Ethiopian Supermodel Liya Kebede Shares Advice on Motherhood, Business & More

Liya Kebede is an Ethiopian-born model, maternal health advocate, clothing designer, and actress. Forbes identified her as the eleventh-highest-paid top model in the world in 2007, and she has appeared three times on the cover of U.S. Vogue.

Liya also an ambassador for the World Health Organization and the founder of Lemlem, a clothing line with flowy fabrics and a sustainable, female-focused work ethic.

She spoke to Elle about motherhood, business and shared some life advice. Here are exerpts from the interview:

Growing up, was Calvin Klein a big deal in Ethiopia?

Oh, the CK One ad [with Kate Moss] was monumental for us. The jeans and the tank top—what a cool girl looked like changed so much for me because of those ads! It was quite impactful on me in many different ways.

Did you start trying to dress like Kate Moss in high school?

We didn’t have uniforms at my school, which was really cool… but you couldn’t get Calvin Klein jeans in Ethiopia. You had to wait until someone you knew was going overseas. And if it was one of your parents, it was like—you would beg. “Please get me a pair of Calvin Klein jeans! I’ll do anything!” It was the biggest deal.

You have two kids who are teenagers, right? Do they want to be models?

They’re 16 and 12. My son, the 16-year-old, 100% is not interested. He’s not into clothes. He wears the same thing every day. My daughter is more seduced by it, but I try to keep her away from it for now. She’s 12. I think she’s way too young [to model], unless we’re shooting together, I’m there, I know the photographer, and it’s a nice environment. We’ll do that. But I’d like her to be at least 18 before she starts working. If she wants to do it then, okay. But it’s a hard industry. It’s a hard place for a young person to be, and I don’t want it to mess her up. I want her to have her full childhood, and enjoy that.

You’re a mom, a model, a designer, and an activist. Who gives you the best advice?

There isn’t just one person that I talk to. The key to doing different things is to have different people in your life—for modeling, I talk to my agent. For Lemlem, I have designers or people in the industry that I call… you trust your gut on who to call, but sometimes, I’ll be honest, your gut says nothing! It happens.

What do you do when you can’t trust your gut?

You have to make the most informed decision possible. You look at all of the information you have, and your goals, and you go for it.

What do you wish you’d known as a new model?

Not to take things personally. Which is hard when you first start. As you keep working, you realize that often not getting a job has nothing to do with you, really. And there are always more jobs.

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What do you wish you’d known as a new mom?

Oh, as a new mom, you’re so nervous about everything. I wish I knew that it all worked out.

What do you wish you’d known as a new business owner?

I sometimes think the less you know, the better. If you actually know all the challenges that are ahead of you in business? You won’t ever go through with it. So ignorance is bliss as a new business owner. [Laughing] I’m glad I didn’t know anything.

What do you wish you’d known as a teenager?

Oh wow. What do you wish you’d known?

To calm down; you don’t have to be everything to everyone.

Yeah, calm down! Calm down and go to class! Show up for school, and it’ll all be okay.