Christian Siriano, Models, Victims of CraigsList Scam

A few days ago we noticed a strange tweet from Christian Siriano. It read: “fyi girls i have never and do not ever look for models on craigslist or online. these photo shoots i’m hearing about are scams! be careful!”

Part of the beauty and danger of CraigsList is that the scams are mixed right in with the legitimate postings. Sometimes the scams are obvious (like that Manhattan apartment that costs $1 a month as long as you occasionally walk around in your underwear) but sometimes they’re harder to suss out. A lot of modeling gigs are posted on CL. A recent scan through the listings of model jobs yields two seemingly legitimate postings for fit models for Banana Republic and American Eagle and a suspect request for “NEW PEOPLE TO THE INDUSTRY WHO HAVE ALWAYS DREAMED OF BEING AN ACTOR AND OR MODEL” for Tyler Perry and Oprah’s OWN Network.

So we reached out to Christian Siriano to get the story behind his cryptic warning to models about CraigsList. Apparently Siriano has been targeted by a CL scam since February. Posters falsely representing the designer claimed to be looking for models for a Christian Siriano catalog–which doesn’t exist.



“We then began to field a flow of e-mails from models contacting the Christian Siriano website regarding whether or not the casting call was a serious advertisement,” says Siriano’s rep, Bianca Bianconi. “The Company answered every inquiry received and immediately contacted both Craigslist and the authorities.”

Though the scam postings abated for a few months after Siriano sent cease and desist letters, similar listings using Christian Siriano’s name have cropped back up.

“With Fashion Week approaching, we want to err on the side of caution by letting all models know that any/all appointments should be made through their respective agencies, not via Craigslist” says Bianconi, adding, “Male models should note that Christian Siriano is a womenswear designer.” Apparently this scam poster isn’t familiar with the pint-sized Project Runway alum’s work.

Here is Bianconi’s full statement on the CL scam: “In February 2010, it came to our attention that one or more individuals were falsely representing the Christian Siriano brand on Craigslist by promoting a catalog shoot casting call with the designer. We then began to field a flow of e-mails from models contacting the Christian Siriano website regarding whether or not the casting call was a serious advertisement. The Company answered every inquiry received and immediately contacted both Craigslist and the authorities. Christian also addressed the matter via his Twitter, Facebook and Company website. We are now aware of a second similar situation involving male and female models and the request for an application fee. With Fashion Week approaching, we want to err on the side of caution by letting all models know that any/all appointments should be made through their respective agencies, not via Craigslist. Also, male models should note that Christian Siriano is a womenswear designer.”

Folks in the biz, have you ever encountered CraigsList scams like these before? Do you use CraigsList for work? We’d love to hear your thoughts!