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By Mandy Zuo for South China Morning Post
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Influencers in China who posed as “Middle Eastern princesses” to market “royal” lifestyle products have had their accounts banned on mainland social media platforms, igniting widespread attention.
Luo Jialin, a popular Douyin key opinion leader (KOL) with 100,000 followers, shared a video in front of a luxurious villa, dressed in an elegant gold evening gown and adorned with a striking jade necklace, with her arm around an Arab-looking man.
Luo claimed: “My husband is a young prince from a wealthy and influential Saudi family. I’m over four months pregnant.”
She also mentioned her plans to relocate to Saudi Arabia with her husband soon, stating she is selling off “hundreds of millions in assets” in China at a loss to give back to her fans.
During her live-stream, Luo offered various items labelled as “French perfume” and “British royal laundry detergent”, all priced under 50 yuan (US$7).
Many viewers expressed scepticism about the products, commenting: “Why are the prince and princess selling ordinary items instead of luxury goods?”
However, those who voiced such doubts were promptly removed from the live-stream by the host.
Another female influencer, dressed in traditional Middle Eastern attire and a headscarf, sat in a luxury car alongside her “Dubai prince”.
She announced plans to divorce her husband and intended to sell products at discounted prices to liquidate assets.
In one live-stream, 300 pairs of stockings priced at 6 yuan were sold, alongside over 1,000 orders for 2kg of “British laundry detergent” at 6.99 yuan each.
China Youth Daily, a state-run media outlet, reported that these influencers hired foreign actors to impersonate princes and princesses while selling low-quality products. Their accounts were subsequently banned, and the products removed from sale.
As of this writing, the specific penalties imposed on them have not been disclosed.
Meanwhile, the Dubai Chinese community, DXBcom, issued a statement clarifying that no royal family members from Arab states had authorised any live-stream sales in China.
The viral “Middle Eastern princess” live-stream phenomenon has sparked extensive discussions across mainland social media.
A netizen remarked on Weibo: “These influencers are exploiting fans’ admiration and curiosity towards successful and wealthy elites.”
“My mother once bought a 30 yuan (US$4) perfume from a so-called princess, and it smelled terrible. Do not be deceived by cheap offers; it’s clearly a scam targeting older individuals with poor judgment,” shared another user.
This trend has also drawn the attention of genuine Chinese influencers married to individuals from Middle Eastern countries.
One such KOL, known as “Saudi Rou Sister”, shares her journey of launching a perfume brand with her husband in Saudi Arabia on Douyin, amassing 2.55 million followers.
She commented: “There aren’t that many so-called rich tycoons in the Middle East. True nobles tend to remain low-key and do not frequent social media.”
Source: South China Morning Post
https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3291068/china-kols-banned-posing-wives-dubai-royalty-sell-subpar-household-items
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