While working at the mall to save up for graduate school, Xenia Adonts saw her fashion photos going viral on Instagram. Eventually, brands noticed and started offering her up to $400 to post photos on social media that trumpeted their clothes. Realizing she could earn more in a day as an influencer than in a week as a store greeter, she eventually quit her retail job.
Today, with 2.1 million Instagram followers, the 31-year-old continues to hawk products on social media for luxury brands like Fendi and Elemis. She also started her own sustainable fashion company, Attire, which has 14 employees. “Influencers work much more than people on the outside think,” says Adonts in her New York studio, a day after meeting remotely with the brand’s team in Paris and various business consultants.
