I'm so proud of Hailey Clauson and her meteoric rise in the modeling world. In 2008, her dad Larry Clauson brought Hailey to Genlux to see if we'd be interested in photographing her. As soon as she stepped in the door I knew she'd be a star. I immediately called Meg Day, who, at the time was over at Ford Models, and told her she had to see this girl. Meg signed her on the spot. On January 28, 2009, we photographed Hailey for Genlux, though, for whatever reason, the shots didn't turn out well, and we didn't run them. Even so, we've all remained friends through these years, so it's great to see Hailey leaping way past Genlux to make it on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week! She's also been in ads for Gucci and Dsquared2, Plein Sud, Topshop, and Mavi Jeans. Such a sweet girl who deserves all of the success.

14-year-old Hailey Clauson at Genlux shoot on January 28, 2009.

Hailey Clauson in hair and makeup for Genlux shoot

Hailey Clauson at Genlux shoot on January 28, 2009