Music, television and movie fans might be able to meet their favorite celebrities face-to-face… for the right price.
That’s courtesy of a growing trend in the entertainment industry that has celebrities lining up to trade some of their time in exchange for a hefty payout.
A number of budding companies are making names for themselves representing celebs by arranging private engagements with well-paying (and admiring) fans.
While many celebrities bolster their personal incomes courtesy of this developing business opportunity, others have more altruistic purposes in mind.
Businesses in the Business
There are a number of companies that serve as liaisons between stars and the general, paying public, including:
- XM Concierge – This company delivers a number of services to help the elite enjoy life to the fullest. From helping paying clients get into the most exclusive nightspots to assisting with backstage meetups with musicians, it does it all. Meet-and-greets with celebrities and personal celebrity appearances can set clients back between $20,000 and $150,000, Bloomberg Business notes.
- BidKind – This is a unique spin on a private celebrity meet up. Rather than benefit the star, this service puts celebrities on auction for their favorite charities. Fans bid online for the privilege of meeting a famous person with the winning bidder’s cash going to a predetermined charity. The auctions hosted by BidKind name the star up for grabs and may also have specific details in regard to meetup location.
- Private promotions – VIP packages for concerts that include private, ticketed meet-and-greets with stars either before or after shows have become a staple in the music industry. Spinner PR’s Deborah Brosseau told Bloomberg more than half her business now involves profit-based VIP events.
Why the Growing Interest?
Charity work aside, there are a number of reasons why celebs and their fans are flocking to services offered by companies such as XM Concierge.
One of the biggest, Brosseau pointed out is the fact they provide stars with an extra, and often stronger, income stream than their main contracts. This is also why so many stars have taken on endorsement deals, serve as celebrity spokespeople and even invest their hard-earned dollars in startup companies.
For fans, the motivations may go beyond the obvious dream of meeting their favorite stars. These private meetups may also improve their social standings dramatically by increasing followers on such online platforms as YouTube, Vine and Twitter. That means the investment in the meeting can have a longer-term impact for fans, as well.
Whatever the motivations, one thing seems to be very clear: the days of free autographs and snapshots with celebs are all but over.
“It used to be that you could get a picture with someone as a trade-off for your fandom, but now there are no freebies,” Brosseau said.
