At a Glance

  • Aerie, a brand under American Eagle, launched a new creator program this week called the Aerie Realmakers Community, with details shared with Marketing Dive via email.
  • The Realmakers Community aims to provide creators, a group long featured in Aerie's marketing, with opportunities to grow alongside the brand. Participants can earn commissions, product trials, event participation opportunities, and brand-led activities.
  • The program is open to users with at least 1,500 followers on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or Pinterest. Aerie's move follows its successful 2025, partly attributed to increased advertising spending.

Deep Dive

Aerie is bringing creators closer to the brand with the launch of the Realmakers Community. This move is a natural next step for the apparel and intimates brand, which frequently leverages creators and community members in its marketing as part of its commitment to authenticity. The program launches as creators take up a larger share of advertiser budgets, with the channel growing faster than the overall ad market last year.

Realmakers Community members will enjoy benefits such as affiliate commissions, personalized discounts, exclusive experiences, and opportunities for brand social media features. The program uses a tiered access system, ranging from local brand enthusiasts to established digital influencers, and prioritizes individuals focused on authentic content and fostering community.

As part of its authenticity commitment, Aerie also requires its creator program members to pledge not to retouch photos or use artificial intelligence. The brand stopped retouching photos in 2014 with its #AerieReal campaign and recently extended that pledge to not using AI-generated bodies or people in its marketing. The brand's resistance to AI content was highlighted in its latest '100% Aerie Real' campaign, which included a partnership with Pamela Anderson.

The Aerie Realmakers Community program, developed by brand advocacy platform Duel, is open to users who are at least 18 years old and reside in the U.S. The program's launch follows sister brand American Eagle's introduction of its national ambassador program, the AE Creator Community, in February, which similarly offers participants incentives to regularly promote and engage with the brand.

Beyond Aerie, other brands have recently invested in affiliate programs, including Macy's, Sephora, Chewy, and Lowe's.

Aerie's latest move follows its successful 2025, during which the brand saw comparable sales increase 9% year over year. In the fourth quarter, the brand's comparable sales grew 23%, with strong performance across categories such as apparel, activewear, and intimates. In a March interview with Marketing Dive, Aerie Chief Marketing Officer Stacey McCormick partly attributed the performance to increased advertising spending from parent company American Eagle Outfitters, which allowed the brand to make higher-profile investments.