Zoë Elizabeth Sugg (born 28 March 1990), also known by her online name Zoella, is an English media personality, entrepreneur, and author. She began her career as a

YouTuber A YouTuber is an online personality and/or influencer who produces videos on the video-sharing platform YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006. Influence Influe ...

in 2009, and has since amassed over 10 million subscribers. In 2014, Sugg launched her Zoella Beauty range of cosmetics and later launched a range of complementary homeware products, with a 2019 report stating that the two businesses had a combined revenue of £3.8 million per year. Her debut novel, ''

Girl Online ''Girl Online'' is the debut novel by English author and internet celebrity Zoe Sugg. The romance and drama novel, released on 25 November 2014 through Penguin Books, is aimed at a teen audience and focuses on a fifteen-year-old anonymous blog ...

'', was published in November 2014 and broke the record for highest first-week sales of a first-time novelist. She has since released two sequels and a non-fiction book, ''Cordially Invited'', and is currently writing a series of books alongside co-author Amy McCulloch titled ''The Magpie Society''.

Early life

Zoë Elizabeth Sugg was born in

Lacock Lacock is a village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, England, about 3 miles (5 km) south of the town of Chippenham, and about outside the Cotswolds area. The village is owned almost in its entirety by the National Trus ...

, Wiltshire, on 28 March 1990. She has a younger brother, Joe Sugg, who is also a YouTuber. She attended The Corsham School in nearby

Corsham Corsham is a historic market town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England. It is at the south-eastern edge of the Cotswolds, just off the A4 national route, southwest of Swindon, southeast of Bristol, northeast of Bath and southwest of ...

. She earned

A-levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational a ...

in art, photography, and textiles, but did not attend university due to her

anxiety disorder Anxiety disorders are a cluster of mental disorders characterized by significant and uncontrollable feelings of anxiety and fear such that a person's social, occupational, and personal function are significantly impaired. Anxiety may cause phy ...

and not knowing what she wanted to do later in life.

Career

2009–2013: Career beginnings

Sugg was working as an apprentice at an

interior design Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. An interior designer is someone who plans, researches, coordin ...

company when she created her blog, "Zoella", in February 2009. By the end of the year it had a thousand followers and it had received over 540 million total visits. The fashion, beauty and lifestyle blog expanded into a

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

channel in 2009, while Sugg was working for British clothing retailer New Look. Sugg's main channel, Zoella, first named "zoella280390" after her birth date, is mostly fashion, beauty hauls, and "favourites" videos (showing her favourite products of the previous month). Her second channel, MoreZoella, contains mostly

vlogs A video blog or video log, sometimes shortened to vlog (), is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in ...

where she shows her viewers what she does in her day. She is a member of the

Style Haul StyleHaul was a marketing services, media, and technology company which gained recognition as an early pioneer of branded content and native advertising on digital platforms. The company was founded in 2011 by Stephanie Horbaczewski and operated ...

network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematic ...

and is represented by Dominic Smales at Gleam Futures. In 2013, Sugg was mentioned by ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...

'' as one of "Britain's most influential Tweeters". In 2013, she was named as one of the

National Citizen Service The National Citizen Service (NCS) is a voluntary personal and social development programmer for 15–17 year olds in England and Northern Ireland, funded largely by money from the UK Government. It was formally announced in 2010 by Prime Ministe ...

's ambassadors, helping to promote the newly launched youth service. The following year, she was named as the first "digital ambassador" for

Mind The mind is the set of faculties responsible for all mental phenomena. Often the term is also identified with the phenomena themselves. These faculties include thought, imagination, memory, will, and sensation. They are responsible for various m ...

, the

mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles Stress (biology), stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-maki ...

charity.

2014–2019: Zoella brands, book releases and media appearances

Sugg launched a range of beauty products under the brand name Zoella Beauty in September 2014. The "bath and beauty" range launch was, according to the '' Metro'', the "biggest beauty launch of the year". The products were developed and manufactured by Gloucestershire-based family-owned company SLG Allstars Ltd. She launched an edition of the products called "Tutti Fruity" in 2015, as well as a limited Christmas edition. Sugg has been a director of ZS Beauty Ltd, a wholesaler of perfume and cosmetics, since 2016. In 2016, Sugg launched an edition called "Sweet Inspirations", followed by other ranges including "Jelly & Gelato", "Splash Botanics" and "Fruit Medley". In September 2016, Sugg released a collection of homeware products, including stationery, candles and reed diffusers. This range was exclusive to

Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Boot or Boots may also refer to: Businesses * Boot Inn, Chester, Cheshire, England * Boots (company), a high-street pharmacy chain and manufacturer of pharmaceuticals in the United Kingdom * The Boot, Cromer St ...

