Endemol Beyond USA, the digital arm of global TV production firm Endemol,
Endemol Beyond USA, the digital arm of global TV production firm Endemol, has signed a development deal with Michelle Phan, who runs the biggest beauty and makeup channel on YouTube.
As part of the deal with Phan, Endemol Beyond will build out Phan’s FAWN (For All Women Network), a lifestyle-oriented multichannel network with shows about fashion, beauty, health, wellness and culture. FAWN will become Endemol Beyond’s lifestyle MCN, said Will Keenan, president of Endemol Beyond USA. “It’s a very big overall deal, multiplatform and global” and Endemol’s biggest ever to date with a YouTube creator, he said.
The 27-year-old Phan, who posted her first video to then-fledgling YouTube in July 2006, currently has 6.29 million subscribers with 908 million views to date to her channel at youtube.com/MichellePhan. She started her beauty and fashion video-blog on YouTube in 2007 while she was waitressing at a Florida sushi restaurant.
Phan — who tells viewers to “think of me as your beauty bestie” in her intro video on YouTube — also maintains a blog at michellephan.com and is active on social media with 2.4 million Facebook fans and 542,000 Twitter followers.
With Endemol, Phan will spearhead the development of original content for both the digital and broadcast spaces, as well as mentor new talent, incubating the next generation of multiplatform trailblazers.
“As one of the first creators on YouTube, I’ve been fortunate to sit in the front row, witnessing the remarkable evolution of digital media,” Phan said. “The experiences and knowledge I’ve been afforded are invaluable and I’m excited to take that skill set, together with Endemol Beyond, to build a reliable, reputable business.”