Strength to strength

MANILA, Philippines - What do Kate Moss, Karlie Kloss, Gigi Hadid, Pia Wurtzbach and Zach Miko all have in common? Towering at 6’6”, barrel-chested and hirsute, blue-eyed and equipped with a bright smile, Zach is the first plus-size male model to join the prestigious roster of IMG Models — one of the biggest talent agencies in the world, representing some of the biggest names in the industry.

The New York-based, Connecticut-bred model, actor and comedian follows in the wake of Ashley Graham’s breakthrough Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover; and the work of Precious Lee, Candice Huffine, and all these working models who have remade the industry’s view on “plus-size” talent  — at 27, Zach joins the ranks of IMG as the first model under “Brawn,” a brother division to the female-led “Curve.” “Brawn is physical strength,” shares Ivan Bart, president of IMG Models. “Brawn has a body-positive message.”

Having been scouted on Instagram (soon after his breakthrough plus-size campaign for US mass-retailer Target), Zach becomes one of the first plus-size male models to gain mainstream representation. Zach Miko recognizes his potential to change the conversation surrounding industry inclusivity.

Zach Miko comes to the Philippines to launch SM Menswear Plus, a plus-size line of clothing that celebrates men of considerable weight and size, whose build only serves their style for the better. SM Menswear Plus will be available in all SM Store branches nationwide; offering a lineup of shirts, polos and tailored jackets in size-appropriate proportions. The brawn of Zach Miko will be represented in a campaign as the first ambassador of SM Menswear Plus.

All pieces from the collection will run from sizes XXL to 5XL, offering a range of 200 different styles for the Filipino plus-size man, from tops, outerwear and bottoms, to swimwear and denims. SM Menswear Plus will be available in September at all The SM Store branches nationwide.

Forget dad bods, it’s the age of the straight-up “daddy.” On body positivity, developing a healthy self-image, and where he wants to see the plus-size conversation go next, YStyle has the exclusive first look at Zack Miko for SM Menswear Plus.

YSTYLE: Hello, Zach, welcome to the Philippines. How’s it going?

ZACH MIKO: Thank you, I like it a lot. I wish I had more time to stay! I already told my wife, I’m like, “We’re coming back,” because I have not gotten to experience half of what I wanted to. It’s my first time in Asia!

You should definitely come back for the beaches.

Definitely, I’m game for that.

Since your first campaign with Target, and then eventually signing on with IMG, how would you describe your modeling journey so far?

I’ve been modeling for a year this month, it’s just been the one year. My first campaign with Target was just last July.

I started modeling, and I feel like, honestly, it’s been very serendipitous. Everything just kind of fell into place for me. Modeling was never anything I thought that I would be a part of, growing up. Not that I didn’t admire it. I’ve always admired fashion, I’ve always admired designers. I just never thought, as a man of my size, that I could be a part of it.

What happened after you booked that campaign?

Everything sort of just felt really real. I think one of the reasons that sustained me is the fact that the main focus has always been — especially since I started with IMG Brawn — the main focus has been about body positivity and inclusivity, trying to show different body types. I’ve tried my best not to make it all about me — I try. I mean, I know there will be those times where it’s about me.

I realized after the first couple of months doing Target, when it started to get a lot of press — from blogs, from newspapers — I started to realize, all right, this is bigger than me. I had no idea I was one of the first few big guys to step into the mainstream, I had no idea but when I found that out, yeah, I kind of felt this responsibility.

About how it’s bigger than you?

Yeah, how it’s about me, but also it’s bigger than me. This is a steppingstone, hopefully for a lot of guys and hopefully for the industry. That’s what I try to focus on when I model.

When IMG called you to become part of their portfolio, did you know that they were one of the biggest modeling agencies in the business?

I knew about IMG because they had booked every supermodel that ever existed. They represented Gisele and Kate Moss!

But I also had been following Ashley Graham’s career at the time and I knew she was with IMG. I knew who they were only because they’re that big.

Can you tell us the story of how they recruited you?

So the president of IMG Models, Ivan Bart, reached out to me on Instagram after he’d seen a couple of articles and my work for Target. He reached out and asked me if I wanted to come in. Right then, I had to like, double-check his name, I Googled his account and made sure it was actually him.

Well, it was him, and I was very excited they were taking a meeting with me but I still wasn’t sure if anything was going to happen. But then Ivan Bart starts talking to me about his ideals of diversity and inclusivity, body positivity and the evolution of the fashion world and what he wants to do. Especially seeing what they had done working with Ashley Graham, Candice Huffine, Tara Lynn, Precious Lee — they have all of the top plus-size women on their roster. It’s something IMG has really focused on, and I feel super lucky that they wanted to have me focus their newest endeavor — bringing the plus-size conversation and size inclusivity to the men’s division also.

Which model do you look up to the most?

