Earlier this month, Torrid announced the winner of their national model search and their new face of 2017.  Chosen by thousands of online voters, the winner Maria Gimena is not only fierce with a stunning face, but also down to earth and inspiring to watch.  Here's 5 things you need to know about the curvy cutie before she undoubtedly blows up on the scene.

1. She's a Jersey Girl by way of South America: She was born in Uruguay and immigrated to the US at age 10.

2. She's already besties with some of our favorite curvy ambassadors:

Thank you to @preciousleexoxo and @taralynn for being so sweet and supportive on set with @torridfashion making this #newbie feel so comfortable 💪🏻💕 #TorridxMaria #torridmodel #mariagimena #behindthescenes

A photo posted by M A R I A G I M E N A (@mariiagiimena) on Jan 23, 2017 at 11:42am PST

3. She's a huge body positive activist: Her Instagram @mariiagiimena features effortless selfies with quote worthy captions like "Beauty isn't about having a pretty face, it's about having a pretty mind, a pretty heart, and a pretty soul."  She pegs plus size fave Ashley Graham as a major source of inspiration and feels that combating the misconceptions of beauty is one of her main goals.

4. She was (still is?) a health care office administrator when her co-worker encouraged her to enter the contest: #dreamsdocometrue #yourenotabadpersonforhavingadayjob

5. She will be our go-to for all things Torrid for the entire year: In case you're wondering what being the Face of Torrid actually entails, expect to see her spearheading their seasonal campaigns, making waves on their official social media channels, hosting events and of course promoting the search for next year's ambassador when the time comes.

We can't wait to see what the year has in store for Maria.  Congratulations to her!




(Sources: People.com, NJ.com)