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**I'm posting this again because I want people to read this and find it when they google their name.
When I was 18 I decided to take my modeling career to the next level and to get an agency. At that time a model name Angel Lola Luv was very big in music videos and she was everywhere. I looked to see what agency she was under and it said "Style Entertainment" (that was their name at the time). I sent my pictures in and Mike (who is the agent and photographer of the company) wanted to have an interview with me. I went in for the interview and everything went smooth. UNTIL he told me I needed better pictures and i needed to shoot with him for $750. Like an idiot I paid it and shot with him. The shoot wwas scheduled for 11am. Mike didnt show up til 12pm. Their were other girls there for the shoot as well. One girl that was there was with them for a while and she said that he's always late. During my bathing suit shoot, I was posing with my back towards the camera as I look back. Posing like that caused rolls on my back, so I asked Mike how I can get rid of them, MEANING what type of excersises I could do to tone up. He told me to ask Michelle (who is also an agent there) when I am done with my shoot. After the shoot I went in her office and asked her what can I do to get rid of them, she actually gave me a number to a PLASTIC SURGEON FOR LIPOSUCTION!. Now I am 118 LBS measurements 33-25-35. I assure you I dont need LIPOSUCTION. I thought of Angel Lola. I'm not sure if you know who Angel is but she has gotten alot done. Breast and Butt injections. She doesnt look like a normal person. Well I didnt call the surgeon because I just felt like I just need to tone up and hit the gym. A couple weeks later Michelle calls me and tells me to come in for my model evaluation. When I came in, they didnt even know why I was there! They looked at me like I had a 3rd eye. I sat at that office for 20 mins waiting for them to "evaluate" me. Finally, Michelle called me in her office and she was cold as ice. She didnt even look at me the entire time. She threw me a teeth whiting card saying that I need to invest in myself. WTF! I invested in myself when I paid $750 for that shoot! After that was over, I got another call saying to come in for the Model Orientation. I drove 2 hrs for this on a sunday and sat there for 2 hrs and he never showed up. Other models were there as well, one with her mom because she was only 15. Her mom was pissed to high heavens and called Mike's phone repeatly and leaving messages saying he was very umprofessional. So I went home. I got a call from Mike again reschduling the Orientation, not even an apology. I drove 2 hrs AGAIN for this "orientation" and waited there for an hr for it to begin! During this orientation they stressed being on time. WHAT!? DID I HEAR CORRECTLY! Also they stressed that "things happen". Thats why we were sitting outside the office for hours because "things happen" well now that makes me feel so much better and that I dont feel like I was scammed out of hundreds of dollars! THANK YOU SO MUCH! but wait! I didnt get to the fun part yet! They told me that I had to a pay $95 annual fee for being on the website. I know this is a standard charge but I was on the website for 2 weeks then I was taken off. WHY?! I called them to ask them what was the issue because I paid my money. They told me that they were having an issue with the website and it would be back up running in no time. It never was and I am not paying $95 again for me NOT to be on the site. I was scammed out of $95. Then they emailed me my comp card that i am soppose to get printed myself and my stats are wrong. I called and told them this and they said that they were going to fix it. Of course, they never did. They never even asked me my stats! How are you going to put it on my comp card! I have been with this agency for a year. NO WORK! I got an email saying that there was a casting for g unit in NY the next day. This was at 2am of the casting. They do that alot, they call you about a casting just hours before thinking that you have to drop everything and go. A REAL AGENCY DOESNT DO THAT! I went to the casting that started at 2pm. I called the agency to tell them that I am there and they told me not to go in yet and to wait for Mike because he knows G Unit personally and it would better my chances. Ok well if it better my chances then I'll wait a couple mins. Other models from the agency was there and I met new friends so that was a plus. 3pm comes...NO MIKE...4pm comes...NO MIKE. I started to see the other girls come out from the casting and I started to get worried. 5pm comes here pulls up Mike. Better our chances my behind! The casting directors were so pissed off that we were late they didnt even look at us! I mean they were pissed! of course we didnt get picked. I had it with this agency! i am no longer with this agency! THANK THE LORD! I am now 22 years old and with a REAL agency in NY and I have gotten WORK and castings in a month of being signed with them. I have been in magazines and I will be in NY's fashion week. I didnt have to spend any money but the web fee, and YES I am on there! Style Elite could NEVER DO THAT. THEY SUCK! If you like throwing your money away then sign with them! thank you for your time and be careful!
