How Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid Turned a Homeless Man Into a Male Model

It pays to get noticed by fashion "It Girls" Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid.

This is exactly what happened to 20-year-old John Economou -- a homeless skateboarder who sleeps in Venice Beach, California -- when Kendall and Gigi hooked him up with the right people to get his modeling career going.

WATCH: Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid Heat Up the Runway in Victoria's Secret Fashion Show Debuts

John tells the Daily Mail Online he randomly ran into Kendall and Gigi -- who were with The Fault in Our Stars actor Ansel Elgort at the time -- in early summer. After he helped shoo away seagulls swarming around the girls when they brought out food for a picnic on the beach, he says Kendall noticed his good looks.

"One of the girls said to me, 'You’re cute,' so I turned around and we struck up conversation," John recalls. "I didn’t realize who I was speaking to at first."

"I told them my story, I told them how I was a model back home and how I came here to follow my dream and try get an agency, how I’m living the hippie life, living out on the beach crashing on the sand right now," he continues. "They said they could help me out and get me an agency and they got me with Two Management -- the agency I signed with."

The rest is history.

Despite getting his big break, John is still sleeping on the beach. (Although he says he's still homeless, a look at John's Instagram reveals he's a member of Gold's Gym and his posts features a number of fancy rides).

"I don't sleep in a tent or have a sleeping bag, I just sleep under the stars," he says. "I have a sheet. It's comfortable, it’s fine. I like it."

"I know I'm pretty sociable, too, so I can meet people easily and be able to stay with them, crash on their couch and what not," he adds.

John's penchant for sleepovers with random women he meets at the beach has even earned him a nickname -- the "Romeo of Venice."

"I do like sleeping on the beach but I obviously like going home with chicks too," he admits. "I have no girlfriend -- I’m too young and there’s too many hot girls around here."

John says he's had no further contact with Gigi and Kendall -- describing 19-year-old Kendall as "super down to earth and chill" -- but of course, is forever grateful for their help.

"It’s a crazy story," he says. "I’m super grateful. I was just in the right place at the right time."

WATCH: Gigi Hadid Admits It's 'Weird' Walking in Lingerie at Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in Front of Her Sister's Boyfriend

Kendall and Gigi's modeling careers are only getting hotter. On Thursday, Tommy Hilfiger announced 20-year-old Gigi as the new ambassador for his iconic brand, and that she'll be launching her very first capsule collection in collaboration with him.

"I've known Gigi and her family for years, and it has been amazing to watch her grow into one of the world's top models and most-followed fashion influencers," Hilfiger said in a statement. "She is truly the definition of today's 'Tommy Girl' -- her magnetic personality is bright and always optimistic, and her style is confident, effortless and cool."

Check out Gigi posing backstage at the Tommy Hilfiger Spring 2016 show during New York Fashion Week in September.

ET recently caught up with Gigi's mother, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Yolanda Foster, who dished on her daughter's headline-making new romance with Zayn Malik.

Watch below!

EXCLUSIVE: Yolanda Foster Weighs in on Gigi Hadid Dating Zayn Malik

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