'Being good looking isn't enough': Can Love Island still make you rich?

The formed of this year's Love Island All Stars, a spin-off featuring erstwhile contestants, has been described arsenic "dating royalty" by its makers.

More than fractional of the 12 islanders heading to the South African villa were finalists connected their respective series, portion 2022 victor Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu is besides rumoured to beryllium entering aboriginal on.

Appearing connected Love Island was erstwhile seen arsenic a way to autarkic fame and success.

But could the instrumentality of names from immoderate of the astir fashionable bid beryllium a motion that the once-profitable pipeline from Islander to influencer oregon TV prima is coming to an end?

A well-worn vocation way for those leaving Love Island is to go an influencer, getting paid by brands to merchantability thing from cosmetics to cars to societal media users.

Perhaps the highest achiever successful this relation has been 2019 bid runner-up Molly-Mae Hague, who went connected to enactment arsenic a originative manager for accelerated manner marque Pretty Little Thing, and has precocious launched her ain manner company.

But Molly-Mae appeared connected Love Island astatine the highest of its popularity. The occurrence successful which she and Tommy Fury mislaid retired to winners Amber Gill and Greg O'Shea is inactive the show's astir watched ever, attracting implicit six cardinal viewers.

Hitting these heights isn't imaginable for each erstwhile formed member, thing much caller contestant Tanyel Revan believes aspiring influencers request to beryllium alert of.

"One happening astir this manufacture that radical person to retrieve is that if you don't support it 24/7, which is precise hard due to the fact that it is simply a spot of a fake lifestyle, you tin easy beryllium forgotten," she tells the BBC.

"I deliberation a batch of influencers spell backmost connected All Stars due to the fact that they request to support up and person that boost," she adds.

Tanyel, 28, appeared connected a wintertime bid of the amusement successful 2023, erstwhile involvement was inactive precocious (its last was watched by implicit a cardinal people), but not astatine the levels Molly-Mae experienced successful 2019.

The hairdresser says portion she has earned immoderate "extra income" from societal media influencing, the haircare institution she started earlier entering the villa is what gives her "stability".

"I americium a businesswoman who has got my ain salon," Tanyel adds.

A batch has changed since Love Island archetypal aired successful its existent signifier successful 2015. More than 300 radical person present appeared connected the UK variation of the amusement - being an ex-Islander is nary longer an exclusive club.

For a while, finalists enjoyed rumoured six-figure marque deals with accelerated manner companies and sponsored Instagram posts that could gain them thousands.

But according to societal media adept and co-founder of Sloane House Marketing, Bryleigh Flack, the appetite for this benignant of contented nary longer exists.

"The mode we digest contented is wholly antithetic to however we did adjacent 5 years ago," she says.

"There are truthful galore adverts, not adjacent conscionable influencer ads but erstwhile you are scrolling, adjacent done your friends' [Instagram] stories, you're deed with them, it's precise saturated," she says.

Bryleigh says big-brand partnerships utilized to beryllium the champion mode to marque money, but "appealing to the masses" is nary longer the champion strategy for influencers, acknowledgment to newer platforms similar TikTok, which usage a antithetic algorithm to take contented for users.

She says determination is simply a caller benignant of contented creator successful 2025 - the "micro influencer" - who whitethorn not person loads of followers, but has a truly engaged and circumstantial audience.

These creators "really hone successful connected their assemblage and cognize them", she adds. "For example, mums with young families oregon girls that emotion to spell retired each weekend, they're wholly antithetic radical truthful trying to marketplace to them some won't work."

Billy Brown, who appeared connected bid 8 of Love Island successful 2022, says galore of the radical helium was connected the amusement with saw it arsenic an casual way to becoming an influencer.

"I cognize a batch of radical who came out, discontinue their occupation and thought that's it now, but it's not.

"You tin gain a batch of wealth from that amusement but if you don't bash well, it's not the case," says the 25-year-old, who entered the main villa aft impressing chap contestant Tasha Ghouri successful 2nd villa Casa Amor.

Billy, who owns businesses successful operation and spot development, says that days aft leaving the show, helium was "getting up astatine fractional 4 successful the greeting [for work] and past going to a movie premiere astatine night".

"I didn't fto it get to my head, I deliberation I was 1 of the lone radical who could accidental 'look, it's not each glitz and glam'," helium adds.

Billy has maintained a societal media beingness successful the years since, featuring contented connected his operation enactment alongside much manner and sports-focused material.

He says helium inactive earns immoderate wealth from influencing but thinks that's owed to his personality, alternatively than his follower count, a comparatively humble 115,000. In contrast, Molly-Mae has implicit 8 million.

"People [who spell connected the show] request to absorption connected what they like, alternatively of conscionable being known for being connected Love Island.

"You person to person thing astir you, conscionable being bully looking is not going to get you much," helium adds.

Love Island's taste relevance has go a taxable of speech successful caller years owed to falling viewing figures.

At the show's highest successful 2019, it achieved an mean of astir six cardinal viewers, with much caller bid successful 2023 and 2024 attracting astir 1 to 2 million.

With the world TV dating genre's caller boost from Netflix shows specified arsenic Love is Blind, The Ultimatum and Too Hot to Handle, audiences present person much options than ever astatine their disposal.

Jake Lee, who runs Alpha Talent Group, represents stars from crossed sport, amusement and societal media.

He manages boxer Tommy Fury and sports presenter Mac Griffiths (known arsenic Michael connected Love Island), who some appeared connected the aforementioned 2019 bid of the show.

"People would travel disconnected a amusement and bash adverts for each azygous company, due to the fact that these companies would privation to instrumentality vantage of the speedy vulnerability they could get," helium tells the BBC.

"But 4 oregon 5 months down the enactment you'd beryllium harming your ain career, due to the fact that you'd utilized your level the incorrect mode and there'd beryllium nary credibility there," helium adds.

Jake says much caller world TV contestants person learnt a batch from the mistakes of their predecessors, who were leaving shows with nary existent strategy.

"My biggest portion of proposal is to spell successful with your eyes wide open," helium cautions.