Bethany Mota Topped Fashion In 2014, At Least When It Came To Google Searches
Bethany Mota started uploading videos to YouTube when she was 13 because she was “kind of bored.” She explained, “I was also being bullied at the time, so I kind of didn’t really want to do anything. I just wanted to stay inside.”
Five years later, Mota has over 6 million YouTube subscribers and approximately 500 million total views. According to an article from Fast Company last June, Mota earned between $500,000 to $750,000 in ad revenue from her YouTube videos each year.
Now, Mota has another accolade: she topped Google’s list of most-searched fashion designers of 2014. Falling below her on the list were legendary brands such as Oscar de la Renta, Valentino and Alexander Wang. Forbes was quick to note that of the top 10, three passed away in the past year, which likely led to renewed public interest in their work. Those designers were de la Renta, L’Wren Scott and Edith Flagg. Tina Knowles, mother of Beyoncé and Solange, was number 10 on the list.
This is the full list of Google’s most-searched designers in 2014:
- Bethany Mota
- Kate Spade
- Oscar de la Renta
- Rachel Roy
- L’Wren Scott
- Valentino
- Alexander Wang
- Sherri Hill (prom dress designer)
- Edith Flagg (who died in August)
- Tina Knowles
Mota started off with “haul” videos, which showed off her fashion purchases. For the past year, she’s had a collection at Aeropostale that includes clothes, tote bags, body shimmer and bedding.
It’s almost been an entire year that I’ve been designing! So excited for my anniversary collection at… http://t.co/G0DCIb90Ma
— Bethany Mota ? (@BethanyMota) December 2, 2014
This fall, she reached a much broader audience when she competed with partner Derek Hough on Dancing With The Stars. Bethany and Derek came in fourth place, eliminated just prior to the series finale. When she said goodbye to the series, she told Us magazine she had no regrets. She learned from the experience of live television, which was very different from her past YouTube experience.
“I’ve learned to take more risks. Going into this competition I was really scared because it’s a live show and I’m not used to doing that stuff. Everything I’ve been doing for years, it’s all pre-filmed, and if I make a mistake I can edit it out. But this is different.”
She also expressed a desire to get back to her YouTube roots after DWTS concluded.
“I’m excited to get back to my videos. I really want to throw myself into that. I’m excited about that most definitely.”
[Image: Bethany Mota/Twitter]
