The influencer social media game is hot. You don’t have to bear the last name Kardashian, either, to be a part of it these days. Everyone’s famous thanks to Instagram and social media, and, honestly, why not be a lifestyle brand if your lifestyle has something snazzy about it?
But how far is too far? Say like a branded “surprise” proposal?
What if, just for instance, the bride-to-be was in on her own proposal…and was planning on cashing in on it?
Well, it seems like that’s what’s happened with newlyweds, Marissa Casey Fuchs and her beau, Gabriel Grossman. Fuchs (now Grossman), is an online influencer (@fashionambitionist) who has been with Gabe for “17 years as friends. 9 years in the making of a relationship. 6 years officially dating. And on 6/21/2019 we made it official,” per her Instagram.
So sweet, right?
Gabe’s proposal entered the world when Fuchs posted this video, commenting, “WHAT IS HAPPENING?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
https://www.instagram.com/p/By21YcGAfag/
I’m a sucker for romance! When that crazy “flash mob” trend was going around, I died. Think about all the planning that went into those proposals…Swoon!
And I was swooning when I saw this. Gabe had planned a scavenger hunt for Miss Fuchs, including a journey across the Atlantic to find him.
“I have the most important question of my life to ask you,” he says. “The problem is, we’re not really into traditional weddings.”
But as the story continues, an impressively gratuitous pitch to retailers follows.
Taylor Lorenz, a writer for The Atlantic, examined the pitch deck, explaining that “Before the proposal scavenger hunt ever kicked off, marketers at various brands and agencies had received a PDF outlining the future engagement in the context of a potential sponsorship.”
Okay, so what, right? It could still be a surprise. Gabe is probably a resourceful boyfriend and tapped into her employees and contacts.
The pitch deck is meticulous, showing private photos, times and dates for locations, and even when to post an IG video. Hmmm…
According to Lorenz, “so far, there have been only minor discrepancies between the pitch deck and Fuch’s posts.” Apparently Fuchs chose a different restaurant one night and performed an”unpacking post as opposed to a packing one.”
Plus, the pitch was clearly professionally designed.
But Grossman was adamant in his conversation with Lorenz that it was a surprise:
“I was trying to do something that I knew Marissa would love.”
So how did he get those contacts? Well, Fuchs is the Director of Brand Partnerships for Goop.
“…most brands didn’t even respond. Almost all the ones that did were companies that Fuchs already had a good working relationship with, such as Flywheel, which put on a free, private class, and the clothing designer LoveShackFancy, which sent Fuchs some free dresses…Grossman also received a hefty discount on the Jade Trau jewelry he gave Fuchs, but Fuchs has been friends with Trau for a long time and regularly receives discounts on her designs.”
But this is the world we live in today, right? And whether Fuchs knew of the proposal or not, these two are indeed “nontraditional” as Grossman said in his video…
In this case: there is no reality, only perception.
This video may sum it up.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BzCNADbFEqO/
Take what you want from all this hype. Surprise or not, they’re married and living their best lives.
At least, it looks that way.