im not sure how they are with young children. but when you go 2 the office and look around all the pictures on the wall are of men magazine booty models...no children. but they took my money and ran dont let them do that to u. PLEASE!
i'm with different agencies. one in NYC and another in Philly. i too didnt get any work the 2 years I was with him as well. He would send me castings 2am the day of that casting so it was hard to go to them. A REAL agency sends u info of a casting 12-48 hrs before the casting so you actually have time to plan to get there. i know a few and when I saw few I mean 3 out of the 200 models he has on his roster made it to spring fling. Mike will have you sign a "non exclusive" contact. A non exclusive contact means that you can work with other angecies. Well with Mike and them you have to "talk" to them about working with anyone else lol. Also even if you find your own jobs you have to give the job Mike's info so he can get his 20% even tho he didnt do ### to get you that job, it was all you! that my friend is NOT a non exclusive contract. That is called "got ya ###!" Plus for Mike's "castings" for Smooth and The Source, he charges you $20 to submit yourself. lol what?! No other real agencies do that lol that was a load of ###. Some agencies charge $20 to submit your pictures to an agency but NOT for every casting. Last but not least the pictures. A really good, notable photographer charges $650 for 3-4 looks, hair and makeup, 3-4 of those looks retouched. Mike charged me $750. that was for 4 looks and hair and makeup. NONE of the pictures were retouched, that was extra. I was 18 at that time and didnt know better. I know MUCH better and i dont want any girl to waste her time on this crap. if you sign with Mike PLEASE be careful. If something doesnt feel right...get out!
no one said ANYTHING about u shouldnt pay for your pictures. Every model knows that you have to pay for your portfolio unless under special circumstances. But for $750 for getting just a disk back with NO retouching, printing your own comp card with the wrong measurements, and paying $95 for NOT being on the website...scam. Like I said in my 1st post, I was 18 and at the time I wanted to be a video girl. After experiencing 1st hand that the video world was, I decided to lost 10lbs and be a fashion/commerical model. Commerical modeling pays ALOT more then your $200 music video. Mike over charges for what. Daniel Elliot Photography charges $600 and $60 for hair and makeup and his work looks a million times better then Mikes. Another photographer name Bryan DeWitt, a NYC photographer, charges $300 and his work looks like its from Sports Illustrated and hes based out of NYC which is odd cuz I thought he would be more. Mike is based out of DC/MD, why does he cost more and give less back? Photographer Joe Kelly in York, PA charges $300 as well and his work is amazing and is great for commercial modeling and is a model at Ford. And they are all professional, show up on time, answers all your questions in a timely manner and you dont have to keep calling them, and RETOUCHED PICTURES! All I'm saying is you can get better work for MUCH MUCH MUCH less. Not to knock Mike but after I left Style Elite, I went to Elite for there open call. The agent looked at Mike's pictures and said "who shot this?!" and I told her and she looked at me and said "dont ever shoot with him again". Then they told me I was too short and to stick to commerical modeling lol. I love my agency now! Model Management Group answers my questions in a timely manner (within the half hr) and finds me GREAT work! If I have a problem they arent avoiding my calls me (or from my Lawyer), I paid my web fee and is on the web site!, and when we have a meeting they remember that they scheduled it and show up on time (NO EXCUSES!). Eboni J, yes you do need a good portfolio for castings, but you also need a good retouched portfolio and I good agent that is on time if he claims he has a "good relationship" with the client and not 3 hrs late. Sorry if I sound mean but its true.
