Thoughts on Fashion Bloggers

[foreverandnone]

I think some bloggers have really good style and aren't overly full of themselves. Some blogs are just ....trying WAY too hard and use the word "model" loosely

 

[cuppycakes]

I can't help but wonder when it will be over for them. I'm guilty of following a few and I check Bloglovin more than I'd like to admit but surely its just a fad. They really don't contribute.

 

[eizhowa]

I can't help but wonder when it will be over for them. I'm guilty of following a few and I check Bloglovin more than I'd like to admit but surely its just a fad. They really don't contribute.

It is a form of entertainment, mostly. Maybe everyone will have a blog in the future. Facebook looks more and more like a blog to me... People posting outfits, what they ate blah blah blah.

I don't feel guilty reading fashion blogs any more than I feel guilty watching The Simpsons...

 

[ElleHeartYou]

I think fashion bloggers do have a place in the fashion industry, just not so many of them! personally i have found all the top new zealand bloggers as an example only update their blog when they are doing paid articles, or posts about pr events they were invited to or fashion week. I think its sad when bloggers just use their site to get to go to events and only update when they have something to brag about. I love genuine and friendly blogs who do it because they love it. ones that are skilled writers, style themselves and also share a bit of themselves on their blog!

*edit - not for discussion about specific blogs*

 

[Trenchcoat]

I do think some bloggers have a big influence on fashion industry. But the truth is that they wear things sent by fashion designers. Bloggers are being used by those designers as a type of advertisement.

 

[manisima]

Something that I just can't tolerate is when they try "to be designers".

 

[styleanonymous]

i was so excited about fashion blogging a few years ago but now my interest fades just as quickly as i subscribe via bloglovin. i cant stand to see the same pieces worn, the same "oops i dropped my sunnies " pose and the same macaroons (which are disgusting) being eaten.

Call me an extreme Aries, but im B O R E D.

 

[IinaKarolyna]

i was so excited about fashion blogging a few years ago but now my interest fades just as quickly as i subscribe via bloglovin. i cant stand to see the same pieces worn, the same "oops i dropped my sunnies " pose and the same macaroons (which are disgusting) being eaten.

Call me an extreme Aries, but im B O R E D.

AMEN SISTER!!

 

[eizhowa]

^You are following the wrong blogs. I definitly think everyone can find some blogger(s), intersted in fashion, who is to their taste.

 

[rebel]

LOTS OF GREEN LETTUCE: Bloggers are a dime a dozen. Then there’s The Blonde Salad’s Chiara Ferragni — whose stack of dimes is huge. Forget the bloggers who made headlines for reportedly raking in $1 million annually: Ferragni is on track to generate revenues of 6 million euros, or almost $8 million.

It isn’t her blog that will do it, though. Only about 30 percent of her revenues will come from her blog, corresponding advertising or brand collaborations. Unbeknownst to most, the majority — or 70 percent — of Ferragni’s revenues this year will come from her footwear, Chiara Ferragni Collection, created in partnership with Lorenzo Barindelli and Paolo Barletta. She is perhaps the first blogger who has managed to parlay a personal style blog into a fully realized brand and global business. And once other bloggers see her sales, no doubt other they will flock to the strategy as fast as they do to junkets.

The Blonde Salad has been successful since its launch nearly half a decade ago, Ferragni told WWD while in town for New York Fashion Week and a fete celebrating the blog’s five-year anniversary tonight at The Standard’s Le Bain.

With a strong creative and business team supporting Ferragni, the 14-person The Blonde Salad Crew (or TBS Crew) — including Riccardo Pozzoli, cofounder and general manager; Alessio Sanzogni, communication and editorial manager, and Ferragni herself — decided to switch gears a year ago. They changed the editorial mission of the Web site by creating more independent content and decided to aggressively pursue the retail business.

Ferragni, who primarily splits her time between Milan and Los Angeles, had been designing footwear in a small way for years, but the team went full speed ahead with building out the Chiara Ferragni Collection three seasons ago, raising 1 million euros in funding from a private Italian investor in the process. The big rollout began with her fall 2013 collection, and the line of $220 to $500 shoes is now carried in almost 200 stores in 25 countries worldwide. The brand will launch in the U.S. with the spring 2015 season.

Ferragni also did a high-profile collaboration with Steve Madden that hit the market in February. A 10-style capsule collection sold 16,000 pairs in just the first two weeks.

“We didn’t have our shoes in the U.S. yet. It was great to market myself as creative director for shoes,” Ferragni said of the exposure she gained in the U.S. as a result of working with Madden. She also worked with Superga on two sneaker collections for summer and fall 2013, which sold out in a matter of weeks.

Pozzoli interjected to clarify that Chiara Ferragni Collection is totally separate from The Blonde Salad collaborations.

“It’s 100 percent made by our team. We are managing these projects in a different way from the capsule collections,” Pozzoli said.

He added: “For the first five years, we tried to keep the brand The Blonde Salad and Chiara as strict as possible and close to the core mission. Now we want to try to make it really a disruptive business, driven by commerce.”

