He 's famous for being really , really ridiculously good looking but Britain 's answer to Zoolander , insists he 's nothing like the airheaded movie character . In fact , there 's far more to top male model David Gandy , 35 , than posing in pants - he 's going into business as a shoe brand owner . And competition with fellow Essex boy , David Beckham , drives him every step of the way , he revealed in a new interview with Red Magazine . Britain 's top male model David Gandy does n't want to be seen as a 'brainless idiot ' any more . David recently bought luxury footwear brand David Preston in a bid to be taken seriously . He said : 'Models are as popular as bankers ! You 're seen as a brainless idiot – paid a fortune to do very little . I do n't want to just be known as the man in the pants . ' Yet he jokes that whatever he chooses to do , Becks follows soon after . 'Well , I did the white pants in 2006 , and then he did Armani . I became an ambassador for whisky , and now he has his whisky brand , ' he said . ' I do n't think we 're in competition , though , and hopefully people should be proud there are two Essex guys taking on the world , promoting Britishness . ' As an ambitious entrepreneur , Gandy is determined to revitalise homegrown businesses and concerns . David Gandy delivers his best blue steel in a new shoot - and shows off the shoes made by his new luxury footwear brand David Preston . David Gandy jokes that he 's in competition with another David - fellow Essex boy Becks . The April issue of Red is out today . He said : 'We 're terrible at investing in our own companies . It upsets me that half the companies on Savile Row are n't British-owned . 'When I see a small British company I believe in , I 'm in the privileged position to give it a chance . London is an extraordinary place to be , and we should be proud of our great brands . ' I 'm proud to have stuck here . I belong to England . ' And while pop idols such as Harry Styles and Justin Bieber may have most girls ' attention , David , who 's reunited with Saturdays singer Mollie King , is proud to be seen as a grown man . 'We 've become so obsessed by boys . There 's almost a backlash against true men . Where are the Paul Newmans or Steve McQueens of the world ? ' The muscled adonis recently showcased his enviable physique in his range of underwear for M & S , but he offers words of comfort to the average man . 'Of course [ I have fat days ! ] I work hard at it . At the gym there are people with all the gear and no idea , and then people in scruffy tracksuit bottoms working hard . That 's me at the end of the day . ' The full interview appears in the April issue of Red , on sale today . Also available in digital edition on Apple Newsstand , visit https : //itunes.apple.com/gb/app/red-magazine-uk/id469365517 ? mt=8 ; . For further content , please go to redonline.co.uk/david-gandy .
Top model David Gandy , April , wants to show he 's not ' a brainless idiot ' Jokes he 's always a step ahead of fellow Essex boy David Beckham . Tells 35 issue of Red magazine models 'are as popular as bankers '