In this episode of Origins of Influence, host Dina Fierro sits down with Karen Robinovitz—cultural bellwether, serial entrepreneur, and one of the original architects of the influencer economy. As co-founder of Digital Brand Architects (DBA), Karen helped professionalize influencer representation long before it became an industry standard, spotting the value of digital creators before the rest of the world caught on.

Today, Karen is the founder of Sloomoo Institute, a multisensory experience centered on play, joy, and emotional wellness. In this conversation, Karen reflects on the throughline between her ventures—how reinvention has defined her career, why she’s stepped back from social media, and what it looks like to build something tactile, analog, and healing in a hyper-digital age.

We discuss:

• Karen’s evolution from journalist and trend forecaster to co-founding DBA
• The early days of influencer marketing and building infrastructure for creators
• Navigating visibility, advocacy, and polarization as a founder
• Why she stepped back from social media—and what influence means to her now
• The grief that ultimately sparked the creation of Sloomoo Institute
• How Sloomoo blends analog joy with IP building, animation, and new technologies

Recommended by Karen:

• Kennedy Yanko (artist)
• Rachel Youn (artist)
• Marisa Thalberg (CMO, Catalyst Brands)

About Origins of Influence

Hosted by longtime fashion and beauty marketer Dina Fierro, Origins of Influence is a limited series exploring the past, present and future of the creator economy through intimate conversations with pioneering influencers, creators and founders. Find show notes and exclusive content on Substack. Subscribe on YouTube and follow Origins of Influence on Instagram and TikTok for clips, full-length episodes, BTS and more.

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