This summer, brands are out in full force, flying and ferrying creators to far-flung European holiday destinations, from the South of France to Puglia. Only this year, it’s not your typical influencers filling spots on brand trips. It’s Substackers, brand consultants, photographers, chefs, gallerists and filmmakers — all of whom boast hefty social followings of their own.
J Crew brought Substackers Laura Reilly (of Magasin) and Becky Malinsky (of 5 Things You Should Buy); media personality Kareem Rahma; stylists Gabriella Karefa-Johnson and Julia Sarr-Jamois; and writer-influencers Camille Charriere and Orion Carloto, to hotel Masseria San Domenico in Southern Italy’s Puglia. Matteau celebrated its 10-year anniversary at Saint Raphael’s Les Roches Rouges — “friends of the brand” only, no press invited. “The guest list included the type of women that we want to spend our days relaxing seaside with,” says co-founder and creative director Ilona Hamer. Comme Si launched Comme Si Sport via a trip to luxury biohotel Stanglwirt in the Austrian Alps with friends of founder Jenni Lee’s, including photographer Dianna Bartlett and creative consultant Juliana Salazar.
It’s a sign of the times. There’s an uptick in brand inquiries about influencer trips, says Sue Chan, founder of “hospitality-forward experiential agency” Care of Chan, which is behind many of the recent influencer trips you’ve probably seen on Instagram (the agency also produced the J Crew trip). But consumers have grown wary of ultra-polished, aesthetically perfect trips, especially in tougher economic times. (Recall Tarte’s Dubai trip backlash in 2023.) With little storytelling behind these ‘for-the-photo’ getaways, their aspirational pull is waning. So this summer, brands are rejigging their trip strategies by changing up the guest list.
“Traditionally, these experiences were reserved for influencer aristocracy — tightly engineered for elite content sharing. But we’re seeing brands invite people who were genuinely present and engaged, rather than just focused on getting the shot,” says Eve Lee, founder of marketing agency The Digital Fairy. “The old approach created experiences based purely on aesthetics, missing the more interesting storytelling.”
This was the thinking behind J Crew’s 20-person trip to Italy. “[Our customer] finds inspiration in people that have a unique point of view and perspective on our classic American style,” says chief marketing officer Julia Collier, who joined the brand at the beginning of the year. Chan agrees, noting that, to audiences today, watching your favourite editor, podcaster, or stylist endorse a brand is what feels personal and aspirational.
Oftentimes, these talents don’t have followers in the millions. But in 2025, sheer reach can’t be the sole goal or metrics, says Max Stein, founder and CEO of Brigade Talent, a management company representing “high-profile creative professionals and tastemakers”. (He works with both Reilly and Malinsky.) “[It’s about] working also with people that can set the tone for the company,” he says. “Because if you just hire all the people that can reach the most people, that doesn t necessarily create a vibe.”
Last week, Dôen took a small group of New York fashion insiders (including Substackers Jalil Johnson and Lily Sisto) to Nantucket to celebrate its store opening with a low-key weekend. Content of attendees on a boat — eating lobster rolls and playing Dôen branded backgammon — flooded users’ Instagram feeds. Emily Sundberg of Feed Me praised its laid back nature, comparing it to Hotel Lobby Candle’s “more gauche” trip to the Hamptons over the same period, filled with influencers and sponcon.
This shift to a wider net is long overdue, says brand consultant Chris Black, founder of Done to Death projects, who consulted on the J Crew guest list. In his view, it’s what made the J Crew trip make the splash it did. (Black says he’s never had more text messages about a trip — and regards the level of interest as a testament to its efficacy.) “If you’re on social media a lot, you’re used to seeing the same women in some of the same locations year round,” he says. “Having a little variety made it more dynamic. It’s more interesting to have people that do something, beyond just taking pictures of themselves.”
A new dynamic
This new demographic of guests may not be influencers in the traditional sense, but they’re still there to influence. The deliverables (number of posts or stories; required tags and hashtags) vary by trip, according to those familiar with the agreements. Some trips are paid, meaning there are content requirements. (If there are deliverables, attendees will often ask for a fee.) Others are simply an invitation to go on a free (usually very chic) holiday.
Neither Comme Si nor Matteau incorporated deliverables. “By focusing on a unique experience rather than traditional deliverables, we hoped to inspire organic sharing,” says Lee, who wanted the trip to feel like “summer camp with friends”. “When people are relaxed, inspired and fully present, that energy comes through, and that’s what makes content really resonate.” This is why Matteau didn’t invite traditional influencer or press, either — they didn’t want the added pressure.
Instagram content
An unpaid trip is a harder sell for talent who have other gigs that keep them more tied to the city they live in, whether it’s styling or running a gallery space. This added level of discernment means the trip needs to be right: not too long, enough free time for guests to do their own work while there and fun. Having attended many as a guest, Black says two or three days is all you need.
Matteau provided no deliverables: they let their guests pick their dream Matteau wardrobe and kept the itinerary light. “Naps by the pool, a trip to the spa and the option of a gentle hike or morning Pilates if you wanted,” Hamer says. “It was the type of holiday where you left the pool at 5.45pm to be ready for a 6pm cocktail and dinner with friends. It was really that simple.”
Simple works. Traditionally, influencer trips have been over-programmed, Black says. “Sometimes, [brands] schedule you within an inch of your life and you start to resent it. But if you let people just do their thing somewhere beautiful, you’re going to get exactly what you want — if you have the right group,” he says.
Matteau didn’t bring a photographer, instead gave each guest a disposable camera and passed polaroids around throughout the trip. They didn’t initially intend to share the photos. “The decision to share this content with our wider community was only decided while we were away and we saw the types of imagery that was created,” says the brand’s co-founder and director Peta Heinsen. “We knew it would resonate and wanted to share this special moment. We were amazed to see how much content continued to roll in post-trip.”
Shifting KPIs and ROIs
Courting this type of talent may seem like a no-brainer, but when it comes down to the numbers, they don’t always have the furthest reach. For an industry built on follower counts, shifting brands’ mindsets away from the bottom line can be challenging.
“At the end of the day, you do have KPIs. There are numbers you have to hit. Whatever they may be, whoever sets them, they’re unavoidable,” Black says.
On the brand side, influencer marketing agency Billion Dollar Boy’s latest research found that there’s still a disconnect. Creator campaigns are primarily designed to build brand awareness (41 per cent) and reach new audiences (37 per cent), but success is most often measured by ROI (60 per cent) and customer acquisition (also 60 per cent), the agency found.
Experts are calling for a shift in thinking to one that embraces a mix of mathematics and vibes. “They might not be huge on TikTok. That’s not what they do,” Black says of those who cater to the latter. “It’s more of a word-of-mouth, organic, cool thing.”
When working with new brands, Stein always asks them what their goals are. “The person that can establish the brand isn’t necessarily the same person that can sell as much product instantaneously,” he says. Some brands place these influencers into different buckets entirely, which, Stein says, is a smart strategy. He thinks of it as two groups: group A is talent a brand works with because they need to hit their numbers and they know they’ll convert; group B is less of a direct conversion, but provides cultural cachet for longer term brand value.
“A is who their customer is,” Stein explains, “and B is who they want to continue to grow and evolve their customer to be.” If this summer is anything to go by, group B is about to get a lot busier.
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