The Man Behind The Model

David Gandy has been the world’s number one male model for the past decade. Here he reveals how you can dress to impress, how he maintains his cover model body, and why he’ll never take a selfie.

- Joe Warner

David Gandy is one of a select group of British men - alongside Daniel Craig and Idris Elba (essentially anyone who has, or should have, a licence to kill) – who both you and your significant other would quite like you to be for a day. And probably for that night too.

The Essex-born 36-year-old first caught the nation’s eye back in 2006 when he became the face – and, more significantly, the body – of Dolce & Gabbana’s Light Blue fragrance.

With a single shot – lying back in a rowing boat in nothing more than a pair of white trunks – Gandy was catapulted into the spotlight, transforming his career and sending shockwaves throughout the fashion world as the biggest houses followed D&G’s lead and ditched the skinny, androgynous look for a more muscular, masculine aesthetic.

His career had started five years previously when he won an ITVmodel search (his flat mate had entered him without his knowledge) and since then Gandy hasn’t looked back. And, as he tells Men’s Fitness in our exclusive cover feature, he’s really only just getting started…

You’ve been at the top of your industry for more than a decade. What still motivates you?

I think a passion for what I do, and the competitiveness that I have with myself. No-one can criticise me as much as I criticise myself and I am constantly trying to achieve more and push myself forwards. I have a five-year plan of where I want to be and I know what I need to do to get there. It’s like a game of chess, you build up to it, moving the right pieces at the right time to get to the end point.

You’ve moved away from modelling of late – why?