From Gerber Baby to It Model Managements, Diamond Bar High School senior Andrew Zambrano has been in the modeling industry since he was a toddler. It was not until early last spring, however, that he began exploring its potential as a viable career.

Initially, Zambrano said that he had been indifferent to  the idea of continuing to work as  a model. Disregarding the constant encouragement from family and friends to pursue it, he instead chose to focus on school, aspiring for a future occupation in the medical field.

“I truly never became interested in modeling, it was [just] put in front of me as an opportunity and I took it,” Zambrano said. “I never had a moment where I sat and dove into the idea of modeling.”

Yet one night in the early days of quarantine, the opportunity presented itself during dinner with a friend.

“I know the owner of the makeup brand, Too Faced, and [we had] dinner together,” Zambrano said. “He texted me the next day and I had interviews with a couple modeling agencies and the rest is history.”

With his help, Zambrano attended several auditions, submitting photos and meeting with different executives to be evaluated for measurements. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, collaborations are also difficult to arrange, as all members must receive negative tests in the weeks prior.

“I’ve had to tape my own auditions; it’s been more slow than usual from what I’ve been told, and being on set seems to have less people than I imagined,” Zambrano said. “[But] all in all, it was a fairly simple process, as long as they found what they were looking for in your photos, they already wanted to hire you.”

Eventually signing with IT Model Managements, Zambrano now has his photos taken professionally with the agency.

“I model because I believe that I don’t live up to the crazy beauty standards our world has today, and I’m representative of the more realistic person for whichever brand I’m modeling for,” Zambrano said.

Balancing his career with school, Zambrano finishes his classes by 10 a.m., which gives him the flexibility for modeling work later in the day. He credits his efficiency and tenacity to his older brother.

“One of my biggest role models is my brother,” Zambrano said. “There was a large age gap between us and I never got to really hang out with him a lot, [but] as I got older I saw his work ethic and how he always made things work out. I feel I’ve taken that trait of his and applied it to all aspects of my life.”

With a growing passion for modeling, Zambrano said he looks forward to seeing what it holds for him in the future.

“One thing I’d like to say is, take the risk,” Zambrano said. “Whatever you want to do, don’t let fear hold you back, it might just lead to the best experiences of your life.”