Which Female Beauty Influencers Are Taking Over the World?

Some of these beauty influencers seem to be onto a good thing. They offer their opinion, and dollars fly into their bank account. How much some of them earn is eyewatering, making all of us wonder if it is as easy as it looks – and if so, why aren't we doing it too? The truth is, like any way of making money, there is more skill and knowledge involved than first appears evident. Those female beauty influencers, who are set to take over the world, have a lot of entrepreneurial talent and endeavour that has led to such success.

Here we explore who these top influencers are and why beauty brands are seeking their representation to spread the word about their products.

Huda Kattan

Huda Kattan is worth a reported $550 million net worth, which is just an astonishing figure. She may have entered the influencing early in the evolution of their importance, but as the role of social media has grown, so has Huda's earning power. In 2018, Huda was named by Time magazine as one of the top 25 most influential people on the internet, with more than 47 million followers. 

It is easy to see why beauty brands would be happy to pay top dollar for the endorsement and ambassadorship of Huda Kattan when so many individuals in their target market are listening to her words. As it is not an official, paid-for commercial, a more authentic promotion will appear to her followers. Word-of-mouth marketing has always been powerful; Huda Kattan has just proven that it has exploded.

Michelle Phan

With a net worth of $50 million, Michelle Phan lives in something of the shadow of Huda Kattan – it is still a very comfortable shadow, though. Her 2 million followers make her channel prime real estate for beauty brands, and in 2010 she was appointed ambassador for Em Cosmetics. It was a noteworthy moment in beauty industry history, as she became the first Vietnamese American representative for the products. Starting in 2007 as a vlogger, she was around when no one knew what the word vlog meant, putting her in the driving seat to become an important voice in beauty.

Zoe Sugg

Zoe Sugg started her Instagram and YouTube channel and grew them to become the force they are today. Not only does this give Zoe Sugg immense power to influence one of the largest subscriber and follower bases on the internet – she currently has 9.2 million followers on Instagram - but it earns her a pretty penny too. She is reportedly worth about $8 million, which came from her beauty and lifestyle influencing.

Zoe has also written a best-selling book and started her brand, Zoella, with record-breaking sales in the first week. 

None of this success would be easily come by and is more than just a woman with a webcam. Zoe Sugg brought a lot of entrepreneurial savvy to her business, which is why she is such a success.

Shayla Mitchell

As a brand ambassador for ColorPop cosmetics, Shayla Mitchell is an important beauty influencer. She has around 3 million Instagram followers, all keeping track of her opinion on beauty. She specialises in a range of looks from casual to high-end glamour. People are attracted to @makeupshayla because of her how-to videos, where she also endorses the products that she applies. You can see why a brand would want her to be demonstrating their makeup and why she has a net worth of more than $1.5 million.

Em Ford

Em Ford is a beauty influencer who is genuinely trying to change the world in a small way through her beauty posts. She specialises in social media content that redefines beauty and challenges negative attitudes to acne scars and birthmarks. With 150k followers, she might not be in the world shifting league of the other influencers listed, but she has been appointed as brand ambassador for Olay in the UK and continues her work to help young people accept people for how they look. 

Jaclyn Hill

Jaclyn Hill is considered at the top of the beauty influencer rankings with 6 million followers on Instagram and an equal number of subscribers on YouTube. It is quite an audience and one that nets her millions from adverts alone. While her net worth might be impressive, more influential is her story. She started at the bottom of the ladder as a makeup artist for MAC cosmetics when she started videoing tutorials. Now she is an ambassador for brands, a leading voice in promoting the cosmetics she once applied.