In what could be a shocking change in strategy, popular women’s magazine Brigitte is reviewing its 3-year-old policy which saw them ban the use of professional models in favour of real women.

The Models Direct team remember when then German magazine made international headlines way back in October 2009 –  Brigitte promised to only print pictures of real models in response to complaints by readers who said they couldn’t identify with super skinny professional models they were booking and “no longer wanted to see protruding bones”.

“From 2010 we will not work with professional models any more,” said Andreas Lebert, editor-in-chief at the time. “For years we’ve had to use Photoshop to fatten the girls up. Especially their thighs, and decolletage. But this is disturbing and perverse and what has it got to do with our real reader?”

“Today’s models weigh around 23% less than normal women,” Lebert said when the magazine first announced the move. “The whole model industry is anorexic.”

However, it’s now three years on and Brigitte’s publishing house has confirmed that it is indeed reconsidering the ban as part of a massive overhaul planned by new editor-in-chief Stephan Schaefer.

Confirming a report in German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung, a spokeswoman for Gruner + Jahr publishing house said: “Everything is under review, including the ‘no models’ policy.”

January 2010 saw Brigitte’s very first ‘no models’ issue hit newsstands, but unfortunately the switch didn’t go down as well as expected, both among industry professionals and with its readers.

Unsurprisingly, the controversial decision saw designer Karl Lagerfeld – the man who called Adele too fat – label the policy “absurd”, but, surprising to us, the new magazines haven’t actually been boosting readers’ self esteem as intended. But, that could have something to do with the fact that Brigette’s so called ‘real models’ were as conventionally skinny and flawless as professional models.

As a model agency that encourages the use of real and relatable models, we’re not ecstatic about this possible reversion.

Perhaps instead the new editor-in-chief should look at their readers’ perception of ‘real models’ and not just book women who are equally skinny and impossibly perfect as professional models, but who don’t happen to be signed to a model agency!