The retail marketplace has been completely changed by influencers, social media users with large followings who fans look to for lifestyle advice and product recommendations. The rise of influencers has led to many brand partnerships, with influencers developing relationships with brands whose products they promote. Bigwig is seeking to offer a new option for influencers to highlight their favorite products.
Tina Maskan, co-founder and CEO of Bigwig, wanted to connect with people on a larger scale after receiving her psychology degree. She had limited experience with technology, but was determined to make her dreams a reality. Cole Lopez, co-founder and COO, traded his aspirations to become a model to focus on his entrepreneurial and design skills. Together, they created a platform to connect influencers with their followers and the products they love.
Traditionally, influencers partner with brands whose products they promote on their social media pages. Followers can then follow a link to access the brand’s products. This often leads to complicated steps and Internet re-directions to make a purchase. Bigwig simplifies this process by allowing influencers to directly link to the lifestyle products they love on a marketplace that is created for this sole purpose.
Bigwig features multiple categories to organize products, such as “Vanity” for makeup and “Good Vibes” for candles and fragrances. Shoppers can easily find the kind of products they are looking for while also knowing they are recommended by their favorite and most trusted influencers. This makes life simpler for influencers by eliminating the obligations of brand partnerships as well as for their fans, who can now visit one website for all of their lifestyle product needs.
Influencers have earned their name for a reason. These popular figures on social media have an effect on their thousands of followers. Fans see their favorite influencers as living ideal lives they would like to emulate. Products play a huge role in this, which is why influencers have become central to success in the retail industry. If a popular influencer recommends a product, fans will purchase it. Bigwig is the first platform created to let influencers share their favorite products to be directly purchased by fans with no middleman.
While the majority of the Bigwig experience is available online, Maskan and Lopez also hope to make it an in-person experience where available through the use of pop-up shops. Their first pop-up shop opened on October 20th at LA’s famous shopping location, The Americana at Brand. These shops allow influencers and fans to meet and shop face-to-face. The first pop-up shop featured influencers like Landon Romano. This is an entirely unique experience that promotes products and gives fans the chance to meet influencers they admire.
In the ever-changing world of the Internet and social media, Bigwig gives shoppers an exciting new opportunity to purchase products vetted by their favorite influencers without the sometimes pesky direct involvement of brands. With retail continuing to be inspired by influencers more and more, Bigwig is getting ahead of the curve and embracing new shopping trends that are here to stay.
