris, Milan, Barcelona, Madrid, Hamburg, Sydney, Los Angeles and New York by agencies
including Women360, The Fabbrica, View Management, Iconic, Chic, Ford Models and Creative Talent.
Alessiya has worked with these special agencies for 9 years and has traveled to Spain, Japan, Germany
Australia, Italy and France to work with many different fashion designers. In the midst of all of her travels
she was even able to graduate and receive a bachelor’s degree in global economics in Chinese and
English. Her fluency in English and Chinese for the past 15 years provided her many opportunities and
has opened a great deal of doors for her.