. Each year subsequently, Sugg released a new collection of limited edition items under the Zoella Lifestyle brand, distributed by many UK retailers including Boots, Superdrug,

WHSmith WHSmith (also written WH Smith, and known colloquially as Smith's and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son) is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of high street, railway station, airport, port, hospital and m ...

, Dunelm,

House of Fraser House of Fraser (also operating as Frasers) is a British department store group with 44 locations across the United Kingdom, which is now part of Frasers Group. It was established in Glasgow, Scotland in 1849 as Arthur and Fraser. By 1891, it ...

and FeelUnique. Sugg has been a director of ZS Lifestyle Ltd since 2016. In March 2019, Sugg stated in her vlog that she had decided not to renew her licensing agreement with SLG, adding that it was "by far the project that earns me the most money out of anything I do". Sugg explained that she and SLG didn't agree on certain decisions, that producing more ranges beyond 2019 "didn't feel right", and she has a "new vision". The Zoella Beauty and Zoella Lifestyle products were discontinued in 2020. In October 2019, it was reported that the two businesses had a yearly revenue of £3.8 million. In June 2014, Sugg was a guest panellist on the daytime chat show ''

Loose Women ''Loose Women'' (previously known as ''Live Talk'' from 2000 to 2001) is a British talk show that broadcasts on ITV1 weekdays from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. The show focuses on a panel of four female presenters who interview celebrities, talk about ...

''. She also appeared on '' This Morning'' in July 2014 to talk about

social anxiety Social anxiety is the anxiety and fear specifically linked to being in social settings (i.e., interacting with others). Some categories of disorders associated with social anxiety include anxiety disorders, mood disorders, autism spectrum disor ...

. In 2014, Sugg signed a two-book deal with

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year. The North American publishing rights were purchased by Atria. Sugg's debut novel, ''

'', was released on 25 November 2014. The book is aimed at a

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

audience and surrounds a 15-year-old anonymous

blog A blog (a Clipping (morphology), truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in Reverse ...

ger and what happens when her blog goes viral. While based around her similar experiences, Sugg has stated that the book is "in no way

autobiographical An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

". The novel achieved the highest first-week sales for a debut author since

Nielsen BookScan BookScan is a data provider for the book publishing industry that compiles point of sale data for book sales, owned by The NPD Group in the United States and the Nielsen Company in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, So ...

began compiling such records in 1998, with 78,109 copies. , it was the fastest selling book of the year. Penguin stated that "Sugg did not write ''Girl Online'' on her own", stating that she had "worked with an expert editorial team to help her bring to life her characters and experiences in a heartwarming and compelling story". It was reported that young-adult novelist Siobhan Curham was a

ghostwriter A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often ...

for the novel, although neither Penguin nor Sugg confirmed this; Penguin stated that Curham was an editorial consultant for the novel. Zoe Sugg Tussauds

Sugg, along with

The Slow Mo Guys ''The Slow Mo Guys'' is a science and technology entertainment web series from Thame, England, United Kingdom created by Gavin Free, starring himself and Daniel Gruchy. It has been described as the biggest channel for slow motion videos on YouT ...

and

Vice News Vice News (stylized as VICE News) is Vice Media's current affairs channel, producing daily documentary essays and video through its website and YouTube channel. It promotes itself on its coverage of "under-reported stories". Vice News was create ...

, featured in television, print, and

billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

advertisements by YouTube in the UK which ran from 25 September 2014. The prime time TV adverts were broadcast on the three

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

UK channels. Sugg then featured on the 2014 single " Do They Know It's Christmas?" as part of the Band Aid 30 charity supergroup, raising money for the

Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa The 2013–2016 epidemic of Ebola virus disease, centered in Western Africa, was the most widespread outbreak of the disease in history. It caused major loss of life and socioeconomic disruption in the region, mainly in Guinea, Liberia and S ...

. The single debuted at No.1 on the

UK Official Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top ...

. Sugg also took part in the 2015

Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic epis ...

edition of ''

The Great British Bake Off ''The Great British Bake Off'' (often abbreviated to ''Bake Off'' or ''GBBO'') is a British television baking competition, produced by Love Productions, in which a group of amateur bakers compete against each other in a series of rounds, atte ...

