The Love Island Effect – Fast Fame & Fast Fashion

It’s been one month since we last ran to the couch at 9pm to hear, for the last time this summer, “Previously… on Love Island”. 

For eight weeks of summer, Love Island almost has a chokehold over the nation. Those out for a Sunday drink calling it a night at 8.30pm, those holidaying abroad praying that their wifi is strong enough for Virgin Media player.

An average of 204,000 viewers tuned in across Ireland each night to see how the contestants were getting on, and who they were getting with. For those eight weeks, the reality TV show basically took over our social lives and had us hooked to our screens.

Each season, while romances, friendships and tensions build inside the villa, we watch the contestants’ social media followings build on the outside, particularly on Instagram. The rise to fame is fast, as fast fashion brands scramble to secure their newest brand ambassadors, fighting for the ‘best’ with their top competitors. 

Take Molly-Mae Hague – the most successful contestant ever on the show. Molly-Mae was slowly breaking her way into the world of influencer marketing before ever appearing on or being associated with Love Island, regularly posting on Instagram and sharing to her YouTube channel. She entered the Spanish villa with approximately 170,000 followers. Coming not in first, but in second place on series 5 of the show, there were countless fast fashion brands lining up left, right and centre to sign her up.

She was the first UK influencer that Starbucks had ever paid to post content for them. She exited the villa, to sign a deal with fast-fashion retailer, PrettyLittleThing (PLT), as a brand ambassador. Fast forward three years, she is now their Creative Director – she now has a whopping 6.4 Million Instagram followers, making her the most successful Love Island contestant to date. 

Fast forward to this year. Gemma Owen, daughter of famous English football player, Michael Owen – remember that goal in the 1998 World Cup? Well, Gemma has now almost surpassed her fathers fame, at least with this generation. Gemma entered the villa with 79.5k followers and has now hit the 2 Million mark. Following in the footsteps of Molly-Mae, she has just last week signed an ambassador deal with PrettyLittleThing. 

Ekin-Su, the queen of this summer’s Love Island who did a 180 on the show and won the nations hearts, has quickly jumped to a whopping 3 Million followers, proving she is most deserving of that title. She has signed (supposedly) the biggest deal in Love Island history, with fast-fashion brand, Oh Polly, worth £1 Million. 

It has to be questioned whether Love Island has become the gate-way to fashion deals, as opposed to a path to ‘finding love’? 

Molly-Mae has previously admitted on her YouTube channel that she went on Love Island as a career move and did not think she’d find love, only to meet Tommy (queue the “awwww”). But was this a one-off?

Can Ekin-Su and Gemma maintain their Love Island romances? Deep down, do they really care once they have their brand deals? It is early days for them but time will tell – if love fails, they have fame and fast-fashion…

And as for brands, they all love a good influencer!

Mary

Mary O’Mahony is an Account Manager with Fuzion Communications, a full service PR, Marketing and Graphic Design agency operating from offices in Dublin and Cork.

21 Questions with…Mary O’Mahony

Welcome to the fifth of our Fuzion Friday series, where we put 21 devilishly difficult questions to a team member, giving you an insight that Freud would be proud of.

Next up is the shopping-loving, ketchup-hating Mary!

1. Tell us something about you that nobody else in the team might know. 

I have a phobia of ketchup.. won’t even touch the bottle.

2. What film have you watched more than five times? 

Loads! I am a serial re-watcher.

3. What work are you most proud of in the past year? 

Jumping back into agency life and dipping my toe in the corporate side of things for a change. 

4. Dream job? 

Professional shopper.. for myself 🙂

5. Favourite brand? – Why? 

Not sure if I’d say favourite brand, but I definitely buy the most from Zara! Although the sizing frustrates the life out of me I always go back. I also find its marketing strategy (particularly the lack of advertising) very interesting..

6. Favourite Holiday Destination? 

New York in winter.

7. Best lesson from your career? 

“It’s PR, not ER”

8. Eurovision or World Cup? 

World Cup 

9. Who is the joker on the team? 

Ciarán.. at least he tries to be.

10. Recommend a podcast. 

My Therapist Ghosted Me.

11. Reality shows – Love or Hate? 

Love some, hate others.

12. Dinner party with 3 people – dead or alive – who do you invite? 

Freddie Mercury, Princess Diana & Tommy Tiernan.

13. If you could be anywhere in the world – where would you be & what would you do? 

Perched by a pool in Greece with a cocktail in hand 

14. Who is your role model? 

No particular role model per se, but I take inspiration from a lot of different people

15. What was your first job?

Behind the bar in TP Cotter’s in Macroom.

16. Death Row meal? 

This is tough.. Either a KC’s or Lennox’s

17. Favourite book? 

Atomic Habits by James Clear.

18. Your a grammar nazi oar not? 

A little bit, but more recently I have become the victim of it!

19. First album you bought or downloaded? 

Almost sure it was ‘There’s a Whole Lot of Loving Going On’ by Six.. My sister bought it for me – Ironically, I think I was 6 when it was released!

20. Work from home – or office? 

80/20 work from home.. No commute is, dare I say, life changing!

21. Most memorable ad slogans – why? 

Nike ‘Just Do It’. It’s short, straight to the point and communicates the brand’s key message.

Mary O’Mahony is a Senior Account Executive at Fuzion Communications, full service marketing and PR agency, with offices in Cork and Dublin.