Liah Yoo started filming YouTube videos in 2012 with no intention of becoming an entrepreneur. Instead, she aimed to share her love for the beauty industry and her acne journey with followers while balancing a job in the corporate world.
"I was interacting with millions of different people as a content creator," Yoo, who lived in South Korea at the time, said. "I had the ability to connect with my potential consumer on a daily basis."
Three years later, she took her content creation side hustle full-time, building intimate relationships with her followers in ways corporate companies or large businesses can't because of their size, she said. Those connections allowed her to discover a void in the beauty market and, in 2017, she launched the cruelty-free vegan brand KraveBeauty. Her business booked eight figures in sales in 2021, documents verified by Insider show, and Yoo continues her content creation to fuel her success, she said.
Yoo is one of many creators who have used their achievements to launch brands in recent years, turning loyal followers into loyal customers. Some created products while others launched funding initiatives.
Creating "pushed me naturally into the direction" of launching a brand, Yoo said. While it's a natural progression for some, not all creator brands are successful. For instance, Arielle Charnas' Something Navy, a clothing brand that evolved from her fashion blog, is struggling, and Tati Westbrook closed her beauty brand in 2021 after two years, Insider previously reported.
To understand how to successfully make the leap, Insider spoke with Yoo and six additional creators who've built brands beyond fan merchandise. Here's their advice on leveraging an online profile to find and launch new business opportunities.