'Brigade of people' waiting for influencers to slip up on 'overreaching' ad guidelines

Kieran Walsh: 'I think people just need to ease up on [influencers] a bit; nobody is setting out to do anything nefarious.'

Advertising guidelines for social media influencers are “way overreaching”, and should not be enforced like ads on television or radio, the founder and CEO of National Beauty Distribution, Kieran Walsh, has said.

Speaking to Irish Examiner business journalist Emer Walsh on the latest episode of the ieBusiness Podcast, in association with PwC, Mr Walsh called out a “brigade of people” who are waiting patiently for social media influencers and content creators to slip up when it comes to online advertising requirements.

“I’m certainly not calling for things to be more rigid. They should be more fluid than anything. I don’t even think it is equivalent to radio or TV – it is way overreaching in terms of what they expect from influencers," Mr Walsh said.

Under the Consumer Protection Act, Irish influencers must clearly indicate if their posts are of a commercial nature. Failure to do so could result in a breach of the law.

When advertising online, influencers must use at least one primary label — such as #ad, #gifted, or a platform-provided label — indicating a paid partnership.

“People are not perfect. They don’t remember things sometimes. People don’t know the legislation inside out, what can you expect from them? I think people just need to ease up on [influencers] a bit; nobody is setting out to do anything nefarious.

Advertising Standards Authority

“If an influencer gets a gift bag worth €150 from us, I don’t see why that should have to be labelled. If they get a week's holiday away in the Maldives, then yes, that should be.

“When it comes to the Advertising Standards Authority, I’ve given up following or caring about it. I did for a very long time, I even met with them once to share my thoughts, but I don’t think anything was listened to.” 

Founded in 2012 by Mr Walsh and headquartered in Blarney, National Beauty Distribution is the leading importer and wholesaler of some of the most well-known beauty and cosmetic brands.

Mr Walsh is also the creator of brands such as Bare by Vogue Williams and Luna by Lisa Jordan. Beyond that and from a distribution standpoint, global brands such as Estée Lauder, Unilever, Color Wow, and Kevin Murphy trust the company to manage all elements of their brands within Ireland.

Since its establishment, National Beauty Distribution has grown its workforce to more than 70 people. In addition, following a €2.5m investment, the company recently launched Ireland’s first AutoStore robotic warehouse dedicated to the hair and beauty industry.

Earlier this month, National Beauty Distribution took home the top prize at this year’s Digital Marketing Awards, hosted by Cork Chamber.

In a wide-ranging podcast interview, Mr Walsh discusses the changes he has seen in the Irish beauty industry since first stepping into it in 2012, the creative process behind producing successful cosmetic brands, and what conversations with social media stars Vogue Williams and Lisa Jordan were like when it came to building their best-selling products.

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