Pozzoli compared the TBS Crew’s approach to that of Asos — except it’s the reverse. The e-tailer started with commerce and branched into content, but Pozzoli wants to do it the opposite way — on a more premium level.

The two stress the importance of the team, who in addition to producing the blog, managing, marketing and doing p.r. for Ferragni and Chiara Ferragni Collection also help manage her social media channels — which is no small task. Ferragni reached 2 million Instagram followers in February, and during New York Fashion Week, she is approaching 2.8 million. She gets 4,000 to 5,000 new followers a day — and, at that rate, should hit 3 million by the time Paris Fashion Week winds down in October.

Ferragni and business partner Pozzoli (who also happens to be her ex-boyfriend) remember the moment she reached 1 million followers on Instagram last June. It was in the midst of the couple’s breakup, where Ferragni posted an image with a caption letting her followers know the two had amicably decided to part ways. There’s nothing like a romance — or the end of one — to spur traffic.

“One of the craziest reactions [to date] was the breakup post,” Ferragni told WWD, seated at the lobby of The Standard hotel before jetting off to the Diane von Furstenberg show. “When I introduced my new boyfriend [on Instagram], everyone was like ‘What! Whoa!’ ” Andrew Arthur, an L.A.-based photographer, is Ferragni’s new beau.

Pozzoli agreed. When Ferragni posts about her personal life, engagement climbs, whether it’s photos with her mother or sisters or close-ups of her makeup. A selfie she posted in February during Milan Fashion Week in a Roberto Cavalli dress garnered 105,000 likes, and a portrait Pozzoli shot of her several years ago wearing natural makeup received more than 100,000 likes. A series of Mother’s Day images Ferragni shot with her mother in partnership with Louis Vuitton in May were also popular.

Her “The Blonde Salad by Chiara Ferragni” Facebook page has more than 835,000 fans, but it’s nowhere near as popular a social channel for her as Instagram. What is posted to Facebook more closely mirrors the content on Theblondesalad.com, with a few images of Ferragni’s everyday life posted throughout.

“If you really want to follow me and know what I’m doing, it’s Instagram. You know which city I’m in and what I’m doing. It’s almost in real time,” Ferragni said.

Advertising has never been the main driver of revenue for The Blonde Salad, Pozzoli said. The remaining 30 percent of revenues come from advertising and brand partnerships (20 percent) and collaborations (10 percent).

Views on The Blonde Salad digital flagship are not growing as fast as Instagram, status quo in the blogosphere today. The site does see a stable flow of traffic — whereas Instagram increases followers by the thousands daily — which has led the TBS Crew to rethink how they approach the blog.

“Since we have seen this phenomenon — Chiara’s daily life [on Instagram] and the Web site — we don’t even call it [a] blog anymore. It’s more about stories and inspiration,” Sanzogni said. The site, formerly a more real-time destination (similar to what Instagram has become), is now a place for posting higher-quality content that is more produced.

“If I want to shoot my daily look I just put it on Instagram — not on the Web site. [That’s] more for stories,” Ferragni said.

Even the approach Ferragni takes with content creation on her site has changed. She no longer does promoted editorial posts (sorry, brands). The lines between editorial and paid content were getting too blurry and the team made a decision to keep Ferragni’s independence. Pozzoli said they stopped selling editorial content last year.

Ferragni will not post content in exchange for money, but she will partner with a brand in a more ambassadorlike capacity. This means she might host an event on behalf of a brand and publish a certain amount of Instagram posts that have been agreed upon — but this is separate from the editorial content produced for Theblondesalad.com.

“We showcase whatever Chiara feels like [wearing] through collaborations with brands,” Sanzogni explained, noting that Ferragni has strong relationships with fashion houses like Chanel and Louis Vuitton. “We select what content we want to work on or if she is wearing it. It’s her choice to wear something or [participate] if she likes the project.”

For example, Ferragni was paid on behalf of Montblanc to host an event and post a certain number of Instagram posts. But the series of photos Louis Vuitton shot of Ferragni and her mother for Mother’s Day was unpaid. The latter was more about creating a story in a “beautiful way,” Ferragni said. Sorry, Mom.

wwd

 

[HeatherAnne]

That girl has zero style. ( But I mean, she's wearing a candy necklace there, so she's OBVIOUSLY da coolest! ) I imagine her followers must be a young demographic, ones in to flashing name brands, but not quite sure of what actually looking good means.

Interesting what they said about Instagram -- it makes sense that it has helped keep bloggers afloat, because I feel like most people don't read actual blogs anymore.

 

[LUXXX]

I've noticed that Rumi Neely doesn't seem to be as hot this time around -- unless she's busy on a side project, but she appears to be fading out a bit.

Bryan is still bigger than ever, but mostly seems to exist on Instagram and Twitter.

 

[oliver1990]

Appropriate that I just started a new fashion and music blog and stumbled upon this post.

