Online Lives: Erika Fox
Erika, who also posts regularly on her YouTube channel, moved to New York three years ago and shares her adventures and fashion choices on her blog, Retro-Flame.com.
Erika says the huge life change presented some challenges, but she’s glad she made the move.
“At first, it was definitely a little challenging. After building my brand and making a name for myself in Ireland I basically had to start all over again once I moved here. However, I was definitely up for the challenge and I truly appreciate how serious they take the industry here,” she said.
Erika has seen the blogging industry change dramatically — both in Ireland and internationally — since she started her blog while still studying at college.
“I started Retro Flame when I was back in college as a hobby and an outlet to share my love for fashion. I never expected it to become my full-time job. I guess I started realising it was turning into something bigger when brands began to get in touch with me to collaborate.
“When I first started there were only a handful of us doing it in Ireland and now there are hundreds of bloggers and YouTubers. It’s gotten more saturated and competitive. However, at the same time, people are beginning to understand the industry more, and brands now appreciate it is a job and form of income which wasn’t the case at the beginning.”
Through blogging and filming YouTube videos, Erika gained some new skills but regrets waiting so long to hire someone to take some of the pressure off.
“I had to teach myself lots of new skills like photography, video editing, etc which wouldn’t come naturally to me so that was a challenge,” she said.
H O M E ✨ Full of energy again after a full day with this view in Kerry ❤️ #retroflameKerry pic.twitter.com/WhMu64t2Rs
— Erika Fox (@erikafox_) September 22, 2017
“If I could go back in time I would have hired help earlier. I only hired my sister onto the team last year and it’s made a huge difference.”
Erika, who has almost 100,000 followers on Instagram alone, says social media has had a huge impact on her life.
“My whole life revolves around social media, which can be both a good and bad thing. However, I owe my whole career to social media and I am very grateful for it.
“I think right now my most important platform is Instagram but I have seen amazing engagement on YouTube since launching my channel properly earlier this year.”
