JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville woman who won Torrid’s nationwide 2024 Model Casting Call, beating out more than 11,000 applicants across the United States and Canada, joined The Morning Show on Wednesday to discuss her journey throughout the process and explained why this opportunity meant so much to her.
Essence Sugar, a 29-year-old mechanical engineer and dancer from Jacksonville, was selected as the grand prize winner in plus-size clothing brand Torrid’s nationwide 2024 Model Casting Call earlier this month.
As the winner, Essence will be featured in a Torrid 2025 campaign photoshoot, and receive a $2,000 cash prize and a full year’s wardrobe from Torrid (valued at $15,000). She also has the opportunity to sign with a global talent management agency.
Related: Jacksonville woman wins Torrid’s nationwide 2024 Model Casting Call | Jacksonville woman chosen as one of the ‘Top 10′ in Torrid’s largest-ever casting call campaign
“When I got the news that I had won, I was in complete shock, honestly, because I was not expecting to win,” Sugar told News4JAX. “And I was telling friends and family, like, if I make it to Top 10, I will feel like a winner. Because that’s when we got to go out to L.A. and have the model experience and go through the model boot camp with Torrid, and that was a phenomenal experience in and of itself.”
Sugar spoke about her advocacy and her passion for unrepresented communities.
“I like to occupy spaces where I don’t see many people like me because that element of diversity is so critically important,” Sugar said. “And just like moving things forward and kind of, you know, developing in that sense. So, me being an engineer, you know, maybe not working with a lot of people that a lot of women, not a lot of people of color and dance.”
Sugar went on to speak about being a plus-size dancer and not seeing consistent representation in the dance world. She mentioned that’s why winning Torrid’s 2024 Model Casting Call was particularly meaningful to her.
“It’s so amazing to me to have this, this platform, honestly now where I can be like women that look like me, like there’s space for us and we want to continue creating those spaces.
Sugar is a University of Miami graduate, engineer, and now, model. She said she hopes to inspire people to pursue their dreams.
“There’s no timeline, there’s no ‘I’m too old for this’ or whatever,” Essense said. “Because, you know, in modeling, some people would consider me older, being at 29 to just be entering this industry. But, there are spaces.”
To hear the full interview, click the play button on the video above.