Where is Whitney Thompson now?

The Florida native made history when she became the first-ever plus size winner of Tyra Banks’ classic reality competition, America’s Next Top Model, in 2008. Thompson (aka Forrester) won cycle 10 of the hit CW series and had one of the most memorable runs on the show.

Known for her “pageant-like” modeling style, Thompson beat Anya Kop in the finale. The prize package included a $100,000 contract with CoverGirl cosmetics, a feature story in Seventeen magazine, and a deal with Elite Model Management. On average, over four million viewers were reportedly tuning in every episode.

Thompson’s victory reached national news, as the then-20-year-old took the fashion industry by storm. However, it appears that Thompson’s lifestyle is now vastly different from her runway days.

Let’s get into what she’s been up to over the years.

Thompson’s Life After America’s Next Top Model

Following the success of “America’s Next Top Model,” Thompson was named one of MSNBC’s “Most Influential Women of the Year” in 2008. In 2009, she launched her candle and jewelry line, SUPERMODEL. Thompson also became a spokesperson for the National Eating Disorders Association in 2010. She is credited as the character Faith in a few episodes of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Motion Comic.”

Additionally, she garnered quite a buzz when posing nude for the National Organizations for Women’s 5th Annual Love Your Body Day promotional campaign that same year, alongside the event’s creator, Chenese Lewis.

According to research, Thompson spent a great deal of the late 2000s and early 2010s doing philanthropy work, building her brand outside of “America’s Next Top Model,” and motivational speaking at college campuses.

In a 2011 interview published by HuffPost, when discussing the state of her cutthroat profession and if it were “good for people” overall, the Forever 21 model said, “Modeling is a terrible job. It’s not so much for me anymore because I got stubborn with it and I’ve kind of made my own decisions.”

“I am a ‘bad’ model if you will. [laughs] I went back to being brunette and I live where I want to live,” she told HuffPost. “And I work with who I want to work with and that’s kind of what I do because I got tired of being told what to do which is not what models are supposed to do.”

Where Is Whitney Thompson Now?

In 2020, Thompson appeared on Bravo’s “Below Deck Sailing Yacht,” and longtime fans were overjoyed to see the beauty back on their TV screens. Aside from her on-camera resurgence, life for the fashionista has pivoted.

Thompson owns Pink Pelican Ice Cream in Panama City Beach, Florida, where they are praised for selling the “finest ice cream and fudge.” She’s also a mother and has been married since 2014 (Ian Forrester). The now-36-year-old’s dress-shopping experience was featured in Season 1 of TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress.”

Thompson is a vegan and world traveler.

Who was your favorite “America’s Next Top Model” winner? Let us know in the comments below!