really? r u serious? Photographers charge 700 and not retouch? FALSE GUY! and ur talking about Grammar but your WHOLE entire post is like...omg. lol but anyway thats not the point. Eboni lets be serious, u know well enough that if you paid 750 for a shoot and got back nonsense you would be mad too. really tho. Qhat attitude are u speaking of? I'm just explaining my experience at this agency. A terrible one. Thats what a complaint site is. Also I book LOTS of jobs from my new agency that Mike couldnt do. And if you read my post before I said I was 18 which MEANS I didnt know any better. I do now. But this is the last time I'm responding to u cuz I'm very happy with my agency and my career. Getting screwed by Style Elite made me a strong and SMARTER model. Thanks for the concern Mike oh I mean Eboni lol muah!
why do u keep copy and pasting your posts? and ur still not explaining to me why angrytalent and I were never on the website after we paid our fee. and btw, thank God for lawyers right lol
@exposefakeness and @baj lbc i am going thro the same thing. I havent been on here in a while but i'm glad i logged in today. "therealsupermodel" is either mike or sum1 from his staff. yes i am with MMG now but they have treated me very well. "therealsupermodel" doesnt kno what they are talking about cuz "Model Management Inc" is not MMG lol. Totally different company. MMG has a A+ on BBB and mike has an F...so...i really should stop right there. i know it was mike because i little after I posted this compliant, another one was posted about my current agency with my name and my image without my permission which i am pretty sure it is a form of idenity theift. Under that complaint i posted a comment with my real name asking to remove the posting since they were using my likeness. it was removed from the site since i have proved to the webmaster that it was my likeness they were using without my permission. i do feel bad posting this complaint but i need to make sure they dont do this to another model every again. Sorry
No recently I paid him $1500 to do my reels and photos and never got anything, agencies normally don’t charge upfront fees if they are representing you, they ain’t lying, he scammed me too currently going through legal procedures it’s been 3 years I did my contract for the photos and reels on June 2021 and never got anything. So yall are right. He done changed the name of the company now but still the same actions and person pure scam.
I signed up for this modeling agency back in 2010 or 11 in pursuing a modeling career as a young teenage girl and let me just say it was the worst idea ever. i will not go in to much details in fear of my safety. i will just say that this agency is a big scam. they do illegal things in the background and should be investigated by the police.
How do I delete my comment ?
Ommfggg this guy told me I had to pay 1500 and keeps blowing my phone up everyday trying to get me to pay like rushing me as if he was ready to come to me to so the shoot the next day ! I'm glad I researched and didn't pay any money yet !
is this true ? because im interested in working with him but everything you all are saying is making me reconsider that. woow 1500$ are you serious. i have professional photos that have been retouched and everything so i would hope that i dont have to spend wat yall did because thats ridiculous .
ok i have few questions because I have also been approached by this company but i have yet to pay for anything because my mother is some what hesitant. After reading a few of you alls post things have drastically changed since last year...Im really startn to feel skeptical.. im 24yr old young woman and modeling is my dream and a goal i would like to see happen but i dont want to make the wrong choice..
Official Glam Girls has been commissioned by the above named to provide the following services:
Plan A Portfolio Development (Not prints. Digital), Imaging, Consulting, Public Relations 3 Look Photo Shoot with 1 to 2
Magazine Submissions.
Photo shoot looks consist of:
● Magazine PinUp Glamour Look 1
● Magazine PinUp Glamour Look 2
● Magazine PinUp Glamour Look 3
● Learn Posing Techniques for glam publications 3 retouched photos
(PR Services) Submission to publication (12)
45 Consultation & Meeting
(Your very own Official Glam Girls website profile to market & promote you to the
industry & worldwide for music video consideration, bookings, etc).
Twitter Design page with Official Glam Girls booking information
Photo Shoot Prep How to Prepare for a photo shoot.
Included in music video and reality TV show casting database.
