Fashion Blogger Day Review
by Katharina Withelm posted on June 09, 2009Following my wonderful weekend in the lovely Vienna, and thanks to our internet troubles being fixed in the Lexposure office, it is with great pleasure that I recap my experience at the Fashion Blogger Day at Haus Wittgenstein on June 6th.
" If we all would blog for money, this room would be empty! " – a quote from Imran Amed , Business of Fashion.
Last Saturday, everybody who is anybody in the international fashion blogging world convened at the fashion blogger day to discuss the advantages and difficulties of fashion blogging. Needless to say, it was a highly interesting circle.
One of those in the circle was Susie Bubble, one of the most important international fashion bloggers. Susie started her blog Stylebubble in 2006 out of pure boredom and it is now one of the most important in its league with about 15,000 visits a day.
It’s really hard to believe that she’s doing this as a hobby and using her blog as platform for her ‘mind diarrhea’.
Panos Destanis from modabot, who does not see himself as a blogger as he uses his website in a much more objective way than just for private fashion blogs. He sees himself as purely posting only the necessary stuff if people like it or not. In a way, his work is more like that of a news agency specializing in fashion, which is visited by 1,500 users a day.
You could say, the star of this circle was Diane Pernet, even if I don‘t like to highlight just one of them. But with longtime experience in the fashion business through her work as a designer as well as editor for the websites of french Vogue and Elle, it’s not a surprise that her blog, A Shaded View On Fashion, which she started in 2006 has reached cult status. 6,000 users per day are in pursuit of her, travelling around the world, always on the scout for new talents.
I was most impressed by Imran Amed of Business Of Fashion, who was the most captivating during the discussion. In contrast to most of the blogs who have a more personal and subjective view, he tries to comment on the financial world of fashion and the business’s background. After starting in 2007, Imran places the value on facts and a high degree of transparency, wanting his website to be a trusted source on daily fashion information. Imran can’t be wrong as his 5000 strong daily newsletter subscriber database speaks volumes alongside his 2,000 visits per day.
Last but not least, amongst the circle was our friend Julia Knolle from Les Mads, one of the most important fashion blogs in Germany. Les Mads started in 2007 and on a daily basis helps to sustain us with the latest fashion news from a very personal point of view. As the numbers of visitors prove right grossing 200,000 clicks a month, the blog is sponsored by Burda, making the blog one of the more thriving of the circle, and interestingly enough, the only one with a sponsor behind.
This is where we come to one of the main themes of the discussion, funding of blogs.
Blogs are independent – so should there be money for blogging?
On one hand, companies like to support blogs and website with an enormous numbers of visitors to make their investment worth it, but on the other hand accepting money for advertising questions the independence of the bloggers themselves. A problem we already know from print media.
But, earning money through their blogs is not what a real blogger wants. For all of them (except the girls from LesMads), it‘s a hobby and they are working purely out of passion – not even thinking about money. Which would not mean the LesMads girls don‘t also do so…
The exclusive control of the main media is gone since fashion blogs have spread over the past few years. Being a blogger is a menace to fashion magazines and educated journalists, as well as a great convenience fot the fashion industries, as they can help to support young, upcoming designers and talents throughout the fashion industry through their own means which would have previously had no chance in the print media.
There are plenty of rising stars in fashion heaven who owes their success to the likes of Diane Pernet and her blogger fellows…
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