As I left the Palais de Tokyo after sitting at the Maison Margiela runway show for Spring/Summer 2019, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with a sense of surreal gratitude. The crisp sun on my face, the beautiful fashion all around me and being in Paris for the first time… I couldn’t believe it. Part of me still thinks it was a dream.
“Wow, I’m really here…I’m actually here.”
Turning Failures Into Triumphs
Today, I’m a professional influencer producing video campaigns with Sulwhasoo, Maison Margiela, Gucci Beauty and other industry leaders. My YouTube channel has over 1.5 million subscribers and my Instagram has over 530,000 followers. While I focus primarily on beauty and fashion content, I also invite viewers to take a behind the scenes glimpse at my daily family life with my husband Leo and 18 month old daughter Dove.
Back in 2012, I started my social media journey as a creative outlet – as an escape from my then depressing reality. My poor grades got me suspended from university for the rest of the year and I had a void of time and self-respect to fill. Instead of wallowing in pity, I decided to go after my dreams – styling outfits and editing videos to share with a growing online community.
Sitting at home one afternoon, my boyfriend (now husband) was gathering old shirts to donate when the idea came to me. “I can make a video out of this!” I took his clothes, styled them the way I wanted and filmed myself in my backyard.
And from that moment I went from Karen Yeung to Karen O. From follower to creator.
The Reality Of A “Real” Job
Back then, being an “influencer” wasn’t an official job. It was just a handful of people sharing their lives online without any business model behind it. I was still expected to get a “real job” and content creation was more of a passion project done on weekends. After I got back to school and graduated, I worked in the sales team for Yelp, which is like the US version of OpenRice.
It was tough. I called hundreds of businesses throughout the week, sometimes getting yelled at over the phone. It was common for team members to cry from all the rejection and stress. I learned a lot about resiliency and being goal-oriented despite any emotional obstacles in my way. After 3 months at Yelp, I realised sales wasn’t in my long-term future. I decided to leave my job and bet everything on myself.
Karen filming at Michelle Phan's ipsy studio in Los Angeles
Step By Step To Success
After leaving Yelp, I set up goals for myself as a content creator: create at least three videos per week, earn at least US$1000 from a single video and to do this within three months. If I didn’t reach my goal, I’d go back to a “real” job.
I put my goals into action and started making videos. I researched what was popular and tried to break that mould. I changed my editing style to something YouTube viewers hadn’t seen before. Slowly but surely, I became known for my creative fashion lookbooks and make-up looks.
I started getting the sponsorships I aspired for and eventually was invited to Los Angeles to work with brands. Entering the third month of my self-imposed deadline, I received an offer from Michelle Phan’s company ipsy to sign with their studio in Los Angeles.
Looking Ahead To New Beginnings
Since joining ipsy, I’ve been a full time content creator. I’ve expanded to have my husband, a former web developer at LinkedIn, on-board my team full-time to help with content production.
It’s been years since I started and there are now hundreds of thousands of influencers all across the world. It’s safe to say that being a social media content creator is now considered a “real” job and I’m all for it. I’m so grateful to have lived this dream out until now, and I look forward to an even more exciting and creative future with my community of followers during my next chapter in Hong Kong.
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Karen Yeung
