Shantanu Deshpande, Founder and CEO of Bombay Shaving Company, sparked debate on LinkedIn with a scathing indictment of influencers entering the realm of entrepreneurship.  Deshpande stated in a strongly written piece that most influencers are unsuitable as business founders, noting their desire for rapid gratification and lack of long-term vision.

“The essence of influencers’ work requires quick reward.  Views, interaction, and popularity.  Today.  This moment,” he stated, adding that their concentration on social media data makes them “slaves to distribution.”

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Deshpande contrasted this with the mindset required to establish long-term firms, saying, “Founders (at least good ones building anything meaningful) understand this is a game of decades.”  They can’t afford to be diverted by the here-and-now nonsense of social media.”

He questioned the viability of influencer-driven firms, particularly those influenced by Western success tales.  “They’ve been taken for a ride by Mr Beast, Logan Paul, and Kylie Jenner-type aberrations from the West, who pump false printed dollar-value into non-COGS elements of businesses,” he said, quoting brand strategist Adheet Gogate.

Deshpande also expected a reality check for influencer-driven companies, citing emerging market conditions.  “All of this will be shaken down by China, as we’re already seeing,” he warned, without mentioning any specific examples or markets.

His piece concluded with advice for influencers who want to become entrepreneurs: “Find operators, structure equity that reflects fair value added, and see if it works.”

While Deshpande’s statements elicited both sympathy and condemnation online, they revived debate about the feasibility of influencer-backed firms, particularly in an era where social media celebrity is increasingly associated with business savvy.