Nicola Breytenbach-Steiner

In the fourteen years since she first started Modeling, South African-born beauty Nicola Breytenbach has graced the pages of Cosmopolitan, Elle magazine, Vogue and American Marie Claire, to name a few. She’s walked the runways of Milan, Paris, London and New York for designers Chanel, Galliano and Dior. She’s done campaigns for Revlon, L’Oreal and worked alongside international supermodels Kate Moss, Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer.

And it all started when Nicola’s mother’s hairdresser spotted her and managed to convince her to see a modelling agent in Amsterdam. Born and raised in Durban, South Africa, Nicola’s parents got divorced when she was 5 years old and she later moved to Europe with her mother and stepfather shortly after her 3rd birthday.  “My mother remarried 8 years thereafter and we moved to The Netherlands because my stepfather was working for the United Nations. After meeting with a modeling agent I decided to take a year off before embarking on my law studies. I wasn’t sure what to do so I decided to give it a shot for a year
and it just snowballed from there.”

And the rest, as they say is history. Before she knew it Nicola was heading for supermodel stardom. Nicola got her big break when she was appointed as Dior’s in-house model and it wasn’t long before she turned into one of the hottest ramp models in Europe. But the excitement didn’t stop there. A few years later she was approached by Trump Models in New York and moved her life to The Big Apple.

Within months she joined Trump Models, owned by Donald Trump, and landed a contract with cosmetics giant, Revlon, as the face for their Absolutely Fabulous campaign. Donald Trump also handpicked Nicola to appear in the second and third season of the popular reality TV series, The Apprentice.

She says the most challenging part about modeling at that time was maintaining a balance between her career and personal life.

“It’s very important to stay close to those people that are important to you. They remain supportive while you have to be focused and professional, but when it’s time to relax, I give them 100%.”

Downtime for Nicola means being able to relax with her husband, Ben Steiner, family and friends and just taking it easy. She loves painting and cooking and enjoys the odd New York shopping spree.

Partying and socializing are the last things on Nicola’s mind at the moment. She is intricately involved in the development of her first perfume called “Nicola” which is due in stores in 2009 and is increasingly spending more time and energy working for her favorite charity The Diamond Empowerment Fund (D.E.F.).

Nicola on being part of DEF – Full Statement

As a high profile South African living abroad I been looking for a worthy charity to support with a South African connection that had the same visions and ideals as my own for many years. I have been approached by numerous Organizations for support along the years but it was not until Russell Simmons and The Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF) came to my attention that I felt that I had finally found an organization that I could put my heart, celebrity and enthusiasm behind for a cause I truly believed in and have been searching for so long.

I recently visited CIDA Campus and Maharishi Institute in Johannesburg, South Africa and was blown away by what I saw. What has been accomplished by CIDA with the support of DEF is unbelievable. A free university at which students can obtain recognized degrees, together with accommodation and a totally unique approach to education. It’s truly inspiring to see what the vision of a few can accomplish. I has humbled by the enthusiasm of the students and the mutual respect they have for each other and visitors. I was even more impressed by the dedication they showed to their own institution. I learnt that many of the students actively participate in the expansion and upkeep of the facilities, painting walls, laying gardens, whatever needs to be done so that it truly feels like the institute belongs to them.

It was so refreshing and inspiring to meet such unique and outstanding individuals who understand and appreciate the value of education that I can honestly count myself as a very humbled individual.

“As a high profile South African living abroad I been looking for a worthy charity to support with a South African connection that had the same visions and ideals as my own for many years. I have been approached by numerous Organizations for support along the years but it was not until Russell Simmons and The Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF) came to my attention that I felt that I had finally found an organization that I could put my heart, celebrity and enthusiasm behind for a cause I truly believed in and have been searching for so long. It is a true honor for me to support the DEF and be a part of such an amazing organization.” Nicola Breytenbach


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