SA-born model (9) struts her stuff on the New York Fashion Week catwalk | You

Stepping out onto the runway of New York Fashion Week is the beginning of great things for Aria De Chicchis. (PHOTO: Supplied)

Fashionista Aria De Chicchis’ career as a model is taking off in a big way! The nine-year-old recently walked the runway at New York Fashion Week (NYFW) for Pastel kids clothing.

Her agency invited her to audition for the fashion show, and when she was selected, “she jumped up and down with joy,” her mom Pam Mbatani says.

Aria didn’t have any formal training for her runway walk but her desire to do so had always been a dream, cultivated by years of attending NYFW with her mom since she was two years old.