Saving $400.00 from the total price (Normally $1900 for this total packet)
at a rate of $_$1, 500. Full payment must be made within 30 days to receive services. If payment is not received by due date(s)
you will lose your slot. Once the full payment is received the services will begin
please tell me what you all think i should do..Can someone point me in the right direction to get the information i need so i can make the right judgement call on my career
This is not a real agency at all. They forward you craig's list posting saying that they are sending you exclusive audition information.. They did have Lola luv but they have had nothing since. Their "agency" is a scam for money for pictures. If you want pictures, sure, pay money. When I was there they had 2 other girls shooting and both of the other girls were strippers taking pictures for their calendar to sell at their strip club in the area. I drove 4 hours for a model "test shoot." This was most certainly not a test shoot.
Don't waste your time OR money.
Mike Styles is a liar and a thief he uses people to get where he want to in life .
He tried to rip me off too. The funny thing was I lived in the neighborhood where the agency was so I would see him all the time and he will tell me to come by his office. I wasted my time, money and energy printing out pictures so he can consult me. All he wanted was to rip me off lol I was lik "$500? Negro please, get out of here" I rather b homeless in NY hunting real agencies there than being ripped off in MD, smh. Then I talked to this really good photographer that told me he was scamming people and that Lola was his main chick on the low he also told me stories about other models.
Sorry to keep posting but I want people to be well informed.
Since ppl have caught up to their schemes, they decided to take another approach by having different business names and new websites. Check it out...
http://www.missvinc.com
http://www.mikemichellebookingagency.com
This is the contact info on the new website...
1.888.810.4025 NY . DC . LA . UK
Corporate Headquarters 601 Pennsylvania Ave NW Suite 900
Capital Hill - Washington, DC 20004.
CAPITAL hill?! A real professional agency will not have that sort of misspelling on their website. HUGE RED FLAG! Capitol hill not Capital hill. SMH. If you are reading this, please don't waste your time with Michelle.
Yup. I pretty much had the same negative experiences with Mike and Michelle. But they are definitely on to something. They will reap all that they are sowing...it's just a matter of time.
This is their new website now...
http://evolutionaryartistmgmt.com/
You can run but you can't hide.
I've been with Style Elite, and Mike & Michelle for 6 years and the agency has been good to me and pretty much all the models with the agency. I didn't expect them to hand me everything, give me free photoshoots and make me a star overnight. I worked on myself and learned the business while attending all the castings they sent, acting professional and looking just like my pictures when I showed up for a go see and auditions with clients. Been booked plenty of jobs, always paid on time. got plenty of exposure and made plenty of money with Style Elite. Everything isn't for everybody.
FYI Lola was dropped not the other way around silly rabbit. Get Your Facts Straight
I guess you missed the the press release yahoo news posted about Lola getting dropped.
http://news.yahoo.com/evolutionary-artist-management-part-ways-lola-monroe-222612370.html
that's why she's been quite about it them parting ways.
Style Elite is a Reputable Agency http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4EY7SgsgB4
Style Elite is a legitimate Talent Agency PROOF http://youtu.be/L4EY7SgsgB4
OMG... I totally agree 100% with everything being said. I beg all models not to sign with Style Elite. It's no limit to how far they will go to rip people off. They have a horrible name in the industry. They never pay their models, they lie and scam people for living. Im so glad lola dropped them as her manager. MODELS PLEASE RUN FULL SPEED AWAY FROM STYLE ELITE.
MIKE STYLLES YOU ARE A CON AND SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF I HOPE SOMEONE SUES YOU. Mike Styles is absolutely a fraud. I have supposedly been with his agency for 3 years and never got a paying job with him or even signed a contract (thank goodness). People please I beg of you, don't waste your time or money. This man and his unprofessional staff are a bunch of theives and frauds. The few jobs he does send out are non paying or something you can find yourself on craiglist. The only way he is able to fund this joke of an agency is by charging models ridiculous amounts of money for mediocre photos that you can honestly get anywhere. Oh yea it took me almost a year to get my lame photos that were never retouched. He also takes 50% of Angel Lola Loves money, his only model that is actually making money and he has her under contract stealing from her. He is unprofessional, late, tacky, a liar, and needs to be exposed. Why do you think his website is down? He had me on the website and made up lies on my profile about my nationality (Ethiopian? What? Im Native American) mispelled my name and height. His staff is disgusting and have no regard for my time or money. The will call you in the agency and forget what they called you about. I did one horrible fashion show for them (no pay, exposure they said) It turned out to be a birthday party. Don't pay for a photoshoot and don't waste your time with this agency. I am a successful model getting paying jobs in DC. STYLE ELITE IS NOT THE WAY.
