She’s one of most successful beauty vloggers in the world, and now Michelle Phan is stepping up her dominance of the online beauty space with the launch of a new lifestyle network.
The Icon network was created by Phan and Endemol Beyond and launched on March 31 in the US and UK. Later this year, it will expand its offering to Western Europe and Asia. Produced by Phan and other online influencers, its content will focus on beauty, fashion, wellness, DIY, food, travel and human interest stories.
This isn’t the first network Phan has launched. In 2012, the vlogger created the female-focused lifestyle network FAWN on YouTube. By partnering with Endemol Beyond for the Icon network, Phan has further reach and access to resources.
As well as YouTube, Icon videos can be viewed on Dailymotion, Roku, Pluto TV, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. Icon also has linear TV programming, producing shows like Big Brother and Deal or No Deal, which could result in Phan’s network landing on TV.
"I'm platform agnostic. I've been platform agnostic ever since I went online. I'm not saying I'm jumping ship (from YouTube). Platforms - they come and go, but storytelling is forever," says Phan.
"I'm not thinking of leaving YouTube anytime soon. A lot of my followers are still there. That doesn't mean I should limit myself to where I can expand and reach other demographics like on Facebook and Snapchat."
Image: Instagram.com/MichellePhan