alphafoodie | InstagramIn this series, Instagram Icon, Entrepreneur speaks with the individuals behind popular Instagram accounts to find out the secrets of their success.
One bad date helped launch Samira Kazan’s Instagram career.
She had begun to grow frustrated with online dating when, on the evening of July 14, 2015, she wore a tight top to a first date and saw the man eyeing her “food baby.” Embarrassed, she went home and teared up, searching for stomach toning tips online. After discovering that eating a healthy breakfast was a top tip, she decided to give it a go.
“I said, ‘I’m going to try this because I’m going to look after myself — and screw all guys!’” she says. She resolved to focus on being happy while single — and to eat healthy for herself and no one else.
Kazan, who goes by @AlphaFoodie on Instagram, has more than 600,000 followers and is known for her creatively-topped smoothie bowls, geometric fruit shapes and wildly colorful breakfasts. But before sharing her food art on social media, she rarely ate breakfast — resulting in feeling distracted most mornings at work. She would regularly ask her co-workers to grab lunch at 11 a.m. — and they always said it was too early.
In Kazan’s line of work, focus is vital. She’s a postdoctoral research fellow at University College London, and in her research she analyzes brain signals from experiments conducted in MRI scanners to gauge which areas of the brain are active when. The Oxford University PhD graduate also teaches physics and mathematics to university students, but she’s currently taking a gap year in order to focus on Instagram and tutor in London.
How did such a unique background help Kazan reach Instagram success? “I’m a scientist,” she says. “I see what works and what doesn’t work based on statistical analysis.” If she sees her followers engage more with certain content — like her popular smoothies — she knows posting similar photos will help her account grow. Plus, she began using math, symmetry and shapes to set her account apart (think avocado stars and dragon fruit spheres).
Read on to learn how much Kazan makes from Instagram compared to her day job, her take on edible flowers and why she turned down an advertisement offer for almost $35,000.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
1. How did you get your start with Instagram?
I went to Google to look for healthy breakfast ideas, and I started hearing more about things like chia seeds and kale. I had never heard of those before — this is about two and a half years ago. I went to the market and bought some greens, and I started experimenting. My first was a smoothie bowl with pineapple, banana, lime, ground oats and spinach or kale. When I started trying these smoothie bowls, I was feeling better at work and concentrating more. I started encouraging everyone to eat them because it was really helping me.
The intention was never to post these photos on any social media — it was just for me. But when I showed pictures to my sister, she said, “Why don’t you put it on Facebook?” I said, “No, I don’t want to show off what I’m eating.” She insisted, so I made a Facebook album and shared my breakfasts with friends for a month or two. Then, they said, “Please stop spamming us with the food! Can you go to Instagram?” I wasn’t comfortable with social media, but after two or three months, I was bored one day, opened an Instagram account and started sharing. I noticed people starting to like the photos, and when I reached 100 followers, that was a big deal to me. I was like, “One hundred people believe in what I do!” I started to notice a trend — anytime I posted a smoothie, it became very popular, and I got loads of followers. It was growing and growing. After that, I was featured in Vogue magazine, and I think that brought exposure. After that, I was invited to China to appear on their national TV.
While all of this was happening, I was working full-time teaching MRI physics and mathematics to university students. As the account grew, I started getting offers to fly to places — Cannes, Dubai, Italy — to do workshops or sponsored events. In academia, you have a month of holiday, and I would take off work and use these holidays as Instagram workdays.
2. How much of your time do you spend on a post, and what does that entail?
I spend maybe two hours planning and creating, plus buying and shopping for ingredients. I have three people working for me — two part-timers and one full-timer. Usually, we don’t just go into the kitchen and create — we go to a coffee shop to plan. We’ll say, “Tomorrow, we’ll make a smoothie that will look like this.” I always experiment and come up with ideas, but sometimes it works well, and sometimes it’s so bad. But experimentation is fun!
Let’s say we’re going to make a smoothie bowl. I always have the frozen ingredients in my fridge. In drawers, I have frozen bananas, blueberries, strawberries –…