I have to agree with the originator. I was approached by Mike in Oct '08. He told me that I needed pics, and I agreed bc I hadn't modeled in several years and didn't have any updated pics. He actually told me the cost was $400 for pics. During orientation, I looked around and realized that the majority of the people who were there were NOT EVEN CLOSE to having model potential! (I used to be a model scout) A short, ###-eyed girl told me that Mike said that he normally charges $1, 100 for photos, but since "she had potential", he'd only charge her $900. WTF?! Another girl, who could've been Flava Flav's twin said she was quoted $950! I know the hustle, so I figured he just wanted to sell them picture packages. I never received my comp card template. They sent me casting emails for a few months, then stopped. It really didn't matter because the emails were sent AFTER the casting took place. I never paid $95 to be on the site because everytime I visited the site, the section to view the models was ALWAYS down. I don't think I would've paid it if it was available to view. I realized the sells picture packages and modeling classes...That is it. I'm just glad I didn't "invest" as much as some of the others did.
My daughter came to your company with pictures and was told that her pictures weren't good enough. If you say that is is not a requirement why not just use the pictures in her portfolio that she came with and let the chips fall where they may instead of telling her that she needs more professional pictures (at a cost of $700). It seems to me that you are double talking. As a photographer, you will always think that your work is better than another photographer otherwise why say that her pictures aren't professional enough. Because the pictures she had were done by a professional photographer just not YOU.
Now since you are saying that she doesn't need to pay you to take additional pictures. I will send her back to your agency and lets see if you really try to help her or are you just out to line your pockets with retake of pictures just in case you can't or won't try to get work for her.
We are Style Elite Talent Agency. We have talent agents and bookers throughout the USA with great background in talent development and bookings for over 10 years. Our models & talent have been booked for commercials, television shows, ad campaigns, fashion events, movies, music videos, print work, hosting’s and much more. As Style Elite Modeling & Talent Agency we do not charge website fees and for the representation of our models and talent, however we do take a 20% commission when you receive payment for bookings. Models & Talent need great portfolios to get started in the business but it is not required to do them with us in order to work with our team. We have models & talent in New York, Atlanta, Miami, California, Washington DC and in the UK. Like any business you can’t please everyone based on our client’s needs as to what they want in a model or talent. Some people don’t fit what our clients may want based on their look. We have produced great talent over many years and we can do it for you.
Well I see all of "Eboni J's" post are gone. Must have been a fraud. Just goes to show another fraudulent side of Style Elite. If Mike was a real professional, he would have contested what was said using his own likeness and maybe even apologized for his ridiculousness. Focus on bettering yourself and your business Mike. That way real people will actually have something positive to say.
Mike Styles or whomever is working from his office and posing as Eboni Jewelz needs to cut it out with the ###! Eboni is my girlfriend, and I can GUARANTEE she didn't write any of these illiterate ### posts! I live in Cali, but best believe the very next time I board a plane headed to the DC/Maryland area, I will be personally paying this questionable agency a visit. I can attest to a few similar complaints to the ones the ladies had in the first few posts concerning the mismanagement of funds, but instead of having to pay for Photoshoots, and web fees, they have been VERY SLOW in paying invoices for services rendered. I can only speak for Eboni J. on any of these issues, and can't validate anyone else's claims one way or another, but I will assure you of one thing and that is EBONI HASN'THASNT WRITTEN ANY OF THE GARBAGE ON THIS SITE! If anyone from this agency that's really beginning to look super shady has any questions, or would like to challenge my post in any way, please feel free to holla back at me, or call THE REAL EBONI JEWELZ and she will put you in touch with me directly...
