As millions of Chinese consumers join the country's winter online shopping sprees, China's e-commerce businesses have witnessed huge business opportunities.
The boom in online fashion retail has led to a spike in demand for online models.
The threshold for online models is generally not as high as it is for runway models. The biggest difference is height, as these models are not required to look elegant and graceful at a fashion show, how they look in pictures is all that matters. It has been reported that successful online models can make tens of thousands of yuan per month.
This seemingly easy cash on offer is drawing thousands of men and women into this profession, and training facilities have popped up to meet the needs of amateurs looking for professional model training.
One such school of good looks, Yidong Chutian in Wuhan, Hubei Province, trains about 100 models every year, each of whom undergo three to four months of training. They learn to pose in different ways to match the different styles of photos they may be asked to feature in, master different facial expressions to express a variety of moods and how to apply makeup to a high standard.
Not all graduates go on to get regular modeling work. Upon graduation, the training facility invites online store owners and cameramen to pick which models they are interested in through a group interview. On average only about 30 percent of the students are chosen.
