- Business Insider is launching a list of the top YouTube and Instagram influencer-led direct-to-consumer brands.
- We want to hear from you on which brands founded by creators are the most valuable and impactful.
- Please submit your ideas through this form by December 1.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories and lists.
In 2014, influencer Jeffree Star founded his makeup line, Jeffree Star Cosmetics, with the goal of creating a lightweight liquid-to-matte lipstick.
Today, the company sells a range of products, from eyeshadow palettes, merchandise, to concealer, and recently made headlines after Star collaborated with YouTube creator Shane Dawson on a collection that crashed Shopify from “extremely high shopping volumes,” according to the e-commerce platform.
Developing a consumer product to sell directly to followers is one popular way influencers earn money online, and it’s only becoming more lucrative.
Influencer-led DTC brands started in earnest in 2012, with companies like the fitness program, “EmFitChallenge”; the phone case company, Wildflower Cases; and the cold-press juice line, Suja, according to a recent report on the state of “influencer-to-consumer” brands by the influencer software company Mavrck.
Now, Business Insider is putting together a power list of the leading DTC brands founded by creators. The list will be determined by Business Insider based on our reporting and the nominations that we receive, and take into consideration factors like sales, reach, and impact on the influencer business.
Please submit your ideas through this form by December 1.
Check out our previous power lists, highlighting the top 14 talent managers and top 18 talent agents in the YouTube influencer space, who are shaping the future of YouTube creators, for a sense of how this list will look.
For more on the business of influencers, according to YouTube and Instagram stars, check out these Business Insider Prime posts:
- A Harvard student with 265,000 YouTube subscribers breaks down how much money she earns as a college influencer: Sienna Santer is a second-year Harvard student and a YouTube influencer with 265,000 subscribers.
- A YouTube star and active-duty US Navy sailor shares how much money a video with 1 million views makes him: Austen Alexander is an active-duty sailor for the US Navy and a popular YouTube influencer with 135,000 subscribers.
- YouTube creator Natalie Barbu breaks down how much money she earns from a video with 100,000 views: Natalie Barbu, a social-media influencer and YouTube creator with 227,000 subscribers, shared how much money she earns from a video with 100,000 views.