I want to clear everything up... I know the real Eboni J and she did not write those comments above. Iwill be sending her this link as well. I don't think she would be happy with her identinty being used on this blog
By the way the "Real" agency that "SuperModel" is with now Model Management Group has the worst reputation of all agencies of the face of this earth. type "Model Management Group" or "Model Management Inc" in the search field and you will see all the pages and pages of complaints on this "Real" agency. oh and google her "real" agencies name with the word "complaint" and tell me what you see lol. Shame on "Supermodel" I wonder how much your "real" agency paid you for this. I hope it was worth it. Cause cleary the complaints this "real" agency has garnered over the years outweights your little comments about how great your "real" agency is. This little complaint board post on Style Elite is no match to your "real" agencies ### reputation. So you moved from a bad agency as you call Style Elite to a worst Agency or shall I say "criminals" as your "real" agency is referred to by everyone walks in through their doors... oh with the exception of you of course. And yes I did read your little post on Style Elite... as you wanted everyone to... before visiting Style Elite. I chose to make an appointment with them anyway to see for myself how this Agency really operates and it was nothing like you described. Im glad I didnt write them off after reading your slander on them. If anyone is reading this I encourage you to go to Style Elite and see for yourself that they are nothing like these people claim.
Style Elite has never charged me a dollar and I have been with them for a couple of months now. I am very happy with my Agency. Since being with them I have referred 3 of my friends and even my cousin to Style Elite. All of them got signed and didnt have to pay a dime. When we interviewed with Mike Styles & Michelle they said we didnt need to spend money on pictures to build our portfolio because we came with professional photos on a cd which were shot by professional photograghers we had already shot with (mind you I HAD to pay the photographers I shot with. 1 photographer from NY was $800 for 3 looks and the other was $750 for 3. and I spent extra money to retouch the images prior to visiting Style Elite. Mike & Michelle said there was no need for me to pay for anything because I came prepared with the professionally shot images and all. I signed my contract that day and my photos were up on the site within a week (they didnt ask for a fee to be on site as SuperModel is claiming) They didnt ask my friends or cousin to pay a fee to be on website. Since being with Style Elite I have booked several jobs. I didnt start working immediately but a couple of months later I got 3 commercial jobs a couple of music videos, a calendar shoot and I appeared on a cover of a book. My friends and cousin have been getting work as well. I can say that I didnt spend any money with them because I came to them prepared. Either way I had to spend money to get the photos (which every agency needs to market us) just not with them. and If I didnt get anywork while with Style Elite I wouldnt blame the photographers or call them a fraud because I spent hundreds of dollars with these photographers to build my portfolio but didnt get the success I was hoping for in modeling so why would people call an agency a fruad if you spent the money with the agency instead to build your portfolio. I have another friend who wanted to sign to Style Elite but she was already under contract with another agency. She was complaining about not getting work with them or whatever. I had to explain to her that the agency doesnt control who the client books. Its up to the client. The client has the final say so. She's a beautiful girl too. other models from her agency were getting booked so she was frustrated. I figured agencies dont all have the same clients. Who knows she may have had more luck booking jobs at Style Elite vise versa. Its like calling a university a fraud because you spent thousands of dollars with them, graduated and didn't get a job. Thats stupid. The university can only give you the tools you need to be successful in your field and get work from they're degree. They cant force employers to hire you once you have a degree. Its all up to the employer. Its their choice. and theyre are many candidates up for the job. Just like their are many models up for the job. Im glad I have common sense to understand how this works. I'm good with Style Elite. I plan on renewing my contract with them as well. People like Supermodel annoy me. People like Supermodel are the type to have an attitude with you because you and act snooty both with to an audition and you got the job and she didnt because she things she's gods gift to the world... Clearly... just by her user name "Supermodel". u gotta be kidding me. People like her have been told all there lives how pretty they are so they think the whole world should think so and when they cant get any work its all the agencies fault so they resort to complaint board to slander. Style Elite is the best!
