6 top Chinese female Instagram influencers you should follow
Angelababy, Fan Bingbing and other Chinese influencers have huge followings in their own country – as well as being in the international spotlight
This article was written by Tamsin Smith and originally published in China Film Insider via Jing Daily
For big fashion houses like Gucci, Prada and Yves Saint Laurent, male heartthrobs are not the only crucial part of a successful marketing campaign. Female Chinese influencers are also essential to the celebrity-driven luxury goods market, and they are often used to advertise beauty products, handbags, and many high-end fashion products.
But choosing the right celebrity can be a difficult task. And with top Chinese brand ambassadors now making upwards of US$146,800 (1 million yuan) for a single promotional post, fashion houses need to avoid mistakes.
Some international brands have taken criticism in the past for choosing the “wrong” representatives for their Chinese campaigns. Nars Cosmetics recently came under fire from Chinese netizens for inviting the infamous weed-smoking celeb Jaycee Chan (Jackie Chan’s son) to a product launch, and last October, Dior took heat for choosing the young 28-year-old starlet Angelababy as an ambassador for their time-honoured brand.
Despite controversies like these, many influencers have had undeniable growth effects for brands in China. Younger Chinese consumers are increasingly drawn to internationally minded celebrities known for attracting their fans with exotic pictures of faraway lands – and the luxury brands that exist in them. Therefore, Chinese celebrities who have a presence on Instagram present a bigger, more global opportunity for international luxury brands.
So here, from Jing Daily, are six of the top Chinese female influencers that you need to start following now.
1. Angelababy
If you are looking for China’s answer to the Kardashians, look no further than Angelababy and her family, which includes her superstar husband Huang Xiaoming and their baby son (who was born last year and now has the nickname “little sponge”). In 2015, the couple tied the knot with a tab of US$20 million, making Kim and Kanye’s reported US$2.8 million wedding look like small change.