You probably remember the face. Even if the name doesn't hit you immediately, that Dutch-born, high-cheekboned gaze from the 1990s Victoria’s Secret catalogs is hard to forget. But here’s the thing: Frederique van der Wal didn't just retire to a villa with her royalties like some of her contemporaries. She basically rebuilt her entire identity.
She's the model who became a "flower mogul." Honestly, it sounds like a plot for a Hallmark movie, but it's her actual life. While most people assume she just drifted away from the spotlight, van der Wal has been busy running a lifestyle empire and proving that there is a very profitable life after the runway.
The Victoria's Secret Era and the Power of Choice
It wasn't just luck. Born in The Hague in 1967, Frederique moved to New York at 18. She didn't just "try" modeling; she dominated it. We're talking covers of Vogue, Cosmopolitan, and Harper’s Bazaar. She was one of the original elite faces for Victoria’s Secret back when the brand was transitioning into a global juggernaut.
She was smart. Early on, she realized that being a "face" was a depreciating asset. Instead of just taking the check, she started looking at the business of herself. She launched lines of lingerie, fragrances, and even workout videos.
Then came the movies. You might have spotted her in Wild Wild West (1999) as Amazonia, or in Woody Allen’s Celebrity. She even had a role in the cult favorite The Million Dollar Hotel. She wasn't just a guest star; she was building a resume that allowed her to pivot when the modeling industry moved on to the next "it" girl.
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That Time She Was "The Mole"
People often forget her stint on reality TV. Long before everyone had a podcast, van der Wal appeared as "The Mole" in the Hawaii celebrity edition of ABC’s The Mole in 2003. It showed a different side of her—calculating, observant, and definitely not just a pretty face in front of a lens.
The Flower That Changed Everything
Most celebrities get a perfume named after them. In 2005, the Netherlands gave Frederique something much cooler: her own lily. The Frederique’s Choice Lily wasn't just a vanity project; it was the catalyst for her next act.
She didn't just say "thanks" and put the flowers in a vase. She pitched a show to Discovery called The Invisible Journey, which followed the path of a flower from African fields to Dutch auctions to New York vases. This eventually birthed Frederique’s Choice, her lifestyle brand.
Why flowers, though?
- Heritage: She’s Dutch. It’s in the DNA.
- Market Gap: In the mid-2000s, there wasn't really a "luxury-meets-accessible" floral brand with a personality behind it.
- Sustainability: She’s been vocal about the logistics of the floral industry, focusing on how plants actually get to your door.
She even hosted Home Grown Makeover on the FYI network, where she’d go into people’s homes and use plants to fix their depressing interiors. It’s sort of a "nature-as-medicine" approach that feels very ahead of its time, considering how obsessed everyone is with "biophilic design" now in 2026.
What is Frederique van der Wal doing now?
If you check in on her today, she’s less about the catwalk and more about the "Life Cycles." That’s the name of her interview docu-series on the CORE TV Network. She literally bikes around New York City, interviewing friends and fellow New Yorkers about their lives. It’s gritty, it’s local, and it’s very un-supermodel-like.
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She lives in New York with her partner, screenwriter Nicholas Klein. Their daughter, Scyler, is grown now. It’s a remarkably stable life for someone who spent the 90s in the eye of the fashion storm.
What Most People Get Wrong
People think she just "stopped" being famous. She didn't. She just changed what she was famous for. She’s a guest lecturer at Harvard. She won the Marie Claire Entrepreneur of the Year award. She’s navigating the complexities of being a European in America—a theme she often talks about, noting that Americans "live to work" while Europeans "work to live."
Actionable Insights from the Frederique Playbook
If you’re looking to reinvent your own career or brand, there are a few things you can actually learn from how she handled her transition:
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- Diversify Before You Have To: She didn't wait for modeling to dry up before she started licensing her name and learning about production.
- Lean Into Your Roots: Her biggest success post-modeling came from embracing her Dutch heritage (flowers) rather than trying to be a generic "lifestyle guru."
- Ownership Over Appearance: Moving from being the "talent" to being the Executive Producer of her own shows (like Cover Shot or Home Grown Makeover) gave her longevity.
- Stay Grounded: She’s been vocal about buying her first apartment early and managing her own finances. Financial literacy is the ultimate career insurance.
Frederique van der Wal represents a very specific type of success: the kind that doesn't need to shout to stay relevant. She’s still the girl from the lily fields, just with a much bigger desk and a better-designed home.
Next Steps for Deepening Your Knowledge:
- Watch 'Life Cycles': Look for her latest docu-series on CORE TV to see her more candid, "unplugged" interviewing style.
- Research Biophilic Design: If her "bringing the outdoors in" philosophy resonates, look into how indoor plants impact productivity—a core pillar of her Home Grown Makeover series.
- Audit Your Brand Heritage: If you are an entrepreneur, identify the "cultural DNA" of your background (like Frederique did with Dutch floral culture) to find a unique market niche.