Little Fresh Meat: Luxury brands fall for 6 male Instagram stars who make Chinese swoon

This article was written by Tamsin Smith and originally published in Jing Daily

The exploding market for “Little Fresh Meat” (an internet term for attractive, young male pop stars) in China has given rise to a gaggle of charming, male pseudo-celebrities, many of whom make a tidy living through their social media presence.

With the continued surge of male beauty product sales in Asia, luxury brands are lining up to collaborate with these icons. The problem? These brands are finding it harder than ever to differentiate between sham Chinese “influencers” and those who are legitimately worth their weight in likes.

This challenge has turned into an opportunity for digital marketing agencies which now use self-styled KOL (key opinion leader) calculators to predict celebrity influence across social media platforms.

Amid the confusion, the biggest global labels – including Burberry, Dior, Giorgio Armani and Yves Saint Laurent – always seem to select certain names as their brand ambassadors. For these brands, choosing the right icon is essential in China’s celebrity-driven luxury market, and smaller luxury labels are smart to follow their lead.

Despite Instagram being blocked on the Chinese mainland, these globally dominant celebrities enjoy a huge following in the west on the popular social network. Jing Daily lists the six top Chinese male influencers:

1. Lu Han – 10.9 million Instagram followers

Chinese singer and actor Lu Han’s Instagram represents everything a brand could want in an ambassador to today’s Chinese youth: pleasing aesthetics, selfie-centric posts, and witty captions and trendy emojis galore.