''. A sequel to ''Girl Online'', titled '' Girl Online: On Tour'', was released on 20 October 2015. A third book, ''Girl Online: Going Solo'', was published on 17 November 2016. Sugg's books, alongside those by other

YouTubers YouTubers are people mostly known for their work on the video sharing platform YouTube. The following is a list of YouTubers for whom Wikipedia has articles either under their own name or their YouTube channel name. This list excludes people wh ...

, were criticised in 2017 for 'not being challenging enough' in a number of UK newspapers. In September 2015,

Madame Tussauds Madame Tussauds (, ) is a wax museum founded in 1835 by French wax sculptor Marie Tussaud in London, spawning similar museums in major cities around the world. While it used to be spelled as "Madame Tussaud's"; the apostrophe is no longer us ...

announced that they had placed wax figures of Sugg and Deyes on display in their London-based museum. In late 2016, Sugg and brother Joe released a range of branded merchandise called 'Sugg Life', created in collaboration with The Creator Store, a company owned by Alfie Deyes and Dominic Smales of Gleam Futures. The term 'Sugg Life' is a play on 'Thug life', a phrase popularised by

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

1990s File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-16s and McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, F-15s fly over burning o ...

hip hop group of the same name and more recently an

internet meme An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...

. The online shop offered a range of products such as

hoodie A hoodie (in some cases spelled hoody and alternatively known as a hooded sweatshirt) is a sweatshirt with a hood. Hoodies with zippers usually include two pockets on the lower front, one on either side of the zipper, while "pullover" hoodie ...

s, stickers and phone cases. In August 2017, The Creator Store opened a pop-up shop in

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

which, for ten days, sold limited edition 'Sugg Life X PB' merchandise; a collaboration of Sugg Life and Deyes' ' Pointless Blog' brands. As of May 2018, the Sugg Life online shop is no longer active. Sugg and Deyes are directors of A to Z Creatives and A to Z Merchandise, a Brighton-based brand agency, which they founded in 2018. They are also directors of Crew Live Limited (the company responsible for YouTube convention Hello World) alongside fellow YouTubers

Tanya Burr Tanya Burr (born 9 June 1989) is an English YouTuber and actress, who began posting makeup and fashion videos to her YouTube channel in 2009. In 2017, Burr began pursuing a career in acting, and has since had guest roles in series such as ''B ...

, Marcus Butler, Jim Chapman,

Caspar Lee Caspar Richard George Lee (born 24 April 1994) is a British-South African YouTuber turned investor and serial entrepreneur. He was featured in ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 in 2020 for his work in media and advertising. Career Lee started his YouTube ...

Louise Pentland Louise Alexandra Pentland (born 28 April 1985) is an English beauty, motherhood and lifestyle vlogger, blogger, YouTube personality and author. She is also known by her online pseudonym SprinkleofGlitter or SprinkleofChatter, although she publi ...

, Niomi Smart, Joe Sugg, and Gleam Futures CEO Dominic Smales. Sugg's non-fiction book, ''Cordially Invited'', offering advice on entertaining guests at home and planning celebrations, was published by

Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publishe ...

in October 2018. In December 2018, Sugg appeared on ''Happy Place'', a

podcast A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosin ...

presented by Fearne Cotton, and discussed her career, anxiety and her thoughts on social media.

2019–present: Business interests and ''The Magpie Society''

In February 2019, it was announced that Sugg had worked on a limited edition makeup range with

ColourPop Cosmetics ColourPop Cosmetics, also known as ColourPop, is an American cosmetics brand based in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded in 2014 by siblings Laura and John Nelson. ColourPop products are sold through their website and at Ulta Beauty. ...

, based on 70s fashion. In April 2019, Sugg announced Filmm, a mobile photography app that she co-developed with Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman. Later that year, she announced Template, another mobile editing app designed for editing

Instagram stories Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can be ...

. In August 2020, Sugg collaborated on a homeware range with

Etsy Etsy, Inc. is an American e-commerce company focused on handmade or vintage items and craft supplies. These items fall under a wide range of categories, including jewelry, bags, clothing, home décor and furniture, toys, art, as well as craft ...