First of all, I think there's a difference between a fashion and style blogger that most people don't get... I like to consider myself the former as I (will) try to write more about fashion and not put myself toward too much. I have a great passion for writing and I enjoy composing a piece of article together. However, I don't have the urge to pose in front of a camera and shove the images in everyone's face.

Music and fashion are two of my biggest interests. I love the creativity and playfulness in both but do I want to record my own albums and style myself as the coverboy of a magazine, no. I simply find joy in researching and writing about these fields... so I have a pet-hate for people who self-proclaim as fashion bloggers but then every other pic they post is of themselves, wearing the outfit not that dissimilar from those posted a year ago. I don't mean this as a bad thing but no one fashion blog post is ever the same as another. As the saying goes, "fashion passes, style remains" - I prefer to call these "style bloggers".

But that's just me. And my 2 pennies. I'm studying to become a journalist so that probably explains my pedanticism and cynicism.

 

[HeatherAnne]

I've noticed that Rumi Neely doesn't seem to be as hot this time around -- unless she's busy on a side project, but she appears to be fading out a bit.

Bryan is still bigger than ever, but mostly seems to exist on Instagram and Twitter.

Similarly I checked out Jane Aldridge's blog for the first time in ages recently and was shocked at how generic and boring her style has gotten. She also doesn't seem to post as much.

I think most people have grown tired of that era of bloggers.

I'm not sure we'll see a new crop of power fashion bloggers like them, people are over it. People are over street-style as well, look at how few comments we get it 'The Fashion Pack' these days. There used to be such a flurry of activity in those threads that we created a whole sub-forum for these people.

It will be interesting to see what comes next... because there's always something...

 

[LUXXX]

A lot of them are just using social media to exist -- having a website just seems like a mandatory action, but not necessary to build a following or get endorsements.

I mean, most of them just do paid advertisements through Instagram now, although it's never explicitly stated.

Kristina Bazan seems to be "the new" at the moment.

 

[eizhowa]

Appropriate that I just started a new fashion and music blog and stumbled upon this post.

First of all, I think there's a difference between a fashion and style blogger that most people don't get... I like to consider myself the former as I (will) try to write more about fashion and not put myself toward too much. I have a great passion for writing and I enjoy composing a piece of article together. However, I don't have the urge to pose in front of a camera and shove the images in everyone's face.

Music and fashion are two of my biggest interests. I love the creativity and playfulness in both but do I want to record my own albums and style myself as the coverboy of a magazine, no. I simply find joy in researching and writing about these fields... so I have a pet-hate for people who self-proclaim as fashion bloggers but then every other pic they post is of themselves, wearing the outfit not that dissimilar from those posted a year ago. I don't mean this as a bad thing but no one fashion blog post is ever the same as another. As the saying goes, "fashion passes, style remains" - I prefer to call these "style bloggers".

But that's just me. And my 2 pennies. I'm studying to become a journalist so that probably explains my pedanticism and cynicism.

Most bloggers like this does not have enough style to be called "style bloggers". Fashion-victims with blogs would be more accurate

 

[HeatherAnne]

^ Which is what I think killed the fashion blogger. All the trend indulging, brand slinging, idiots. Now saying "they look like a fashion blogger" is used as an insult.

Same with the street-style clowns.

Which I guess is unfortunate for the ones who are decent.

Take for instance Elin Kling. I actually think she's respectable and has a very refined sense of taste. But their still a certain groan-factor (though small - I like her - I read her blog every day) that I associate with her because she is a blogger.

 

[lucy92]

^ Which is what I think killed the fashion blogger. All the trend indulging, brand slinging, idiots. Now saying "they look like a fashion blogger" is used as an insult.

Same with the street-style clowns.

Which I guess is unfortunate for the ones who are decent.

Take for instance Elin Kling. I actually think she's respectable and has a very refined sense of taste. But their still a certain groan-factor (though small - I like her - I read her blog every day) that I associate with her because she is a blogger.

totally agree! there is a cringe factor involved in being a blogger.
it's narcissistic to want to build a brand of your own, based on thousands of pictures of yourself...

there are better ways to become famous without an endless cavalcade of advertisements and promotions - like actual talent in something...

 

[rebel]

How Chiara Ferragni makes millions

Sofitel/youtube

 

[loladonna]

I think the blogger formula has gotten so tired. It's: Pretty, ***Ediited ... no weight talk allowed**** (usually White) woman who wears lots of high designers and throws in some Topshop/ASOS to get bonus points for high-low mixing. I think Olivia Palermo and the Russian street-style women are the worst examples of this and probably turned the tide. They are basically designer fashion hounds for whom designer clothes are disposable, They wore every "it" label -- sometimes all at once-- and turned up at so many shows they were eventually declared "stars".

The initial appeal of blogs were that they were democratic. Someone in their small town away from the fashion capitols who had a sense of style could become an internet star. Somehow the industry managed to corrupt the blogsphere and make it just as elite and exclusive as the rest of the industry. Now you need to be mega-wealthy and well-connected, and clad in exactly the same designers as everyone else to get any time of attention.The people who are making the most money from their blogs are the people who didn't need the money to begin with.