Hunter McGrady of All Worthy: “I would love to start a movement of self-acceptance; We are living in a time of “need for validation” which is hindering all of us in the way that we look at ourselves, the way we think about ourselves, and the way we look at others”

I would love to start a movement of self-acceptance. I find that we are living in a time of “need for validation” which is hindering all of us in the way that we look at ourselves, the way we think about ourselves, and the way we look at others. In this comes the topic of mental health! I think it is so important to exercise our mental health as much as we are told to exercise for physical health. The way we think is the catalyst to the way we live our lives!

For my series on strong female leaders, I had the pleasure of interviewing Model and Entrepreneur Hunter McGrady.

Born and raised in Southern California, the blonde bombshell grew up in the Malibu Mountains. She is the child of a former model from Iceland and actor/artist, Michael McGrady. Hunter has deep rooted seeds at Wilhelmina, the agency where she signed. Her mother was personally mentored by the eponymous modelling agency founder, Wilhelmina Cooper. When Hunter followed her dream of moving to New York to pursue modeling, the voluptuous beauty quickly became a signed and working curve model and a part of the Wilhelmina family (she is now signed with ONE Models).

When McGrady isn’t modelling, she is involved with 2 charities that are very near and dear to her heart. 1 Heart 1 Mission is a non-profit providing orphans in Haiti with food, education and clothing. She is personally involved with the staff and children and has recently used her platform to have new shoes donated to the children the charity works with. Additionally, she has recently partnered with the JED Foundation, an organization that exists to protect emotional health and prevent suicide for our nation’s teens and young adults, as a spokesperson.

Hunter McGrady is on the forefront of a very important movement in women’s fashion and history. A gorgeous “curve” model who made her mark as the curviest model ever to be featured within the Sports Illustrated Swim Issue will grace the pages in 2020 for the 4th year in a row.

McGrady has been a size 4 to 18 and can relate to women of all sizes. Hunter’s dream is to communicate to women that they too can be in love within their own skin, and be strong, powerful and confident. She believes one day there will be no more division of “plus size” or otherwise, we will simply embrace our differences. She uses her passion and insight to work regularly with major brands such as Amazon, Macy’s, Olay, Almay, StitchFix, Revlon, Jessica Simpson, Lane Bryant, Icelandic Glacial Water, Rule107, Fashion to Figure, Icelandic Water Swimsuits For All, Frederick’s of Hollywood, Maggie London and Bare Necessities. She’s rocked the runway for Torrid & Chromat (to name a few). She has sat on a number of panels and given keynotes at some of the largest female-driven events to date such as: POPSUGAR Playground, Create Cultivate, CurvyCon, BlogHer’s Health Summit and many more.

Thank you for joining us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

My mom was a model and my dad is an actor so I have been around this industry since I can remember. I always looked up to both of them and always wanted to be in front of the camera! When I was 16 years old I got into modeling as a “straight sized” model, which I couldn’t keep up with. At 19 I learned about plus modeling and signed with an agency as a plus model! From there I had always had a passion for clothing but anything I loved never came in my size. So I wanted to change that, I got my feet wet and in 2019 started creating a line with QVC!

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began working within the fashion industry?

I really went into this with hardly any experience in design, it was like a speed course on fashion design. I learned so much each meeting with my team and how intricate the entire process was. Every detail is laid out, we even have a person who specifically handles the dying of the fabrics!

What do you think makes your brand stand out? Can you share a story?

I think the fact that it is from a plus size perspective is very Interesting! You don’t see that as often! I also think the size range is absolutely incredible. We are truly inclusive with sizing starting at a 0 and ending at a 36! (XS-5X)

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

Continuing to work on my line with QVC! Each drop is better than the next. It is so spectacular and such a rewarding feeling to have created something and see it come to fruition. I am hoping that we can start to bridge the cap in shopping and we can all shop together regardless of our size.

What advice would you give to other female leaders to help their team to thrive?

Lift each other up. A win for them is a win for you! I tell this to all my girlfriends!

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I think that a support system is huge! My family and husband are extremely supportive and are the first people that I turn to for advice or opinions. They are honest but they are Insightful and I trust all of them.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

I hope that I can bring positivity. Whether that be body positivity or changing the way we think and talk about mental health. I am such an advocate for those things and I hope that women (and men) know that they feel heard!

Do you see any fascinating developments emerging over the next few years in the fashion industry that you are excited about? Can you tell us about that?

I am seeing more designers acknowledging the need for inclusive sizing and am hoping that continues! Right now, the demand highly outweighs the supply. Remember, fashion does not end at a certain size!

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

Every industry constantly evolves and seeks improvement. How do you think the fashion industry can improve itself? Can you give an example?

I think that the fashion industry needs to expand in more ways than just sizing. I want to see a wide array of models on the runway and in campaigns. I think it is imperative to make this change. For instance, during fashion week, I took a stand and only attended fashion shows and parties that were truly inclusive and unfortunately had to turn down a ton. Even designers who generally make some larger sizes did not have larger models on the runway. I do believe that more brands are seeing the benefit behind expanding and I think that the more they see success in other brands doing so, they will follow suit.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

My favorite life lesson quote is, “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending”-C.S. Lewis. I think this is a quote most everyone can relate to. We all have a starting point and we all have things we would love to have done differently, but we do have the power to change the outcome of our future. As someone who struggles with anxiety I think about this quote quiet often. We only have the power to change what is ahead of us, not behind us.

Some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them 🙂

I would love to sit down with Oprah Winfrey! I think she is the most astounding and inspirational woman. She is a Jane of all trades!