first i have to say LMAO @supermodel's "false guy" comment! I havent laughed like that in months! @ebonij after reading all these comments it sounds like you actually work for Mike. You arent proving your point that these ladies were charged a website fee and never on the site, why he was late all the time, and why they had to pay a $20 registration fee. I never heard of that. I'm sorry girls but that should have been a big red flag for you. Nobody should ever pay to submit their pictures for a job. Where is that money going to? That is reduculous! There are alot of models out there that complain about being with an agency and not getting jobs and I think that those girls should blame themselves but supermodel, angrytalent have great reasons why they should be pissed the hell off. He charged them $700 for a shoot that took a long time to get pictures back, no retouching, and with wrong info on their comp card. Ebonij, no photographer charges that much for just a shoot. New York photographers charge 500 and retouch. These girls arent complaining about no getting work, they are complaining about spending money they didnt need to. Yes I have been to Style Elite. Mike charges you just to see u! What kind of ### is that? I didnt last 5 mins in his office because I just said forget it. Also, you not defending the fact that you guys have a F rating on BBB. All your saying is he gets me work. I dont believe thats true because I am 99% sure you work in his office. I know for a fact that when Mike finds a casting he sends all his models when the casting is looking for a certain type of model. He does this to make it seem like he gets his girls work when in reality his just wasting the model's time and the casting director's time. If a casting director is looking for a latina model that is 5'9'' why would you send a black model thats 5'5''? thats what mike does. Plus, Mike had a model name Suelyn on his wall saying he represented her. He did not and never did. Thats very misleading and a form of faud. That itself is another story. Angrytalent and supermodel, I hope you learned your lesson and reconize these red flags is they ever happen again. Good luck in you careers
All I gotta say is "F" BBB rating. Everyone can't be wrong. Eboni is the exception. http://www.bbb.org/washington-dc-eastern-pa/business-reviews/modeling-and-talent-agencies/style-elite-talent-agency-in-silver-spring-md-194254818/#_rr
Mike Styles is a fraud he did the same to me persuaded me to pay all this money to invest in myself and he'll help me but every time i talk to him again he never remembered what he said the last time or it seemed as if he was making something up... so i had the photo shoot and the only clothes he provided was none he never asked my measurements or anything. The shoot took 6 hours he was so unprofessional it was rediculous he and Michelle are so focused on Lola Monroe who cant rap it rediculous and taking people moneY o support her when it isnt air and should be considered stealing i hope they lose everything or taking peoples money and misleading people into thinking they are professionals but really they are con artists behind a desk...DONT USE THEM THEYLL CON YOU THERE WEBSITES ARE COPY AND PASTE PICTURES AND THEY ARE FRAUD THEY WONT LAST LONG CAUSE GOD DOESNT LIKE UGLY AND YOU GUYS ARE UGLY! Last but least if you are going to run a business and do people wrong check there backgrounds. do unto others as you would want them to do unto you. I havent sign with them because i realized the scam bt after i paid my money but im not worried cause theyll pay much more then i will.
For me, he didn't get me ANY work over the whole two years I was with him. I am currently studying acting and I have yet to sign with an agency but i'm doing my research.
omg, thank god i came across this post!
this is very scary!
i sent an email to mike and he request me do an interview with him two days later... i was too excited! just this friday i proceeded on the interview with mike and just as you said everything went smooth... i was super excited he loved my walk and my personality but when going through my portfolio he stated that my photos wasnt professional enough and that i need to jump on the shoot with him asap. i didnt have a problem with it esp since he said that after i do the shoot with him he will submit my photos off to different castings and calls and at the end of dec i will be booked with plenty of gigs. he said that he has special connections to big runway events such as rip the runway and spring bling. but then he told me that the shoot with him will cost $700 and that the shoot will be with other models...although he said i didnt have to pay the full 700 up front just half im still sketipcal because whenever you go into a agency and get offered to be an exclusive model the model shouldnt have to pay for ANYTHING! and off the break before i even signed a contract im being ask for money to do a photoshoot! i would think that if they want me to do a photoshoot with them to better my portfolio that they should take care of the funds because at this stage i should be an investment...im still a little skeptical esp after reading this post and seeing that models that are familiar with this agency went through the same stage! hey @angrytalent and @supermodel what agency are you guys now signed with? and did mike styles really have success in connecting his models to gigs like rip the runway, spring bling, and other runway shows in nyc
Ditto. I'm not sure how they are with children but I can remember seeing a picture of a child on a wall. It may have been Mike's child though. Everything else was "adult" photos. My advice is, get your child with a legit New York agency such as Wilhelmina or something. Btw, how did your interview go, if you went?
