‘My planner is out now!’, gushed a home and lifestyle creator to her 13.7M TikTok followers. As the face of iced coffee, Apple products, Marc Jacobs Tote Bags and colour coordinated note-taking, her life appears clean, orderly and aesthetically pleasing. Despite physical planners dying out years ago, she has captivated audiences with an office drawer full of matte coloured highlighters and collection of biro pens. For a cool 28 dollars (plus an extra 18 for the insert), you too can be as perfect as her.
The ‘Amazon Girl’ is a home and lifestyle influencer who, as the name suggests, creates paid TikTok and Instagram content from Amazon ‘finds’ and other homeware products. They emerged online as a subsection of the ‘That Girl’ trend, by sculpting the belief that perfection can be achieved from simply buying more things. Extreme consumption increasing in popularity is hardly surprising. Following a chaotic pandemic that threw society into a web of uncertainty, it’s no wonder so many dream of stability in the form of aligned glass tumblers and pretty lock screens. ASMR restocks (which is quite literally watching someone fill their fridge with high-brand food), elaborate skincare routines, and unnecessary gadgets now flood TikTok’s FYP, along with the unwavering feeling that your life does not have enough stuff.
It’s easy to see why home and lifestyle influencers chose this route. Amazon Storefronts reward commission when a purchase is made through products linked on a social media page – typically ranging from ‘essentials’ to completely random items that almost no one has heard of (UV Phone Sanitiser, really?). It’s difficult not to feel drawn towards futile things when scrolling through the top picks. Suddenly you need that matte black colander with wooden handles, not to mention the handbag-shaped vase and iPad holder that doubles as a whiteboard.
But while the urge to own ‘everything’ poses an undoubtable threat to both financial stability and the climate, Amazon Storefronts have a flip-side. Many small businesses rely on influencer marketing to boost their products, a method that has proven to be successful again and again. The rosemary oil trend illustrates this well; first circulating on TikTok before making global headlines as a tool that can prevent hair loss. Additionally, influencer marketing provides a second layer of consumer protection. By watching ‘try-ons’ and ‘tester’ videos, customers are able to see products from different perspectives before committing to purchase.
Despite a few select names dominating Amazon Storefronts, it isn’t a particularly exclusive practice thanks to the low application threshold of an Amazon account and one social media account needed to set up a Storefront. It’s interesting to observe the term ‘influencer’ shifting into something far more commonplace as those with little to no ‘influence’ are able to harness what was once only available to the most distinguished. Young people, in particular, are using Amazon Storefronts as a form of passive income, something we can perhaps link to ‘hustle culture’ – where the consent pressure to be productive plays out in the form of multiple schemes and jazzy household items.
Working hard when ‘living’ is so expensive tightens the grip that Amazon and other cheap e-commerce companies have on an average salary. In the cost of living crisis, young people understandably want something to show for their 40 hour week in a way that extends beyond £7 butter and a Netflix subscription. If you don’t have a labelled spice drawer, skincare fridge, towel warmer, bubble headband, Touchland hand sanitizer and a pink iPad, you’re not complete.
But where is the line drawn? Where does the responsibility of consumption control lie? With the influencer, who is well within their right to use Amazon as a leverage for income? With Amazon, who could say that they are providing small businesses with opportunities – perhaps even ‘free’ marketing? Or with the consumer, who should arguably be able to make informed decisions about purchases without breaking the bank?
The ‘Amazon Girl’ has become a trope for lifestyle superiority that is just within reach. It’s not about being a millionaire anymore (although that certainly helps). It's about cleanliness, order, neutrality and aesthetics. All of which can be achieved through an Amazon Storefront. Link in bio, of course.
