Hong Kong's modelling industry: the prats and pitfalls

Fashion-obsessed Hong Kong can perpetuate the myth, but modelling is not always a glamorous job, even for successful girls such as Korean-British model Mia Kang, one of the city's top names and now the worldwide face of Max Factor.

Those who make it are flown to Tokyo, Paris or New York for shows and shoots, and are treated well. But getting to that stage requires not only the right look but also a great deal of perseverance.

"[If you move], your agency advances your flight ticket, three months of rent and three months of pocket money and you are thrown in a tiny apartment, sharing a bunk bed with another model," says Kang. This is the way most models start their careers abroad.

Despite the industry in Hong Kong being self-regulating, with no equivalent of the Model Alliance, which stands up for the rights of models in the United States, the city is by and large a safe place to work. Globally, however, the lack of financial transparency in the industry means models are sometimes deceived by agencies and bookers who take a large cut of their fees.

See also: The secret life of a fashion model: rampant exploitation, scant rewards

M, a model in her early 20s who wishes to remain anonymous, admits that agencies in Greece have tried to cheat her, but "it can happen anywhere", she says.