UC student among 68 sets of twins to walk in the Gucci fashion show

Cybersecurity major Jack Bartel and his brother plucked from obscurity for Fashion Week

After graduation from Twinsburg High School in 2022, twins Jack and Nate Bartel decided to go their separate ways for college: Jack to the University of Cincinnati and Nate to the University of Akron. 

Little did they know that — amidst their first semesters — they would be spending a week together in Milan, Italy, walking the runway for Gucci, one of the most famous fashion houses in the world. 

Bartel twins on the runway in red sequin suits with face chains

Jack and Nate Bartel on the runway for the Gucci fashion show in Milan, Italy. Photo/Vogue

As reported in multiple media outlets, and detailed in The Akron Beacon Journal, the brothers were visiting Twinsburg for the annual Twins Days Festival in August when a talent scout approached them with an offer: How would you like to participate in a project in Europe? 

It was all very shrouded in mystery, the brothers said, but they were later contacted by representatives for the Gucci fashion brand and flown to Milan for tryouts, where they made the cut out of hundreds of twins auditioning, only three sets of which were Americans.

When the big day came, the Bartels donned red sequin suits, face chains and white shoes and joined 68 sets of twins to walk in the show.

“There's no chance I'm dressing like Nate on a normal day," unless it’s a Gucci show, Jack told the Beacon Journal.

It was an experience of a lifetime, both said, but now it’s back to cracking the books.

Read the Akron Beacon Journal article.  

Featured image at top courtesy of Vogue.

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