Brand rep babies: Free clothes and thousands of fans part of the deal for Insta-kids and their mums

THEY get free clothes and have thousands of adoring followers but it’s not all “likes” for Insta-kids and their Insta-mums, writes Jordan Baker.

Dee Why mum Mel Malatinec with her two-year-old daughter Mila. Picture: Troy Snook

MILA Malatinec never needs to wear the same outfit twice. She receives a constant supply of free, new-season looks from leopard-print headbands   to   velvet   bloomers   and  faux-fur waistcoats.

Mila has a relationship with about 20 mostly small and independent clothing companies.

Organising  it  all is a big job for her manager Melanie or, as Mila likes to call her, “Mum”. Mila is 2 ½ and has been representing brands on Instagram since she was six months.

Becky Graham’s daughter Hattie has been a brand rep since birth. Picture: Supplied

She has about 16,500 followers and is one of a rising number of “brand reps” on Instagram — a deal under which retailers enlist photogenic children who have enthusiastic “Insta-mums” and significant followings — to market their clothes.

The clothes are not free. Retailers ­exchange product for an agreed number of photographs that must include brand names being tagged.

Most deals only involve clothes but companies are willing to pay $450 or more to dress Insta-kids with big followings, such as the queen of them all Pixie Curtis, daughter of PR maven Roxy Jacenko.

It’s cheap marketing for clothing companies but some question the benefits for the Insta-kids beyond an enviable wardrobe. Some, such as Mila, love being in front of a camera.

Mrs Malatinec has a system to make sure each piece of clothing is worn and shot. She hasn’t lost track of an outfit yet but admits “it’s a fear of mine. We get a lot of clothes”.

Yet  Becky  Graham, mother of @allaboutharlowrayne, who has charged up to $75 a picture in the past, says being an Insta-mum can be hard work and some turn into the digital equivalent of stage mothers.

Insta-mum and brand rep Bec Graham with one-year-old Hattie. Picture: Tara Croser

“It’s taxing on the parents sometimes,” she said. “When you ­become bigger, you are under a lot of pressure to do the perfect shot.

“Sometimes it will take me two minutes to get a photo, sometimes it will take all day. There’s an enormous group of women (with brand rep  kids) and it’s all about their children.

“There is a lot of gossiping, bitching. Free clothing is the main ­enticement, but some people need ­reassurance about their children.”

There is increasing competition ­between Insta-mums, she said.

“It’s massive. People will do anything to get their kids into repping now. There are people who want to succeed no matter what,” she said.

“They buy props and cameras. And there are Facebook groups where reps sit and talk about it.”

Mel Malatinec snaps away with daughter Mila. Picture: Troy Snook

There are also more sinister downsides. “There are going to be predators, who talk underneath in the comments about highly inappropriate things,” Mrs Graham said.

“I know many women and girls who also deal with it. That’s why I have thought about quitting gazillions of times, and that’s why I’m toning down that side (of my business).”

It’s something Ms Malatinec is keenly aware of, too.

“There are a lot of creeps around. I’ve tried every night to go through my new followers. Why would a man want to ­follow my account? I block them.”  

Meanwhile, retailers have embraced these kids as a cost-effective way of getting ­exposure.

Like most retailers, ­Natalie King from Oovy.com.au recruits her reps via an online competition.

Mila has been a brand rep since she was six months old.

She has 16,500 followers.

@MILAANDNOAH

“Before any customer has purchased them, I will send the clothes off to the brand reps,” she said. “I find whenever a brand rep takes a photo, I get more sales. People see other kids in your clothes and they want them.”

Eugenie Pepper from Plum Collections  said  Instagram   had   an   international reach.

“People in African places I have never heard of are buying our product,” she says. “We can also see how many people have liked it and what their comments are. A magazine ad doesn’t give you that feedback.”

Ms Pepper occasionally pays a big-name brand rep, but mostly engages lower-level Insta-mums who are ­enthusiastic about her products.

“Most are thrilled to be getting something for nothing and to be taking photographs of their kids,” she said.

Bec Graham is recruiting other brand reps. Picture: Tara Croser

Not every kid can be a brand rep, warns Mrs Graham, who turned her brand-repping experience with daughters Harlow and ­Hattie into a career — she has a blog called Diary Of A Brand Rep, she is a brand rep scout and she edits a fashion page for children.

“Under twos tend to be more popular,” she said.

“Everyone loves babies. Two to threes are not so bad, but in the four to five age range a lot of clothes stop, you are left with a bit of a hole. There’s not a huge market for boys, so my son was never involved in it.”

A good eye for photography is ­important, as is, of course, an ­attractive child. Once a rep hits 10,000 followers they gain momentum, but it’s not until they reach about 50,000 that they can charge the big bucks.

Some modelling agents are critical of the brand rep phenomenon, even though many child models are also promoted on Instagram. They say it is ­unregulated and there are no rules limiting how many hours the kids work.

Becky Graham's daughter Harlow.

Harlow has been a brand rep since she was two.

@ALLABOUTHARLOWRAY

Parenting expert Justin Coulson is also wary, concerned that young children could be sexualised, that their privacy is being invaded — “do they really know what they are consenting to?” — and that there is no regulation, so the child’s welfare ­depends on the ethics of the parents and the companies involved.

His biggest concern, though, is the message “repping” sends children.

“What are we teaching our children in terms of identity and appearance?” Coulson asks.

“It can create a sense that they have to look a certain way to be cool, to be popular, to be valuable as human beings.”

As Mrs Graham admits, being a brand rep and Insta-mum can be hard work.

“In the first year, you are caught up in the romanticism, you are getting free clothes and packages every day, it’s like Christmas. Then you begin to ­realise the effort you put in,” she said.