Source: Global Times
[Global Times special correspondent Luc] "Who is the next $1 billion brand creator?" The Hollywood Reporter released the list of the top ten star entrepreneurs in 2021 for the first time on the 2nd, including Hollywood popular movie stars Ryan Reynolds, Jennifer Lopez, Drew Barrymore, Sophia Vergara and Kristen Bell and other celebrities across the film and television and music scenes.
Celebrity "Influencer"
"Influenced by the salary system of the capital investment and streaming media era, Hollywood celebrities are now competing to build their own consumer goods brands in unprecedented ways," industry brand experts told The Hollywood Reporter, "coupled with the fact that people are forced to spend at home because of the epidemic, this makes everyone more aware that this trend is accelerating." ”
The achievements of celebrity "internet celebrity" are obvious: Rihanna has become a billionaire because of the hot sale of her own cosmetics line; Jessica Alba's company is currently worth $1 billion after its listing; not to mention the world's cash-sucking Kardashian and Jenner families, Kendal Jenner's tequila brand was snapped up as soon as it was listed this year, and its market appeal is evident. Social media platform executive Kosha Eisenberg analyzed that "celebrities see their peers can earn 9 figures so easily, and of course they will follow suit."
Rihanna Image source: Visual China
The Hollywood Reporter aggregated this year's popular "startup" stars and their new brands based on metrics such as product sales, social media activity and growth potential. These include Drew Barrymore's household products, Christine Bell's baby products, Jennifer Garner's children's produce, Kate Hudson's clothing and alcohol brand, Boulder's Dawn Johnson's functional drinks, Jennifer Lopez's skincare products, Sophia Vergara's furniture and eyewear design, Mark Wahlberg's burger chain and protein powder, and several alcohol brands of "Deadpool" Ryan Reynolds.
Marketing-savvy Reynolds, who has 57 million followers on social media, doesn't mind advertising products on his personal page, while Reynolds, who doesn't have money, has recently suspended his film career because the company is too busy to do anything.
The eye-catching effect of the social media era
Nowadays, many Hollywood celebrities are still "entrepreneurs" behind their backs, and after creating their own brands, they invite experienced CEOs to take care of them, and the Oscar-winning film queen and "Little Pepper" Gwyneth Paltrow's daily necessities brand is more like a Silicon Valley IT company. There are also celebrities who transfer their successful new brands, and after the sale of the tequila shares co-founded by George Clooney, he directly arbitraged $1 billion, making him on the 2017 Forbes Celebrity Rich List.
For a long time, investment companies and brand incubators have wanted to pair up with celebrities, bind them by sharing ownership and shares, and gain higher attention, which is the eye-catching effect of the social media era, "celebrities publish information, businesses get customers". In recent years, learned celebrities are more willing to join startups and write their own checks, which on the one hand appears to be more sincere, on the other hand, it is also shaping the authenticity of the brand. Carol Gore, head of entertainment at one brand, said: "The key to the success of celebrity brands in 2021 is to combine celebrities with products that match his personality and lifestyle, and build an emotional connection with consumers." ”
Beauty brands are close to saturation
In the view of some experts, after the rapid development of the "net red economy" in these years, celebrity beauty brands are close to saturation, but there is still room for development in health products, children's products and food and catering, and more celebrities will participate in it in the next few years.
Celebrities such as Scarlett Johansson and Jennifer Aniston will open up new product lines, and their success will be based more on younger consumers, after all, Millennials and Gen Z in the United States have low loyalty to traditional brands, they are looking for new brands that suit them, they are willing to learn about the brand story, try new products, and celebrities can play a key role in promoting new brands.
However, not all star entrepreneurial brands will be able to develop smoothly, industry analysts believe that the first year is not enough to show its real success, because the follow-up also needs to increase investment, build brand culture, establish contact with customers, each business requires huge marketing expenses, only the consumer retail end really resonates, into long-term sales performance is considered successful. In the process, new brands are also likely to be questioned – Patello's "pseudo-scientific concept" daily necessities have been denounced, and celebrities themselves have suffered negative news, or product quality has suffered major defects, the reputation of these new brands has collapsed much faster, and it is much faster than traditional goods.