Elon Musk has become very influential with more than 109.1 million followers on the social network Twitter.
Only former President Barack Obama, with 133.5 million followers, and pop star Justin Bieber, with nearly 114 million followers, are ahead of him.
At the pace where his popularity is growing, the CEO of Tesla (TSLA) should threaten the throne of Obama in a few months.
Musk has recently turned his influence into power.
The billionaire has been trying for several days now to play diplomat in the Russia-Ukraine war. This conflict, which started on Feb. 24 with the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, has already caused thousands of deaths and caused the displacement of millions of others.
The tech tycoon, who says he fears that this conflict will turn into World War III with the possibility of nuclear weapons being used, has thus proposed a very controversial peace plan.
This initiative, rejected by the Ukrainians including President Volodymyr Zelensky, caused a stir but provoked a debate on the solutions for ending this war which is escalating.
Growing Power
Above all, it proved that Musk now had considerable power to the point of disrupting global geopolitical affairs and shaking up traditional diplomacy.
The billionaire does not stop there and continues to test his power, sometimes in unexpected and very surprising sectors.
Musk, who is already involved in several sectors of economic activity, on Oct. 12 entered a new industry. This industry is all about beauty and has traditionally been dominated by brands, like Chanel, Dior, that have spent decades creating a singular bond with consumers.
But in recent years, the industry has been shaken up by influencers with the emergence of the creator economy. The success of the Kardashian-Jenner family thus symbolizes the rise of influencers in the beauty industry.
From now on, this industry should count with Musk, who launched his perfume. This perfume/eau de cologne, called Burnt Hair, is now sold out, said the billionaire on Oct. 18.
"28,700 bottles of exquisite Burnt Hair perfume already sold!" he posted on Twitter at around 9:45 PM ET. "Only 1,300 left of this unique, limited edition, collector’s item."
A little over two hours later, he posted another message: "And … sold out!"
Musk Takes Risks to Prove a Point
This means that the billionaire had planned only a limited edition comprising 30,000 bottles of this fragrance sold at a price of $100 per unit, including shipping costs for American customers.
So he generated revenue of at least $3 million in 6 days. If this sum seems insignificant compared to the wealth of Musk, which amounts to $208 billion at the time of this writing according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, it nevertheless reflects the power selling of the billionaire.
Indeed, the perfume is far from the vision of Musk, who decided to transform civilization as we know it today. In particular, he is developing Optimus, a humanoid robot that will replace labour, especially in developing countries and in factories.
He is transforming the car, one of the most popular means of transport, with Tesla.
And he promises that humans will live on the planet Mars in our lifetime.
By venturing into perfume, Musk is proving (or proving to himself) that he can sell anything. He could sell shoes, t-shirts etc.
"Burnt Hair" is marketed by Musk as "The Essence of Repugnant Desire." The fragrance, which comes in a red bottle, is "omnigender."
Musk does not say if he will continue to sell this perfume in the future. He also does not say if it will launch other beauty products.
The billionaire had started to float the idea of the perfume last month. This came across as some kind of inside joke.
"Burnt Hair – Scent for Men by Singed," the billionaire said on Sept. 27. "Coming soon from @BoringCompany, the same people that sold you a Flamethrower."
He added that: "Stand out in a crowd! Get noticed as you walk through the airport!"
