Influencers turned entrepreneurs, Josh Richards and Griffin Johnson have partnered with Erik Huberman, founder and CEO of Hawke Media.
I recently covered Josh Richards growth in the business industry and how he is arguably the most successful teen entrepreneur globally. Hawke Media is a full-service marketing agency best known for their outsourced CMO program. Josh Richards and Griffin Johnson have partnered with Huberman to launch HawkeZ, “a new marketing agency serving brands interested in selling to Gen. Z audiences.”
In this new partnership, the social media stars will serve as creative directors while Huberman will manage daily operations of the agency.
Huberman mentioned in a recent release, “They are making and spending money. Josh and Griffin are two guys who know how to reach this key demographic with increasing discretionary income.”
The new agency has already struck a partnership with the footwear powerhouse Crocs, where they will be working with HawkeZ to reach younger consumers.
I spoke to Josh and Griffin directly to find out more about HawkeZ and their future plans. Josh touched upon why HawkeZ is the best next move for him, “Throughout the past year I’ve founded companies like CrossCheck Studios and CrossCheck Sports, both of which focus on building up Gen Z content creators and athletes. HawkeZ was a natural next step because I have a unique and authentic ability to reach Gen Z and I know what resonates. Now I can lend my expertise to different brands, and that’s what we plan to do starting with Crocs.”
I mentioned to Griffin that it seems as if he and Josh have taken a small step away from being influencers. Instead, they seem to be focusing heavily on building businesses by leveraging their social media expertise. Griffin and I spoke on whether he plans on maintaining an active role as an influencer in addition to his various business endeavors.
He told me, “Yes, I still plan on upholding my active role as an influencer. I understand the Gen Z. market, and leveraging my social media expertise will only serve to further bolster our strategy of reaching younger consumers with HawkeZ.
He continued, “Many influencers naturally evolve from social media to create longevity in their careers, but I’m confident that maintaining my role online will only strengthen and elevate our mission of connecting brand partners with their respective key demographics. This partnership is a high priority to me, and tapping into Gen. Z through the power of influencer marketing stems from my drive to integrate social media with my business ventures.”
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