Dressed in a chic black shift top and black tights and towering at nearly six feet in her heels, Photogenics founder Nicole Bordeaux was the very image of effortless cool in the cavernous expanse of the Smashbox Studios on the morning OTM popped by to scan her company. As the studio of choice for power lensmen like Meisel, Testino and Klein, the crisp industrial space has become a kind of nexxus for blue chip fashion action in Los Angeles. And nestled in one of Smashbox’s immaculate corridors was the most willfully editorial of all the agencies in LA.
Photogenics boasts a beautifully edited board of faces that for the most part could translate effortlessly to NY, London or Paris. The graphic design on the cards were tasteful and judicious, the room sleek and minimal and it was in this serene context that Nicole shared her very incisive view of her position in the ever-shifting Los Angeles marketplace.
Wayne Sterling: Could you outline the relationship between Smashbox Studios and Cosmetics and Photogenics? Is there a synergy between all these parts ?
Nicole Bordeaux: Photogenics, Smashbox Studios and Smashbox Cosmetics are individual and separate businesses that create opportunities, share costs and offer synergistic value. Each diverse entity creates a unique backdrop that separates us from our competitors and allows our business to benefit from a management, production and administrative standpoint. The Factor brothers, the owners and founders of Smashbox Cosmetics and Smashbox Studios- are my partners- so essentially we all have each other’s best interest at heart. It is our goal to create one stop shopping and top of the line services for our clients. Not only can a client get a great model but they can also book top make-up artists, hairdressers, wardrobe stylists, set designers, studio space, equipment rental, and catering by making one phone call.
WS: Of all the LA agencies yours seems to be the most emphatically editorial. What has the client reaction been to your board?
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Click on the thumbnails below for a few samples from the Photogenics board:
