Source: Morning Brew
Alix Earle’s entry into skincare—a category where influencers have historically commanded outsized authority—is meeting immediate skepticism from her own audience. Passive social clout no longer converts into product trust without demonstrable expertise or ingredient transparency. The backlash shows a shift in how Gen Z consumers evaluate founder credibility: being “an It Girl” is table stakes, not a differentiator. Skincare consumers are increasingly willing to question what an influencer actually knows versus what they’re selling. This matters because skincare is one of the last areas where influencer-founder ventures reliably succeed; if that changes, the entire founder-economy playbook weakens.