Alessandra Ambrosio

Model

Born April 11, 1981 in Erechim, BR

Alessandra Ambrosio was born on April 11, 1981 in Erechim, Brazil. As a child, she was influenced by former model Karen Mulder and decided she wanted a career in modeling. In 1996, she was one of 20 finalists of a modeling contest held by Elite Model Management. The following year, she signed with the agency and landed her first major cover of Elle Brasil. In 1999, Ambrosio walked the international runways for prominent designers such as Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti and Christian Lacroix. Although, her most life-changing experience was when she first walked for the Victoria’s Secret fashion show in 2001. Eventually, the lingerie company contracted her as one of their Angel’s and a spokesmodel. In 2004, Ambrosio became the first spokesperson for their Pink line. As an “Angel,” she spent the following years doing television commercials, print ads, catalogs and the annual fashion shows. Aside from Victoria’s Secret, Ambrosio has done several campaigns for other fashion-leading brands including ck by calvin klein jeans, Guess, GAP and A/X Armani Exchange. She has also been the face of Oscar de la Renta, Calvin Klein, Gucci, Roccobarocco and Christian Dior. In 2004, Ambrosio launched her own swimwear line called Alessandra Ambrosio by Sais, which sold over 10,000 units in its first month. She has made appearances in hit TV shows like “Entourage” and “Project Runway.” She also made a cameo on the box-office hit movie, “Casino Royale.” Ambrosio has been referenced as one of the “Brazilian Invasion” models which include established supermodels such as Gisele Bundchen and Adriana Lima. She has been on more than 50 international magazine covers such as Numéro, Marie Claire, GQ, Wallpaper and Vogue. FHM, GQ and People magazine have ranked Ambrosio constantly in every category and list imaginable related to the word “beautiful.” In May 2009, Forbes featured her as one of the world’s highest-paid models. Ambrosio has been a national ambassador for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, a role she has been strongly committed to.