Ivan Bart named President of IMG Models and Fashion Properties

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
May 23, 2018

Ivan Bart’s role in fashion keeps on growing. Bart, president of IMG models for the past five years, will now also oversee the international agency’s global fashion events.

 
Bart will also be in charge of both LENS, the IMG division handling image makers from art, fashion and film, and M2M. Standing for Made to Measure, M2M is a fashion video network covering films, runway shows, original series and documentaries.
 
“I’m honoured and excited for this new opportunity. The fashion landscape is evolving, and in the same way we’ve advanced the conversation on race, size, age and gender inclusivity at IMG Models,” Bart said in a release.

With six offices worldwide – London, Los Angeles, Milan, New York, Paris and Sydney -  IMG is the preeminent modelling agency in the industry, handling the likes of Alek Wek, Amber Valletta, Bella and Gigi Hadid, Laetitia Casta, Lauren Hutton, Gisele Bundchen, Kate Moss, Carolyn Murphy and Lara Stone.
 
Brooklyn-raised Bart first joined IMG in 1994, after working for eight agencies, where he gained a sterling reputation for handling then-up-and-coming runway stars such as Bridget Hall and Shalom Harlow. Bart was named IMG president in 2013, when William Morris Endeavour, or WME, acquired the agency. IMG was founded by the legendary sports agent Mark McCormack.
 
As part of this new transition, Leslie Russo, formerly Senior Vice President of Fashion Sales and Marketing, was promoted to Executive Vice President, Fashion Partnerships and Marketing. Russo will play a key leadership role on Bart’s executive team.