The New Creator Economy & Why You Should Care

In the 7 years since we launched Whalar there has been an unbelievable level of transformation in 'Influencer Marketing'.

Back then only 15% of the creators we worked with were full time, for the other 85% content creation was a side hustle and all of them were typically on one platform.

The stats couldn't be more different now:

• 95%+ of the creators we work with at Whalar are full time.
• Almost half of them also have management.
• Almost all of them are multi-platform, multi-format publishers.
• And even more staggering, a rapidly growing % of them are setting up companies and employing people.

It's a mind blowing rate of growth for just 7 years.

HOWEVER, what is probably not as clear (and I say since the scale and speed of what's already happening wasn't even fully clear to me) is that there is an even more significant transformation taking place and it will likely be one of the most prominent characteristics of the next phase of our industry.

CREATORS ARE THE NEXT BIG WAVE OF ENTREPRENEURS, OF SMALL BUSINESSES THAT ARE THE LIFEBLOOD OF ECONOMIES AND EVEN OF HUGE CATEGORY DISRUPTING COMPANIES.

In a way it's totally obvious!

It's emblematic of why the industry is now called the 'Creator Economy'.

You've very likely come across the incredible examples set by the likes of Mr Beast with Feastables & Beast Burger or Logan Paul and KSI with Prime Energy Drink or Emma Chamberlain with Chamberlain Coffee, who've all built incredible businesses through their communities.

BUT, what has blown me away is the scale of what's happening the next proverbial next step down the ladder.

Bubbling away below the surface is an ocean full of creators who have been inspired and empowered to start building their own businesses, matched with a growing ecosystem of professionals, companies and financing that's helping enable creators more than ever before.

It's a theme that was well captured at a talk during SXSW by my good friends Harley Finkelstein and Colin Rosenblum & Samir Chaudry which you can watch here.

My bet, if I come to write a follow up post in another 7 years time I'll be saying that the majority of creators we now work with have companies that are employing lots of people and are seen as an essential part of driving the economy.

And if reading this as a non-creator what should your take away be? Aside from just an understanding of this exciting transformation, know that it's also representative of countless job opportunities to bring your experience to the table to support creators AND it's a whole new ecosystem of opportunities and challenges for businesses to be created to support creators AND it's also going to provide exciting new opportunities for existing brands to collaborate with creators in new and really significant ways.

To give a taste for what we are seeing at Whalar, below I'm sharing just 10 examples to demonstrate variety from the over 100 brilliant suggestions that came to me when I asked our team. This is by no means an exhaustive list, nor is it meant to reflect an opinion on a top 10, there were so so so many that were all worthy of being included.

When you check these 10 out be sure to take in the level of creativity, the level of quality and the level of professionalism that has gone into building these creator first businesses made possible because of their unique communities.

10 Example Creator Led Businesses

(1) GOOD GOOD GOLF

From the age of nine Garrett Clark had his own YouTube channel and dreams of becoming a successful YouTuber. As an accomplished junior golfer he started filming and uploading trickshots to Instagram in 2016. In 2019, following his freshman year, he started uploading longer form golf videos to YouTube and had 150k subscribers and sponsorship deals coming in. Fast forward to the summer of 2020 and Garrett had dropped out of college and founded Good Good Golf along with five, soon to be six, close friends.

Almost three years later and Good Good is a behemoth;

> The YouTube Channel has over 1m subscribers, over 238m views on over 300 videos which are on average 40 minutes long but can go for more than 2 hours!

> The Good Good Golf clothing and apparel brand is HUGE.

> They have just done a huge partnership deal with Callaway spanning not just a content partnership but also co-branded & limited edition equipment.

> And they have started being recognised and embraced by the traditional golf bodies, such as the DP World Tour and are considered to be a positive force that's helping redefine golf entertainment.

(2) CASSEY HO

Cassey Ho’s passion for fitness and nutrition began as a teenager when she discovered pilates. In 2009, at this point a certified fitness instructor, Cassey launched her YouTube channel and website Blogilates to share her workouts with a larger audience. What started as a YouTube channel eventually transformed into an entire brand with a Blogilates fitness app and products like water bottles, dumbbells, and protein powder all being sold at Target.

Following Blogilates’ success, Cassey launched another brand in 2016 called POPFLEX, which offers women’s fitness apparel; she designs 95% of the products. Over the nearly 15 years since starting Blogilates, Cassey has leveraged her social media success to amass a global following and continues to remain highly relevant in the health and wellness industry in which she aspires to become the 'number 1 in fit'.

(3) ALI ABDAAL

Ali Abdaal is a YouTuber and entrepreneur known for his content around productivity, education, tech, and personal development. In 2017, after graduating from medical school, he began working as a doctor and simultaneously started his YouTube channel. Ali’s early videos focused on his experiences in the medical field, but his channel really took off once he began sharing productivity and study tips and tricks. This led Ali to quit his job as a doctor, instead focusing full time on content creation.

Today Ali's YouTube channel has 4m subscribers, but more than that he's completely diversified his business across all different channels as well as formats. From his podcast, to his newsletter to courses he sells via Skillshare (one of which has been taken by 98,320 paying students) and he's now writing a book. His website is the heart of the operation and Ali is very transparent in taking his audience on the journey with him. Here you can watch a video where he explains why and what the 12 full time staff he has do and here is a video where he explains the 10+ different revenue streams that saw his business generate c. $5m last year alone.

