I’d also love to know: why?
I’ll admit, my instincts veer toward skepticism (sometimes cynicism if I doom-scroll too much). Engagement has no gender; this is true. But when it comes to the fandoms these “internet boyfriends” tend to attract, women will always prevail, and how. I immediately thought of the steep rise of romance in literature and cinema (romance remains the highest-grossing genre in literary fiction), and how both champion the HEA (“happily ever after” for the uninitiated), usually involving a heterosexual pairing.
What do women—particularly young women who are also discerning beauty consumers—want most? If you go by the countless TikTok videos, podcasts, and discourse revolving around dating culture, they want a handsome man who embodies conventional good looks (“in finance, 6’5, trust fund, etc.”), possesses emotional complexity and intelligence, and is secure enough with his masculinity to share his hypothetical girlfriend’s feminine hobbies (like beauty). This would be sweet if done in earnest. I love introducing men to skin care products and fragrances they get excited about.
But would I want to buy a M.A.C. Cosmetics lipstick from Rob Rausch’s abs? Would Love Island’s Jeremiah Brown, The Summer I Turned Pretty’s Sean Kaufman, Tyriq Withers, or Jesse McCarthy inspire a trip to Ulta Beauty? The brand’s holiday campaign featured these heartthrobs, captioned, “Hotties who shop at Ulta on Black Friday? That’s my type.” Why should Harris Dickinson’s dewy, freshly-misted visage cause me to hit “add to cart” any quicker than if it were featured on Hailey Bieber’s face instead?
For those born post-9/11, you’d be remiss not to notice the rather unsubtle nod to early aughts marketing that featured hunky guys idling in proximity to the thing being marketed. Abercrombie & Fitch (the hottest mall store of the first decade of this century, arguably) stationed shirtless male models like sexy sentries outside the entrances of its stores, luring in customers: the girls who wanted to get a closer look and maybe a cheeky wink from the models, and the guys who wanted to shop at the store most associated with being a hunky guy. Of course, the models themselves were not for sale, but the point was that surrounding your store (or brand) with hot dudes made the brand more attractive altogether.
