Presley Gerber felt permanently overshadowed by his famous family during his career in the notoriously brutal fashion industry, a top modeling agency owner has claimed. The model passed away at the age of 27.
Gerber, the son of American supermodel Cindy Crawford, entered an adult world while he was still a teenager. He made his runway debut at just 16 years old walking for Italian luxury house Moschino during their Los Angeles Resort show in 2016. Moschino, a brand famous for its eccentric and theatrical designs, provided a major platform for the young model's first major catwalk appearance.
He had already begun making significant waves in the fashion world prior to that show. A year earlier, in 2015, Gerber had signed a contract with IMG Models. The New York-based agency is one of the premier international talent firms, responsible for managing the careers of some of the highest-profile figures in the industry.
That same year, he was featured alongside his younger sister, Kaia Gerber, in the 2015 edition of CR Fashion Book. The prestigious biannual print magazine was founded by Carine Roitfeld, who spent a decade serving as the editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris. The siblings' joint appearance helped cement their status as rising stars.
In 2016, Gerber continued his rapid ascent by securing a starring role in a major campaign for Calvin Klein, the iconic American lifestyle brand famous for its minimalist aesthetic, celebrity endorsements, and provocative marketing. However, industry insiders suggest that despite his early commercial success, the young model was quietly battling with the weight of his family legacy.
An owner of a top modeling agency told former celebrity publicist Rob Shuter that Gerber was deeply affected by rumors and assumptions regarding how he secured his lucrative bookings. According to the source, the constant comparisons to his relatives took a severe psychological toll.
"Presley never felt good enough," the agency owner said. "He was always in the shadow of his mother and sister. People believed he was getting opportunities because of his parents. That bothered him enormously."
Dark realities of the fashion world
While these industry insights do not explain Gerber's death or his personal choices, they provide critical context about the psychologically demanding environment of professional modeling. Shuter, who previously represented high-profile clients like British supermodel Naomi Campbell, American television personality Tyra Banks, Molly Sims, and Petra Nemcova, noted that the glamorous facade of the fashion scene hides an intoxicating and potentially dangerous reality.
Shuter spent years working backstage at major fashion shows and accompanying elite models to parties and photography shoots. He described a culture where destructive acts were commonplace and young people were routinely exposed to inappropriate situations.
During a fashion party in New York in 2010, Shuter witnessed a world-renowned model snap her fingers to request drugs. A bowl of cocaine was subsequently brought out by a waiter as casually as if they were delivering sugar for coffee. The bowl was then passed around the room for the guests to share.
Women at the party dipped their fingernails into the powder to consume it, while others used straws. Shuter noted that the most disturbing aspect of the event was the presence of young people in the room, who were socializing with wealthy men, photographers, and powerful modeling agents. The pressure on young models to join in with these destructive behaviors was overwhelming.
Exploitation and predatory behavior
The environment backstage at major fashion events was similarly chaotic and inappropriate. Shuter recalled a specific incident in 2005 when he was backstage at the Lexington Avenue Armory in New York City with Campbell, who has been a dominant force on international catwalks since the late 1980s. The historic military building in Manhattan was frequently repurposed as a grand venue for high-profile runway shows.
The event marked the final runway appearance for Banks, known for creating the reality series America's Next Top Model, before she began a long retirement from the catwalk. As models stood around the backstage area barely dressed while changing into their garments, wealthy businessmen were allowed to wander in and out of the private space with astonishing ease.
Shuter reported frequently seeing Jeffrey Epstein backstage at Victoria's Secret fashion shows. The American lingerie retailer was once famous for its annual televised events featuring models wearing elaborate angel wings. Epstein, the disgraced wealthy financier who died in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while facing federal sex trafficking charges, already had a reputation for making people uncomfortable.
According to Shuter, nobody in the industry grasped the true depth of Epstein's depravity at the time, but it was clear that flesh was constantly on display. The publicist described models' bodies as the only currency that mattered in that world.
The modern modeling industry
This intense commodification of bodies extended to male models as well. Shuter recalled a magazine cover shoot at the Chelsea Piers complex, a major sports and entertainment facility situated along the Hudson River, which is often used for commercial photography and television production.
During the shoot, a gorgeous young male model was hired to dance around one of Shuter's premier female clients. When the publicist stepped outside the studio to take a phone call, the young man followed him outside.
The model, who appeared to be no older than 21, offered Shuter sexual favors in exchange for an introduction to American singer and actress Jennifer Lopez. The publicist was left devastated that a beautiful young man genuinely believed his body was simply an object to be traded away for career advancement.
While these specific incidents occurred years ago, industry insiders claim the core issues remain completely unchanged today. A source who recently managed one of the world's leading modeling agencies told Shuter that the industry has merely become better at concealing its toxic elements from the public.
"People like to pretend the business cleaned itself up. It hasn't but they've gotten better at hiding it," the source said. "The drugs, the predators, the pressure to be impossibly thin, all of it is still there. The difference is everyone knows what they're supposed to say publicly."
The chaotic nature of the business was famously summarized by Somali American supermodel Iman. While supporting a New York Fashion Week show launched by Campbell in 2005, a semi-annual series of events that dictates international style trends, Iman told Shuter exactly what she thought of the spectacle.
"They do it in a tent because it's a circus," she told him.
Shuter, whose best-selling novel is titled It Started With A Whisper, publishes his insider reporting and exclusives on his personal newsletter platform.
