In short
- The catalogue has one agency in Killarney: Upfront Model Management, managed by Orla Diffily.
- Established in 2007, it has women's, men's and commercial boards and represents models in Cork, Kerry and Dublin.
- The country's largest market is Dublin, with 12 catalogue agencies.
Upfront Model Management
Killarney is a town in County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. Of the 19 Irish agencies in our catalogue, one is here. Ireland has neither a licence written for model agencies nor an association of them, so the catalogue lists every business that represents models. We do not vouch for them, and each profile shows what we found, good and bad: fees charged to applicants, courses, the company's status in the register and press reports.
Upfront Model Management says on its website that it was established in 2007 and represents fashion and commercial models in Cork, Kerry and Dublin, many of whom have acting experience. The agency is owned and managed by Orla Diffily. Its history page dates the model agency to 2008, a year later, and says that the PR company Upfront PR has worked since July 1995. In February 2025 the local outlet Tralee Today reported that the agency had appointed a talent development manager and a casting director as the Upfront group marked 30 years.
We found no street address on the agency's website, so the town comes from the Golden Pages business directory. There the agency shares a phone number with Upfront Public Relations Limited, a company registered in Killarney; the website does not say whether it also runs the model agency. The page on becoming a model mentions no fee: the agency asks for photos and measurements by email and holds open casting days by appointment. In the catalogue it is listed on the pages women, men and commercial.
Other markets
- Dublin has 12 of the 19 catalogue agencies and hosts part of Ireland Fashion Week.
- Cork has one catalogue agency, Lockdown Models; Upfront's models work in Cork as well.
- Limerick has Holman Lee Agency, with women's, men's and talent boards.
How to get started
- Take simple digitals in daylight and write down accurate measurements.
- Check on the agency's profile what we found about it, and before you sign, ask which company is the party to the contract.
- Before you sign, ask for the contract in writing and look in it for the commission, the length of the exclusivity and the payment term. No law or association sets the commission in Ireland.
- Be wary of people who write in an agency's name from personal accounts and of pressure to pay at once: these are signs of a modeling scam.
- The licence, commission, tax, the PPS number and the rules for minors are covered in the guide Modeling agencies in Ireland.