Good Afternoon, my son has an interview with this agency on Saturday and your post have me concerned that this may not be a good idea, he is only 3 and I am not trying to waste my time on those who are not about professionalism. I know you all are a little older but have your heard about how he handles younger children?
Mike also asked me to pay more money to update photos years after he had originally told us in orientation that once your with the agency, you wouldn't have to pay for photos again. He must have forgotten that. They also lost my original contract and had me sign a new one 10 months later. Very unorganized. The reason I paid money and gave the benefit of doubt is because Angel was getting work and on the cover of all the magazines. I even checked the BBB at the time and various other sites but they had no BBB rating yet and they're business license was valid. I trusted that but I was so wrong.
The first post is 100% accurate. I went through 99% of what she went through. Summary: Mike asked me to pay $750 to get photos done and it took months to get them. Mike said he would email them and never did. I kept calling for them, he said he would mail them and never did. So finally I had to drive an hour down and managed to get my photos about 5 months later. Mind you, retouching costs extra. Same thing with the shoot. I paid to have a shoot and other girls were there also. How unprofessional for a "personal" shoot that he made no mention of other girls being there. Many times I was asked to make trips down there. Stayed for 5 min and was sent home. One instance in particular: I called because I was told that "the agent" Mike Styles would help pick out the top photos from each category, i.e. commercial, fashion, etc... to submit to clients. I was told that I would have some input but the agency would have the final say because they know best. Fine. I submitted photos by email and they never got back to me. I did this a couple of times. Bottom line, we never picked the photos. I called Mike and spoke to his partner at the time about picking out the photos. She then searched the database to confirm that they had not been chosen. This was months after I received the photos. We agreed that I would come in that night to finally get this stuff done so that I could get some work. I drove an hour down there to which Mike replies that he already chose the photos. WTF? He claimed that he had been submitting them to clients and showed me the photos. Upon looking at the photos, he acknowledged that some things were wrong with the photos he chose and that he hopes he didn't submit them they way they were. I don't believe he ever submitted my photos to anyone. Same thing with the website. The only difference between the first girl and I is that my picture NEVER got put on the website. I gave him a free $95 basically. They kept telling me that the website needed to be fixed but it never got fixed. This was back in 2008. This year (2010) it finally got fixed but my pictures still never got put up. At the time Angel was very hot also. When I would go down to the office and talk to Mike, girls in the waiting room would comment that he focuses all his time on Angel and never took the time to get them work. I noticed that also with how he dealt with me. I had been with the agency for two years and no work. My contract was a two year contract and they were named the Mother Agency, which means that they get paid off of everything you do, even if other agencies get you work. That wouldn't have been so bad if they were actually getting me work. So basically, they would be profiting off of someone elses hard work and doing none of their own. I'm still confused as to what they do. My contract says that they are not agents or managers but only offer advice to talent. WTF is that? You getting paid like a manager (which Mike said out of his mouth that he was) but then the contract says you only offer advice but you get paid like an agent. And last but not least, they were suppose to be sending me castings via email and I kept calling for months to remind them and never got them. Everytime I would call Mike would say, Oh, you gotta keep the email address current with the agency. We signed you up before. NO you didn't cause my email has been the same for 10+ years! Then finally they started sending me emails and then they stopped probably 3 months into it. Why, idk. I am so glad that my contract is up with them. They suck big time. They are not on top of their game and they've been around for a while now so they can't blame newness for there lack of being focused.