Ivan Bart, the longtime president of IMG Model, stepped down after ten years as head of the immensely powerful modeling agency, Page Six learned.
The senior agent-manager told Page Six on Wednesday that he has decided to resign. However, insiders strongly suspect that he was executed.
According to a source who spoke to Page Six, executives on Tuesday said in a video call with IMG offices around the world that Bart, one of the most influential figures in the fashion industry, has left to take up a consulting position.
But when we called him Wednesday afternoon, Bart, looking stunned, first told us, “I have absolutely no comment.” But then he called us and said, “I’m stepping into a new role as a senior consultant.”
“I will be consulting all IMG models,” he added, “that’s what I mean.”
“I have years of experience and I mentor and counsel,” he said.
Industry magazine Business of Fashion had this to say about Bart:[he] guided the agency to represent success stories such as Kate Moss, Carolyn Murphy, Gisele Bundchen, Joan Smalls, Kate Upton, Lily Donaldson and Tyra Banks.
We heard that the people at the company were not convinced that he had resigned. “There is a lot of confusion [at IMG Models]”said the source.
But Bart insists he wasn’t fired, telling us: “It’s a mutually agreed upon decision for me to be a senior consultant.”
IMG Models was founded in 1987 and is one of the top modeling agencies in the world, with clients including Hailey Bieber, Alek Wek, Ashley Graham and sisters Gigi and Bella Hadid. Giselle Bundchen was a customer for 22 years before parting ways in 2021 and taking her in-house representative. Bart started at the company in 1994 and has been president for the past ten years.
It is credited for helping to expand the range of models at the elite level.
“Thank you for paving the way,” Graham said when he was chosen as one of the Out100. “Thank you for being a leader. Thank you for believing in so many different people.”
The modeling agency representative did not get back to us until the deadline.