MOTT50 EDITION + COOLIBAR NYFW SS26
We ended our NYFW shows at 230 Fifth Rooftop Bar where Coolibar, a suncare brand for apparel showcased elements of their collection as a standing presentation, a runway show for Coolibar, and another runway show for their luxury portion of the line known as Mott50. Before and after the show, we enjoyed a sunny warm summer night in the golden hour which was paired with cocktails and light bites.
Protecting our skin and wearing products that have UPF 50+ built in is a great way to make sure that you are taking care of yourself. We had the pleasure of interviewing Supermodel and 90s icon, Niki Taylor moments before she made her return to the runway in this show as she opened and closed it!
ATHLEISURE MAG: It is so great to sit with you before you hit the runway! I remember when your first cover for Seventeen Magazine came out and it’s great to see how you have navigated your career. It’s so great to meet you.
When did you realize that you wanted to be a model?
NIKI TAYLOR: Oh my gosh! My mom was a model, she had done a couple magazine covers for Gold Coast back in the early 70s, and then she became a photographer. I think just growing up, I was always taller than everybody else. I think that’s when people were like, “oh, she should get into modeling.”
AM: Exactly!
NT: There were some teen things going on in South Florida, so we looked up modeling agencies in Fort Lauderdale and Irene Marie and Michele Pommier came up and I went to both of them. So my mom and I, we made a little black and white comp card and went to a photographer that took black and white photos. I just remember, that I had the hat and the bob and a couple at my mom’s photos we put on this comp card and we sent it into Irene Marie and they said no. They’re like, “nope, she needs braces - come back when her braces are off.” At that time, I was getting ready to get them. I did. I came back and there was a guy named JJ Cortez at Irene Marie. He was a modeling scout, and he said, “hey, we’re gonna sign you,” and the rest is history!
AM: You’ve had a phenomenal career from covers, hosting, and just so many different things. What do you love about what it is that you do, and did you envision that it would be all of this?
NT: I was a fan first. I would spend my allowance. I would ride my bike to the drugstore, buy a Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, and then put Christy, Naomi, and Linda on my wall!
AM: Exactly.
NT: I would look at that and say, I’m going to do that! I think that the drugstore had Italian Vogue one time – I don’t know how it got there!
AM: But it was like destiny!
NT: It was. It was all of the girls doing fashion shows. I remember I was, like, oh my, gosh, there’s Helena Christensen. There is Christy Turlington, she’s my favorite. Anything that I could find with Steven Meisel that he shot was on my wall.
Irene Marie brought me to New York. I did a modeling competition for Spectrum, and I won that. And then, from there, I signed with them and then I went to, um, my first show which was Thierry Mugler when when I was 14. I just remember being the first model there. So I got to watch them all come in, and all the personalities that arrived! My dad had one of those little throwaway cameras. I remember my dad coming with me.
I sat down and Danilo was doing my hair, and I could see Helena Christensen behind me and smiling at each other. I just feel like I was more a fan and the fact that I am still doing this and I get to do this, I’m very lucky.
AM: Well, we love hearing about people’s fitness routines. So, what are 3 that you do that we should consider incorporate into ours?
NT: Well, this is my husband, Burney.
AM: Hello!
NT: We weight train and see a trainer twice a week. We do a lot of walking. We love riding bikes. Anywhere we go on vacation or from work, we try to find somewhere that has bikes.
AM: That’s so cute!
BURNEY LAMAR: Have you done the Citi Bikes?
AM: No, I have not done the Citi Bikes.
NT: Oh my gosh, you have to!
BL: They’re amazing.
AM: I don’t know, you have the crazy drivers and then you have you on the Citi Bike. Yeah, I don’t know about that.
BL: They have a dedicated lane for them!
NT: Oh yeah they have they green lane.
AM: Oh yes – as long as they adhere to that!!
NT: They definitely look out for that bike lane! Talk about getting around fast!