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While merchandising, part-time blogging and full-time influencing, Blair Eadie has seen the fashion industry from every angle.
Back in 2010, Eadie was working in the merchandising department at Gap Inc. in San Francisco when she noticed the industry was no longer looking to runways for inspiration — instead, it was turning to the streets. That was when she decided to start her daily fashion blog, Atlantic Pacific.
“I recognized this really cool shift in the industry,” she said. “There was this conversation happening about style and fashion online, and you didn’t necessarily have to be a part of a huge brand or editorial conglomerate, and I really wanted to become a part of the conversation.”
Shortly after starting her blog, she was approached for her first affiliate link partnership. She soon realized what she had created could become a viable business, and she never looked back. Now with 1.1 million followers on Instagram and a soon-to-be-released line with Nordstrom’s private label Halogen, Eadie is determined to show that the influencers are here to stay.
For this week’s episode of the Glossy Podcast, Blair Eadie sat down with Hilary Milnes to discuss her early blogging days, her approach to brand partnerships and her recent collaboration with Nordstrom. Below are excerpts from the talk, edited for clarity.
Diversifying content
“Diversification is key in the industry right now. On platforms, it’s making sure that I continue to have my traditional blog, which I evolve in the ways I need to, my Instagram and my email subscription list. When it comes to partnerships, it’s making sure that I’m equally diversifying across rev-share, true paid partnerships and affiliates. When it comes to how you capture an audience, it’s about making sure you’re creating unique content on each platform. If you’re just duplicating it, it really doesn’t make sense.”
Defining expectations for clients
“When a partner approaches me, my first question — which sometimes catches people off guard — is always, ‘What does success look like to you? If we partner on this project, what is ultimately the best outcome for you?’ What does scare me sometimes is when brands come to me, very large brands, and they say, ‘Well, we don’t really know.’ I really want to create a partnership that can be long-term and lasting, and I really want them to feel like it was a productive partnership for both of us. If a brand can’t define what success looks like, that’s probably a red flag that they may come back to you really unhappy with something that was delivered. You’re put into a really compromising place.”
Changing consumer behaviors will keep influencers around
“This whole industry isn’t driven by influencers; it’s driven by a consumer and a reader. The consumers and readers vote with their clicks, their views and their wallet, and they have clearly voted that they are influenced by Instagrammers and people they follow. The industry and brands [should] recognize that the consumer behavior has changed, which is a conversation that doesn’t happen often; a lot of people focus on the salacious articles about a 20-year-old making X millions of dollars, but the point that people are missing is how the consumer has changed.”