Ashley Graham is a good one. If I could hit a quarter of what she’s done, all the milestones she’s hit for plus-size models — she’s done so much to move the industry forward. She’s a powerhouse, she’s such a role model. Talk about breaking down barriers.

Do you have a specific career benchmark in mind?

My big goal is just to try to push the men’s industry into the mainstream the way the women’s plus-size industry has evolved.

But if you talk about personal goals? Jeez. I’d love to be on the cover of Esquire and GQ. Those are the big ones.

I don’t think that’s an unrealistic goal for you.

Well, we’ll see. God, that’d be cool. That would be really cool.

What has been your favorite shoot so far?

This campaign has been pretty great, shooting for SM Menswear Plus. One of my favorite things to do, one of the biggest things this whole career has let me do is travel way more and see parts of the world I’ve never seen before. I’ve never been to the Philippines, I’ve never been to Asia.

But what really gets me excited about this is that, any time I get to be on the front lines of any client, of any company, like the re-launch of the SM Menswear Plus clothing line or anything like that — it’s super exciting to be on the front lines and have everyone kind of rallying around you, like we’re going to do something big. It’s really fun.

This feels like the first of its kind, locally.

It could just be, and it blows my mind every time I think about that. It’s just so much fun.

Has your size and build (at 6’6” with a 40-inch waistline) been a barrier to most of what you do?

At the moment, yes.

How about for acting?

In acting, it’s a huge barrier. The entertainment industry, acting, they have a long way to go. Further than fashion, I feel, towards true inclusivity. For example, a man of my size would never play the romantic lead in a romance movie. If it was a comedy, maybe, but there’s still that idea of like, a man of my size would never be considered the good-looking guy on-screen. It’s realizing people do like different types of bodies, people do like different types of people. It doesn’t always have to be this cookie-cutter guy.

How about working in fashion?

The biggest struggle for me is that a lot of luxury and designer labels still do not come close to making clothes that fit me.

Sample sizes?

Not even sample sizes. On the racks, they just do not supply clothing that fit a bigger kind of man. It’s going to take them a little longer to catch up.

But as the bigger brands like SM Menswear Plus start doing it, I feel like all these designers are going to see more and more — this could be a big market. Guys of size and women of size want to look stylish and feel good about themselves. I think everything will start to come along — I really, really do — but it’s going to take a minute.

Speaking about self-image and inclusivity, when did you have that breakthrough moment of acceptance? Of loving your body?

I remember I was doing a play, it was in college. I was at the conservatory. I remember going through high school not feeling any acceptance, but it was then at college, I was doing a thing and the director of the play pulled me aside and said, “Just so you know, it’s okay for you to be the big guy. People are going to like you for being the big guy, you don’t have to make yourself smaller, you don’t have to hide yourself. It’s okay to be the big guy.”

And that resonated with me enormously. It was the first time I started really taking pride in myself. It came from someone who wasn’t my mom, someone who I respected as much and admired — it felt like I was just waiting this whole time for someone to tell me it was okay; that is to say, a lot of these barriers we put into our own minds and once we get past them, it’s amazing what one can do.

Can you tell us about your hashtag #bodypositivity?

That came when I first started doing Target, when I started social media. Seeing the response from those ads, I felt a strong need to start talking about it. I felt like it’s okay for people to know that, you can talk about this — especially men, and it’s okay to feel good about yourself.

I had a lot of people reach out to me — Ashley Graham, for one — I felt so welcomed to a sort of team. It really made me feel like this is an important thing and if I can make anybody who felt the way I did when I was younger not feel that way — if I can make anyone feel better about themselves, it could be on me to do that. And it would be amazing.

I didn’t grow up with seeing large men on television, fashion, or in media portrayed as someone good-looking in any way. And that sticks with you. It makes a difference to have that role model, just to see yourself represented. Just to see your type represented, is something.

What would you say to someone, right now, who might be struggling with self-image?

It’s very important to know, that who you are in this moment is enough. Who you are in this moment is okay. And I say in this moment, because I know I grew up thinking, if I just lose 30 pounds, I’ll be set. If I do this, I’ll be good. Or if I lose weight, or if I gain weight — it goes on, and that’s not true.

What’s important is that who you are in this moment is more than enough. If you want to lose weight, go lose weight. But do it for you, and not because you think other people will accept you because of it.

If you’re happy the way you are, everyone should be happy with the way you are because it’s your body. It’s really just important to know that who you are will always be enough. No matter what you change, who you are in this moment is who matters.

My last question is, would you ever do a sexier kind of shoot?

Sure, yeah! I’m definitely open to doing that, as long as it’s classy and as long as I feel good about it. You mean more shirtless stuff, right? Like an underwear campaign?

That market is huge.

I am, I’m totally open to it. If the right brand comes along and I like their idea for the shoot, count me in.