Kylie Jenner might've just given us a clue as to how the Kardashians will attempt to maintain their fame and relevancy following the announcement that Keeping Up With the Kardashians is coming to an end.
Last week, Kim, Kris, and Khloé posted statements on Instagram revealing that the show, which boosted the family to fame and became the "mothership" of their brand, will air its final season early next year.
"Without Keeping Up with The Kardashians, I wouldn't be where I am today," Kim wrote. "I am so incredibly grateful to everyone who has watched and supported me and my family these past 14 incredible years."
But along with the announcement came the big question — how will the Kardashians move forward when the show that they've used to maintain control over their public image and the narrative surrounding them is no more?
Enter Kylie, who has always taken somewhat of a backseat on the show and has mastered the use of social media to create an empire that's estimated to be worth around a billion dollars.
Since the launch of her Lip Kits back in 2015, Kylie has leveraged her popularity on Instagram to rake in the money, needing little to no budget for advertising as a result of her huge following.
And now it looks like the Kardashians are pivoting toward social media more than ever before, with Kylie's latest YouTube offering basically becoming one long ad for a bunch of her own products.
In a video titled "What's In My Bag", Kylie revealed the contents of her Birkin. Of course, a few Kylie Cosmetics products were to be expected, but for eight minutes the mogul plugged away harder than usual, revealing new products and upcoming release dates.
The video included:
* Unreleased Kylie Skin hand sanitiser
* A Kylie Skin PR card for a soon-to-be-released hyaluronic acid serum, including a plug for the release date.
* The Kylie x KKW Fragrance collab, which Kylie called her "favourite perfume of all time".
* Unreleased Kylie Skin scrunchies.
* Kylie x Kendall blotting powder.
* Kylie Skin sunscreen.
* Kylie Skin wipes.
* A face mask from Kim's Skims line.
* Kylie Skin lip balms along with an announcement for an upcoming restock.
* A plug for Kylie's collab with Ulta for plumping lip gloss, including the release date.
* Numerous Kylie Cosmetics Lip Kits, including one that's yet to be released.
* The Kylie x Kendall lip blush.
And although Kylie included some items that didn't belong to a Kardashian business, people basically thought that the real reason for the video was was all about self-promotion.
Kylie Jenner uploaded a whole YouTube video on “what’s in my bag” & tell me why it has all her products in her bag, if it was a PR stunt just say that sis😂
ain’t no fckn way sb carries an unopened package of lipgloss. she coulda said it was a promotional video😭
Kylie Jenner what’s in my bag YouTube was just an advert for all her products😂
It wasn't long until a debate in the comments section was born, with other people pointing out that of course Kylie has a bag full of her own products.
Khloé provided further proof that the Kardashians may pivot more heavily toward Instagram and influencing once KUWTK ends, posting her latest ad for Febreze to her 121 million followers.
Kourtney has been leaning more into influencing for a while too, promoting her wellness and lifestyle brand Poosh on Instagram.
While Kim has seen similar success to Kylie in promoting her products on social media, recently unveiling her new maternity line with Skims.
So is this what the future of the Kardashian empire looks like when their mothership no longer exists? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
