Off the heels of her runway debut in Copenhagen, Alana Hadid will grace the New York Fashion Week catwalk for the first time next week.
The older half-sister of runway powerhouses Gigi and Bella Hadid, Alana will walk for award-winning designer Elena Velez on September 12.
“I’m excited to see what it feels like to walk on a New York Fashion Week runway,” Alana, 40, told The Post. “I am sure it’s going to be just as exhilarating as it was in Copenhagen — although I have a little practice now.”
Alana, the daughter of Mohamed Hadid and ex-wife Mary Butler, made her runway debut in August at Copenhagen Fashion Week for Saks Potts and Munthe.
But she’s no stranger to the industry, having worked as a personal shopper, launched her own brand, and dabbled in fashion public relations.
Runway modeling, however, hadn’t “come” to her quite yet.
“This kind of fell in my lap,” she admitted. “I was excited to try it, and I have a passion for it.”
“I’m excited to see what it feels like to walk on a New York Fashion Week runway,” Alana Hadid said. Getty Images
Alana made her runway debut in Copenhagen last month. Getty ImagesAlana applauded Velez for her “gumption” and honesty as a designer.
“I just think she has such a cool take on rogue femininity and mixing this kind of androgyny, and I just think that’s indicative of my own personal fashion style,” she said.
The 28-year-old designer has been vocal about her struggle to fund her namesake brand and, as of May, was reportedly neck deep in debt.
The Post’s latest coverage of New York Fashion Week
Velez indeed has edge.
In the past, her carefully disordered and intentionally askew looks were raw — both in hem and appearance — and the rugged pieces are a far cry from the refined, polished ensembles typically associated with the high-profile fashion week.
Where traditional designers might perfect every fasten and seam, Velez purposefully leans into chaos with pieces that feature textiles with character—course fabrics with fraying hemlines, frocks creating the illusion of plaster, and garments intentionally mis-buttoned with rips and tears.
Alana (far left) is following in the footsteps of her two younger half-sisters, Gigi and Bella Hadid (third and fourth from left, respectively), who have already paved their way as supermodels. Penske Media via Getty ImagesThe duo couldn’t be more fitting, both emerging in the fashion industry by nontraditional means.
Velez’s industrial looks have earned her acclaim, but the Wisconsin native found herself wiped after funding runways with her mother’s retirement fund and meager sales.
Despite wide praise, the costly garments are more avant-garde than street style, making them less appealing to the mainstream.
“I’m not worried about anything in the fashion industry changing me,” said Alana. lanzybear/InstagramAlana, too, has a certain kind of edge found in her ability to forge a runway career at nearly 40.
In fact, she believes “it’s cool to start now.”
She’s walking on the runway “calmer” than she might have been in her 20s because she knows who she is now.
“I’m not worried about anything in the fashion industry changing me,” she said.
At 40, the breakout model is calling for more inclusivity on the runway. WireImage
While there aren’t many 40-year-olds on the runways, Alana is hoping to change that. Getty ImagesWhile Alana’s runway career is off to a strong start, she claims to not have “supermodel aspirations” like her sisters.
Rather, she’s hoping to represent women her age on the catwalk, where 20-something models remain the majority.
“I am 40. You don’t necessarily see a lot of people becoming models or runway models at 40, but you do see a lot of beautiful women that are 40-plus,” Alana said. “Those are the same women that are buying these clothes.”
