Koukla & Milla Lapidus: The Empowering Sisters You Need To Know
Words By Victor Concepto
A chain of strong women is what the Lapidus family is all about. Two sister models Koukla and Milla, work closely together on boosting the self-confidence of one another. “Our weekend ritual at the countryside includes sharing key moments of the week with our mother to take out a learning lesson from the good and bad experiences we encounter,” explained the redhead and brunette beauties on a rainy afternoon in Paris.
Even though Koukla is the elder sister of Milla, she feels that her younger sibling is the voice of reason, and seems to have all the right ideas. “It’s like she’s in my head, she’s my best friend and business advisor,” says Koukla.
The French/Lebanese models are building their own names, and hoping to live up to the image of their grandfather, French iconic designer, Ted Lapidus. “It’s actually more difficult when your grandfather is a household name, when your father was the artistic director of Lanvin, and your mom is a renowned singer,” commented KouMi, the nickname they give to their dynamic duo.
Their modeling career was far from being pre-planned. While Koukla was interning at a French magazine a casting director insisted that she audition to a modeling job, “I was in my work mode, and out of a sudden he thought I was a model and made me try out my luck”. A few months later, while an agent was signing Koukla’s contract he saw Milla passing by, and so one modeling contract turned into two, and the rest is history.
The girls have graced the covers of international magazines and the jumbo screen of New York’s Times Square, and this only the beginning. “We are fully dedicated to our modeling career, we promised our parents that if we were to pursue this we need to stop our studies and focus all our energy on it. It’s definitely risky, but we know we will make it.” The witty girls already have a 10-year plan of establishing their own brand and somewhat of an empire: “We aim big, and people often make fun of us, but nothing will stop us.”
Comparison and competition is not part of the equation, the Lapidus girls are keen on working together, “We are stronger together, it’s like the fashion milieu respects us more when we walk into a project together, we just feel safer.” Eventually, each young lady wants to pursue her calling, but for the moment, they are determined on concurring the fashion world as a cohesive duo.
With an oriental and occidental background, the girls claim the freedom of their bodies, “It’s sad to see how nudity and sensuality is being misinterpreted and looked down on in our society.” Their body, their rules is their ultimate motto.
Growing up in the fashion industry has given them a certain level of maturity. They are perfectly aware that each person is easily replaceable and that a small error could break a career. “We’ve grown up at the backstage of fashion shoots, catwalks, showrooms and more, so we know what it takes and the obstacles we need to endure.”
A picture perfect life comes with some critics and haters, “If you check our inboxes you would see a lot of hate messages, but that won’t stop us, and in fact, it proves that we are paving our own way.”
Beauty and brains, the Lapidus sisters are here to stay: “We want to build our own story and our unique name,” they concluded with passion and elegance.
Photography and Concept: Iris Brosch @irisbrosch @theworldofirisbrosch
Featuring: Koukla Lapidus @koukla.lapidus and Milla Lapidus @milla.lapidus
Interview by Victor Concepto
Producer/Set: Stephane Blancs @ibbsproduction
Stylist: Fode Ka @fode.ka
Stylist Assistant: Nicoline Equilichini @ovnini_style
Make Up / Hair: Makka Elbaz @makkastyle
Retouching: Lea Marisol @leamarysol
