The global rise of instagram as a storytelling and sharing platform has given users a unique peek into the lives of people they know off screen, as well as into those they wish they knew– and from the latter, we’ve seen the global rise of the ‘digital influencer.’ 

Whether it be the products they use, the places they travel or the food they eat, everyday people look to the budding world of digital influencers for inspiration that they can bring into their own lives. Not only have the lives of digital influencers become similar to ‘fantasy’ worlds many viewers dream of living, but they’ve helped lead brands to make millions of dollars in profits. 

Born in Sao Paulo, Brazil and raised in Paris, Renan Pacheco is among the most recognizable French digital influencers in the world today, and it’s not hard to see why. In fact, earlier this year he was handpicked to be included in Kolsquare’s select group of six Influencers Under 30 to Follow in 2019.

Renan explains, “I help fashion brands tell a story. Through posts and IG stories, I tell stories to my community to promote new products and trends. I’m always happy to interact with my 650,000-plus followers when they comment or send me a direct message.”

With a continually growing Instagram following of more than 650K users, Pacheco’s heart-stopping good looks and magnetism in front of the camera coupled with his ability to help brands tell engaging stories has made him a hot commodity in the social media world. 

Pacheco has been so successful in his work as a digital influencer that he was nominated for a prestigious People’s Choice Award in 2018 in the French Pop Culture Influencer category. He has also been nominated in both the Travel and Fashion categories for the Influencer Award Monaco at the 2019 Monaco Digital Influencer Awards, which will take place this October.

Prior to moving into his now 24/7 job as a digital influencer, Pacheco made a name for himself back home in Paris as a highly sought after actor and model. Earlier in his career, he was the featured actor in commercials for the massive French multinational food company Danone’s popular Danao beverage, and TF1’s hit series “Nos Chers Voisin,” as well as played the critical role of Stefano Cobalt in the film “Cobalt” directed by multi-award winner David Tomaszewski for Dolce and Gabbana. Though Pacheco’s looks and charisma have undoubtedly helped him along the way, he has far more going for him than simply being a good looking face. He is an extremely talented content creator, and thanks to his experience in front of the camera as both a model and an actor, he knows how to embody the perfect emotional vibe within every image captured. Simply, he knows how to tell you a story without even speaking

Though the career of a digital influencer appears to be a relatively new phenomenon, in reality it’s not all that different from those of the flocked to figures, such as actors, entertainers and athletes over the past century, who have gained sponsorships from brands to promote what they have to offer. The biggest difference is arguably the fact that the digital influencer IS a brand in itself. Everything from the way they look off camera and the way they live their lives to the content they curate has to be methodical and purposeful. Digital influencers don’t take random photos and throw them into the digital world with their fingers crossed. The best, like Pacheco, know they will make waves when they post.

We needn’t look further than Pacheco’s instagram profile for proof this. Individually each of his photos grab our attention with clean composition, an engaging subject (himself) and more often than not, the beautifully exotic and breathtaking background of a foreign country. When looking at Pacheco’s page, the tonal continuity of his collection of images immediately apparent, you can tell that he knows better than anyone that seamless continuity is integral to visual appeal. There is nothing random about what he chooses to post.

“Companies leverage us Influencers for our media exposure as well as for our creativity. My pictures must thus take both criteria into account… Often, the picture is what will satisfy the follower, and the caption is what will satisfy the storytelling” explains Pacheco. says, “Every picture immortalises a moment. When looking back 50 years from now, I know I can trust that these pictures show how things really were. I feel a responsibility to present the moment faithfully and accurately to my fans.” 

From the outside it may look like pure glitz and glamour, but at the end of the day, it is still an important job in the branding and advertising industries, albeit one that comes with more perks than most.

Pacheco admits,“Some days when your personal life takes a hit, you have to focus on your followers and make sure you’re still creating value in an up-beat, positive way. They follow you for entertainment, not for negativity, which is often inevitable in the long term.”

Pacheco’s abounding success as a digital influencer has put him in the spotlight as the star of countless digital campaigns, including those for the fragrance “Zadig et Voltaire” and the “Police Sunglasses” from @Policelifestyle. Both of these shoots were photographed by famous fashion photographer Florian Saez, who has quite a bit to say about what makes Pacheco such a uniquely powerful figure amongst the world’s top digital influencers.

“Renan has the paradoxical mix of possessing a high follower count as well as a high engagement ratio… when Influencers grow in follower count, they naturally experience a decline in engagement ratio. This is to be expected since the more followers one gets, the further form their inner circle these followers tend to be. These unknown followers tend to engage very little, decreasing the total percentage of likes and comments for posts and stories,” Saez explains confidently. 

“Despite this macro phenomenon seen across all sectors of Influencer marketing, Renan has remained in his 3 to 5 percent engagement ratio window despite consistently adding around 200,000 new followers every year. This is a characteristic unseen with other influencers and the projects he chooses to work with definitely benefit from this signature feature.” 

Over the years Renan Pacheco has not only become a digitally influential icon in the eyes of brands and Instagram users alike, but he has also been requested to shoot numerous feature editorials for magazines including Bello Mag, where he had a 10-page spread last year and Pakistan’s Good Times magazine, where he had a 4-page spread earlier this year. His international fame has also put him in the spotlight as a featured celebrity at brand events for the likes of Jean Paul Gaultier, Diesel, Messika, Berluti, Bvlgari and more.

At the end of the day, Pacheco says, “ I get to travel and meet people from around the world. An Influencer is no more, no less, than a storyteller. That being said, most often I find myself listening to stories, life lessons and can’t help but wonder how much more there is to learn.”