The Brilliant Business Model Behind Kim Kardashian"s $150 Million App

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When Niccolo de Masi, chief executive at Glu Mobile, approached Kim Kardashian West with the idea to create agame based on her lifestyle and success, the celebrity wasn"t easily sold--at first.

"It took six months to go from the first conversation to a signed contract. There were many stages of her and I chatting by phone," saysde Masi.

Developed by Glu, Kim Kardashian: Hollywoodhas pulled in more than $157 million in sales since launching in 2014.In the game, users create their own avatars and compete to ascend the ranks of the Los Angeles elite.(Glu would not disclose how much of the app"s royalties are collected byKardashian West.)

The game is free to play, though users can pay toaccessa variety ofvirtual styles--fromdesigner clothes (i.e.,Balmain"s Olivier Rousteing,Karl Lagerfeld)to customized makeup. De Masi says that just about 5 percent of its global users actually pay for these features.

On Thursday, the company announced its first-ever integration with makeupbrandNARSCosmetics. Players can now access the "smoky eye" or "n**e lip" looks using virtual items from NARS"s "o****m Blush" collection, among others. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, though it"s worth pointing out that NARSgenerates salesfrom links in the game itself, where users can navigate to purchase products.

The success of the game so far isn"t surprising, given Kardashian West"s business track record.In 2006, shelaunched DASH, a boutique clothing store,with sisters Kourtney and Khlo Kardashian. She laterco-founded ShoeDazzle, the online fashion subscription service thatraised $66 million in VC funding--withcontributionsfrom Andreessen Horowitz. (It was lateracquired by JustFabin 2013).

In 2015, she launched "Kimoji," the popular app that allowsusers access to over 500 themed emojisfor $1.99.The Hollywood socialite--who, last year, Forbes estimated to have a net worth of $53 million--hasalso endorsed a number of beauty brands.

Betting on the rapid rise of social media

As networking apps continueto trump more traditional gaming categories on mobile,Glu is now tapping into themassive (and highly engaged)social-media followings of high-profile celebrities. The idea is to leverage their marketing power to create simple, easy-to-play interfaces that are based more on personality than on a plot line. At present, just 32 of the top 100 free apps in the Apple store are games.

Later this year, Glu will launch games about Taylor Swiftand celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay. It hasalready produced apps with Katy Perry and Britney Spears. Collectively, the company"scelebrity partners reach more than 1billion followers on social media.

"With the brand integration, we"re adding more authenticity to the product than you would have if it were pretend clothing brands," de Masi explains. "The world going mobile means you need to bring the whole world into your mobile product."

Games designed to feel like a social network

De Masi says he"s trying to build "communities" within the apps. Userscan take selfieson theKendall and Kylieapp,for instance, and thendirectly post themonTwitter or Facebook.

Not all of these ventureshave beensuccessful: Katy Perry Popreceived complaints of technical glitches upon launchingand presentlyhas fewer than 65,000 likes on Facebook. The company says it"s still brainstorming ways to try and improve the user experience.

"Our team had plenty of unforeseen challenges when it came to reducing load times in the game and making it a snappy experience," de Masi says. "The other mistake that we made with Britney [Spears] has been [not] integrating her music," he adds.

Yet Kim Kardashian: Hollywoodis still going strong, thanks in large part to the celebrity"s own creative direction: She approves every visual, character, and storyline on the app, and even alerts Glu Mobile to "new additions to the family," i.e., the birth of her daughter, Saint West, last December.

"So much of this game--from the outfits to hairstyles to accessories--are all inspired by looks that I love and hand selected," Kardashian West said at the time of the app"s launch. "We were able to record and include so much of my natural commentary throughout the gameplay."

Source: http://www.inc.com/zoe-henry/kim-kardashian-hollywood-app-157-million-sales-strategy.html