The ‘Zoella’ Renaissance: The comfort behind oldschool YouTube vloggers

If you’re like me, you will have stumbled upon a YouTube channel under the name ‘Zoella’ sometime in 2013 as a curious twelve year old. Zoella, also known as Zoe Sugg, has been uploading videos to the platform since 2009. Zoe began as a beauty vlogger, uploading clothing hauls, tutorials and collaborations with close friends. Many of her viewers found comfort in her videos, and her openness about her struggles with anxiety struck a chord of relatability with her audience. 

Over time, Zoe’s channel and popularity grew immensely, her peak being in 2014-15, where an exponential rise of British vloggers changed the YouTube scene forever - Zoe’s partner Alfie Deyes and her brother Joe Sugg were also a huge part of this and their popularity. So, where is Zoe now?

Zoe still uploads to YouTube, on her second channel ‘Zoe Sugg’. Her main channel ‘Zoella’ is still public, with over 10 million subscribers, but she doesn’t upload to the channel any more. Over on ‘Zoe Sugg’, Zoe posts regular vlogs, detailing her life with two children and what she is up to. There is a sense of comfort and nostalgia with Zoe’s videos, bringing viewers back to their teenage years when they used to watch clothing hauls and make-up tutorials, and now they are watching her enjoy daily life as a mum. This shift in content demonstrates how not only Zoe has grown up, but her viewers have with her. 

Zoe is also notorious for her daily vlogging, participating in ‘Vlogmas” (uploading a video every day in December up until Christmas Day) most years. In recent years, herself and Alfie have begun ‘Vlogust’, the same process, but uploading a vlog every day in August. Zoe began this in 2023 as an alternative to Vlogmas as she was due to have her second baby in the December, and she continued it this year as it proved so popular with her audience. These 40 minute videos every evening were a comfort space for her audience, and the routine of sitting down every evening knowing there was a new video to tune into created a special connection with Zoe and her audience. 

The vlogs are essentially a ‘best bits’ of the day, whether it be relaxing at home and baking or taking a family day trip to the Isle of Wight for her daughter’s third birthday. Despite many YouTube stars of the mid 2010’s phasing out of popularity, Zoe has stayed loyal to her audience and posted content catered to her audience and tight-knit community. As a viewer, the toned down casual content Zoe uploads appears to be a new era of YouTube, and for long-term viewers, still creates that feeling of nostalgia knowing you have grown up with Zoe and her content.