(4) CORRIDOR DIGITAL

Founded in 2010 by Sam Gorski and Niko Pueringer, Corridor Digital is a production studio and YouTube channel known for high quality short films, VFX, and video game-related content. Initially begun as a hobby, the duo’s technical expertise and unique style often inspired by video gaming quickly gained them a dedicated YouTube following with Corridor hosting all of their completed video content, while CorridorCrew offers a BTS look into the making of their content. The two channels have amassed a combined 16.5 million+ subscribers and 3.3 billion+ views.

Through their Corridor Digital Platform they have a paid membership to join and operates by the “Greenlight” system. This means every subscriber receives points based on their subscription type which can be used towards voting for an idea or project that they’d like to see “greenlit” into a longer form piece of content, such as a show or series, of which 9 have been done so far.

(5) DAVID SUH

During lockdown in 2020, David Suh went viral for his captivating portraits and empowering content, educating his followers on how to confidently pose for a photo. He hasn’t slowed down since.

Now, with a TikTok audience of over 4.4 million, David is a full-time content creator, portrait photographer, and he’s been able to monetize his educational content, launching an extremely successful paid online course in 2022 called “How to be Photogenic in 30 Days.”

Even more recently, he had the exciting opportunity to photograph Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, for his new profile picture. In just a few years, David’s genuine kindness and passion for photography has transformed into a lucrative business, inspiring millions and becoming one of the most sought-after photographers in the industry.

(6) MARK ROBER

Mark Rober’s love for science and technology has been a constant in his life. After college, he worked for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and it was also around this time that he began to create original video content. Mark posted his first YouTube video in 2011 which received 1.5m views in ONE day and his following ballooned from that point on. But, Mark’s impact extends far beyond YouTube.

Mark has started multiple ventures and is even teaming up with Jimmy Kimmel to develop and star in an engineering-themed television show for the Discovery Channel. Most recently, Mark founded CrunchLabs, a self-described “Willy Wonka-style factory of creativity” where he and his team create YouTube videos and children’s engineering toys known as Build Boxes. The CrunchLabs team sold out five months-worth of Build Box inventory in less than a week!

And as if that all wasn't enough, Mark partnered with Mr Beast to launch the charity TeamSeas through which over $30m has been raised and over 33m pounds of trash has been removed from the oceans.

(7) JAMIE GENEVIEVE

In 2013, Jamie Genevieve was working at a department store makeup counter when she began posting makeup tutorial videos to her social channels. Jamie’s popularity skyrocketed after a Halloween makeup tutorial she posted went viral, and customers began to visit her counter IRL asking for makeovers that mirrored the look and style they saw on her Instagram, an early indicator of her influence.?

In 2020, amidst a global pandemic, she launched her own makeup brand – VIEVE – which offers a wide range of products that are cruelty-free, 100% vegan, and made for a variety of skin tones. The brand’s success was evident with the release of Jamie’s eyeshadow palette selling out in just one day. In 2022, VIEVE announced a $6.2 million Series A, followed by Jamie’s sale of a minority stake in the brand for $6.7 million later that year.

(8) MOLLY BAZ

Molly Baz has come a long way since her early days as a line cook in New York City. Today, she is a successful chef, New York Times Bestselling author, and popular Instagram personality. Prior to publishing her first cookbook in 2021, Molly leveraged her recognizability as a senior food editor at Bon Appétit to launch a $5/month subscription called “Recipe Club.” Fast forward to 2023 and in addition to her Recipe Club, she now has a white-labeled affiliate shop for cookware, her own merch store, and she co-created a wine company.?

In addition to her current projects, Molly’s second cookbook More Is More will be released this fall and she has plans to expand her wine company. Her vibrant personality, out-of-the-box branding, and creative, but simple approach to cooking has allowed her to continuously surprise and delight her fanbase.

(9) MARQUES BROWNLEE

29 year old Marques Brownlee has been a prominent figure in the tech industry since his teenage years. His insightful reviews and tutorials of video games, smartphones, and other gadgets, has helped him amass over 28 million followers and billions of views across his platforms. In addition to his gigantic social media presence, Marques has interviewed the likes of Barack Obama, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg, he hosts his own tech podcast, and he has courses available on Skillshare and Masterclass.

More recently, Marques expanded his business ventures by launching a paid premium Discord subscription for his superfans and he was a featured guest on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show where he teamed up with comedian Hasan Minhaj for a custom technology segment.??

(10) ROSANNA PANSINO

Creator Rosanna Pansino always considered baking to be a hobby. In 2010, upon encouragement from friends, she began a YouTube channel to showcase her baking skills and followed up a year later with her own internet baking show, Nerdy Nummies. This would be the rocket ship that launched her into full-fledged social media superstardom, earning her multiple awards and making her one of the highest paid content creators on YouTube. 10+ years later, it’s also still the #1 baking show on the internet.?

Rosanna has since written two cookbooks – one a New York Times bestseller, partnered with cookware company Wilton on a Nerdy Nummies-themed bakeware line, hosted reality television cooking shows on HBO Max and Food Network, and only three months into this year has partnerships live with Nintendo, Amazon Fresh, Blue Buffalo, Neutrogena, and The Container Store.