She left school at 16 and spent years on friend's couches before her aunt and uncle offered her a job as a bobcat driver and a place to stay in a caravan.
But now things couldn't be more different for Australia's Next Top Model star, Brittany Beattie, who was handpicked by Jean Paul Gaultier to walk in one of his Paris fashion shows after he met the model on the reality show.
'I thought there was no way this is going to happen, it's just for TV,' the 20-year-old told OK! Magazine about the designer's incredible offer.
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From bobcat driver to fashionista! Australia's Next Top Model star Brittany Beattie reveals she walked the Jean Paul Gaultier runway in Paris in January after the designer promised her a spot on the reality show
Feeling at home: The model said she didn't feel intimidated by the experienced models like Naomi Campbell
The designer flew Brittany from Australia to Paris in January for the show, where she walked the runway with none other than supermodel Naomi Campbell.
But the tomboy from Melbourne said she held her own.
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Share 14 shares'Seeing all these beautiful models around me, I thought they would intimidate me, but I felt like it was right,' she said, adding that supermodel Naomi, 44, 'came up to me for a chat after the show and told me I was beautiful!' Brittany said.
Moving up: The model has come a long way since her first experience walking down the runway on Top Model
Rising star: The model, a self-described tomboy, said she expected the offer from Jean Paul to be withdrawn
Her time on the show has clearly increased her confidence, with the model suffering from anxiety and panic attacks earlier in the season.
During the first episode of ANTM she broke down during a runway show in front of fashion industry heavyweights and the judges, which required the attention of a paramedic on set.
'It just came on all of a sudden,' Brittany said on the show. 'I couldn't breathe.'
'My eyes started going all blurry. My head starts thumping. I wanted to get out there and do it but I couldn't. I just couldn't get up.'
True to his word: Jean Paul Gaultier, seen with Alicia Keys at the Met Gala earlier this month, flew Brittany to Paris for the show
Supermodel judgement: Brittany said that supermodel Naomi Campbell 'came up to me for a chat after the show and told me I was beautiful!'
But after reassurance from model mentor, Cheyenne Tozzi, the ambitious contestant decided to put her fears aside and take to the catwalk.
'I'm proud of myself for getting back up there because I usually wouldn't have done that,' she said afterwards.
'This means the world to me, that I can prove to my family I can do something and I can be somebody and not just a nobody sitting around at home.'
Australia's Next Top Model airs Thursdays at 7.30pm est on Fox 8
Confident: Her time on the show has clearly increased her confidence, with the model suffering from anxiety and panic attacks earlier in the season
Means the world: Brittany told cameras: 'This means the world to me, that I can prove to my family I can do something and I can be somebody and not just a nobody sitting around at home'
Out now: The latest issue of OK! Magazine is on stands now
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