Personal Branding
YouTube Stars Are Influencing Today’s Fashion Tastes

Gen Z is the generation that follows millennials. The oldest members are now going into college, and because of that age demographic, they have tons of buying power which is why marketers are trying to figure how to sell to them, or why people on social media are now branching off and creating brands to market directly to their fanbase.
The power of YouTube cannot be underestimated in today’s modern world. YouTube has transformed from a young teen platform to a mainstream website followed by the masses. Traditional media today are obsessed with YouTube affecting the understanding of the present generation of the medium and the top fashion networks thrive on YouTube and are the most successful in brand promotion.
When it comes to brands, Chanel (the luxury fashion and accessories brand) has the top channel in the fashion industry with over 350,000 subscribers on YouTube. The company has also racked up more than 140 million views on its channel, which outpaces the second-most-watched fashion industry label-run brand channel, Louis Vuitton, by 46 million views.
And while big brands like Chanel and LV use YouTube to market and promote their products, YouTube personalities with their own channels have found a way over the years to use their fame online to start their own fashion labels or partner with others for incredibly high endorsement fees.
Connor Franta whose fashion line Common Culture teamed up with Urban Outfitters last year, The Sidemen who run Sidemen Clothing, Bethany Mota, FaZe Banks, Carli Bybel, Nelk Boys, Samantha Maria and dozens of others have all found success and profits by starting their own labels based off what their fanbase demands and watches on a day to day basis via YouTube.
Soloflow, an 18-year-old YouTube star who showcases extreme acrobatics on his channel, recently launched his Soloflow Brand. Speaking to us exclusively on the topic of why the branch-off into fashion, he revealed, “I decided I wanted to go into the fashion industry when I realized other people liked my style. Fans were really starting to recognize my style as unique and this naturally leads to the start of Soloflow Brand. At Soloflow Brand we let creativity drive our style, which lets us have a pretty unique vibe… At Soloflow Brand we don’t care about the trends. Each season we go through our own extensive creative design process and the designs that make it through to the end are what we sell. This is part of what keeps us unique and part of the fashion-sphere that is setting the trends.”
And setting trends is exactly what has brought everyone to YouTube again to keep seeking out what the next hot trends are going to be so that their labels can pivot or try and produce items that match the ever-changing generation’s tastes.
We can all rest assured that YouTube will remain a dominant force in the future fashion industry and that as more and more people develop their own channels and fanbases, more labels will be birthed, giving everyone an opportunity to choose a designer that fits them best; The bigger brands better watch out!
