Yeray Allgayer

Yeray Allgayer is a Spanish model whose career grew out of a chance encounter in his hometown of Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife. Born in Andalucía, with Brazilian and German heritage, he grew up in the Canary Islands, where surfing became a passion long before modeling became a profession.

His route into fashion began after a period working as a waiter in Germany. Back in Puerto de la Cruz, a stranger approached him in a nightclub to ask whether he modeled, then followed up on Instagram with an offer of agency representation. In a 2023 interview with Periodismo ULL, Yeray recalled signing with Pop House and trying Milan, where bookings were slow to arrive.

Paris gave him the opportunity to develop his career. “Paris was the place where everything started to fit,” he said, translated from Spanish, recalling the work he and his agents put into his portfolio. Tenerife continued to play a practical part in that progress. Quivers, his surf shop in Puerto de la Cruz, helped fund the travel and expenses that came with establishing himself internationally.

A 2021 editorial for GQ Portugal took Yeray to Fuerteventura, while Massimo Dutti’s “Autumn Pages” in 2022 became one of several collaborations with the Spanish label. Both Massimo Dutti and COS would book him repeatedly as his international career developed, bringing continuing relationships to a working life that also included runway appearances for Balmain and Dolce & Gabbana and fragrance advertising for Rabanne.

For Yeray, the work is a collaboration that changes the person doing it. Speaking to Numéro Netherlands, he described continually recreating himself through the ideas of the people he works with. A year spent with Maison Margiela gave him time to observe the details of a team’s creative world. Asked where he felt most able to contribute, he answered, “With small teams, passionate about what they’re doing. You get infected by their love.”