Image Courtesy: Instagram/arii

An Instagram influencer with 2.6 million followers failed to sell 36 shirts. Arii, 18, has established herself as a key influencer on Instagram with the help of brand endorsements and partnerships.

A lot of Arii's posts are simple images of herself wearing outfits of different brands, with the brand tagged in the post's caption. It is a good way to earn a living, however, things can turn around when influencers try to sell their own products.

The Instagram influencer told how she had launched her brand with high hopes but her expectations failed as she could not even sell 36 t-shirts. She wrote, "Unfortunately, the company that I'm working with goes based on your first drop sales."

The influencer bubble is bursting. This young lady has well over 2 million followers and couldn’t sell 36 shirts. Focus on genuine engagement and not followers cuz they ain’t gonna buy a thing. pic.twitter.com/uOSVxc2k4D — Flawless and Brown (@kissmyelite) May 27, 2019

She got positive feedback from people who said they would buy the t-shirts. However, it turned out that the influencer's followers did not keep their word.

She further said, "The company won't be able to send out the orders to people who actually bought and it breaks my heart."

Arii later deleted her post, however, her confession about her failed business was captured by a social media user. The screenshot went viral on social media and started a debate on the role of influencers.

The truth is that her followers aren't her customers.



Understanding who will actually buy from you and what they will buy is a key business lesson. — Tamara (@baydiangirl) May 27, 2019

One user wrote, "The truth is that her followers aren't her customers. Understanding who will actually buy from you and what they will buy is a key business lesson."

PLOT TWIST: she deleted her “my brand failed” post.



Something is definitely up. The “positive” spin: she took flak for failing & wanted it to stop. It’s seeming more plausible that someone’s lying somewhere.



“Marketing stunt” maybe?

Sympathy post for future $?

Lie about sales? pic.twitter.com/gJEnKf5umK — Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) May 28, 2019

UPDATE: she’s back & says she had to sell 36 each of 7 products, for a total of 252 units sold.



When we’re talking 2 million+ followers, 252 should be just as easy as 36. She literally only had to convince 0.000096% of her followers to buy. It’s the same problem. pic.twitter.com/RpOZbXBEyj — Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) May 30, 2019

Another user theorised that she may have deliberately made the post and then deleted it for sympathy only to gain more attention for a potential second launch.