, featuring products co-curated by herself and independent Etsy sellers. Also in August 2020, she partnered with mental health awareness organisation #IAmWhole and cosmetics retailer Lush on a "digital detox" campaign. With a "Digital Detox Day" on 5 September 2020, the campaign was created to "raise the issue of negative effects that social media can have on mental health" and "encourage users to build a healthier relationship with these platforms and their devices". As part of the partnership, Sugg created a bath bomb with Lush, which will aid global

grassroot A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or economic movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from the local level to effect change at t ...

groups to secure grants that will focus on mental health. In October, she and Deyes were announced as "ambassadors" promoting A Good Company, a maker of household products. On 29 October 2020, ''The Magpie Society: One for Sorrow'', a

young adult fiction Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

novel she co-authored with Amy McCulloch, was released. The book details events at an elite boarding school from the points of view of two girls – Ivy, written by Sugg, and Audrey, written by McCulloch. It was stated by Sugg that the book would act as the first of a series, with a sequel titled ''The Magpie Society: Two for Joy'' which was released in 2021.

Personal life

Sugg has been in a relationship with vlogger Alfie Deyes since October 2012. They made their relationship public in a blog post by Sugg in August 2013. They have a daughter named Ottilie (born August 2021) and reside in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

. Sugg attracted criticism from the media in November 2017 after releasing a 12-door £50

advent calendar An Advent calendar is used to count the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Since the date of the First Sunday of Advent varies, falling between November 27 and December 3 inclusive, many reusable Advent calendars made of paper or wood ...

, with the "extortionate price" and alleged poor quality receiving attention. The calendar contained items such as a small pack of confetti, a packet of seven stickers, and cookie cutters. A spokesperson for Sugg said, "Zoe is incredibly proud of the Christmas collection and excited to see it in store. However, the pricing and in-store promotional strategy of the collection, including the calendar, is at the control of third parties and is not set by Zoe." Also in November 2017, Sugg apologised following controversy surrounding posts she had made on social media between 2009 and 2012 mocking gay people and "fat

chav "Chav" (), also "charver", "scally" and "roadman" in parts of England, is a British term, usually used in a pejorative way. The term is used to describe an anti-social lower-class youth dressed in sportswear. * * * * "Chavette" is a related t ...

s". She responded on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

, claiming the posts had been "taken out of context" and writing, "I'm sorry if I have offended anyone, that was not my intention."

Bibliography

* ''

'' (2014) * '' Girl Online: On Tour'' (2015) * ''Girl Online: Going Solo'' (2016) * ''Cordially Invited'' (2018) * ''The Magpie Society: One for Sorrow'' (2020) * ''The Magpie Society: Two for Joy'' (2021)

Awards and nominations

Sugg won the 2011

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

Blog Award in the "Best Established Beauty Blog" category and went on to win the "Best Beauty Vlogger" award the following year. She was also awarded the 2013 and 2014 "Best British Vlogger" award at the Radio 1 Teen Awards; the 2014 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award for "UK Favourite Vlogger"; and the 2014 Teen Choice Award for "Choice Web Star: Fashion/Beauty". Sugg was listed as one of '' The Telegraph's'' "40 best beauty bloggers" in September 2014, and "Queen of the Haul" by

British Vogue British ''Vogue'' is a British fashion magazine published based in London since autumn 1916. It is the British edition of the American magazine ''Vogue'' and is owned and distributed by Condé Montrose Nast. British ''Vogue'' editor in 2012 c ...

in November. Hers was the fourth most popular channel in the UK in 2014. She was included in the 2015 ''

Debrett's Debrett's () is a British professional coaching company, publisher and authority on etiquette and behaviour, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of ''The New Peerage''. The company takes its name from its founder, John De ...

500'', listing the most influential people in Britain, under the New Media category. In 2015 she was named as the "Most Inspirational Women of the Decade" in technology by ''

Grazia ''Grazia'' (; Italian for ''Grace'') is a weekly women's magazine that originated in Italy with international editions printed in Albania, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Colombia, France, Germany. Greece, Indones ...

'' and she was named the 34th Sexiest Woman in the world by

FHM ''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...

. Sugg won the "Choice Web Star" award in the 'Fashion/Beauty' category at the

2015 Teen Choice Awards The 2015 Teen Choice Awards ceremony was held on August 16, 2015, at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California. The awards celebrate the year's achievements in music, film, television, sports, fashion, comedy, video games, and the Internet, and ...

. In 2019, Sugg, alongside her brother, was nominated for Social Media Superstar at the 2019 Global Awards.

References

Notes

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sugg, Zoe 1990 births 20th-century English people 20th-century English women 21st-century English businesspeople 21st-century English businesswomen 21st-century English novelists 21st-century English women writers Beauty and makeup YouTubers British Internet celebrities British women bloggers British women children's writers English bloggers English video bloggers English women in business English women non-fiction writers English women novelists English women writers English YouTubers Fashion YouTubers Lifestyle YouTubers Living people People from Brighton People from Wiltshire English female YouTubers