Influencer Manon Berryman on Social Media, Self-Love, and Confidence

As an Instagram influencer with followers in the hundreds of thousands, Manon Berryman knows how social media can be a powerful force for change and community. What started as a blog to share plus-size clothing and lingerie brands with other French women has evolved into a career in social media for Manon. Her Instagram is a place where she shares her favorite curvy brands, confidence tips, and bits and pieces of her life as a French woman in America. “I don’t influence people,” she says. “I just listen and may help them from time to time to feel better with their body, self-love, and mental health.”

We chatted with Manon about the reality of social media, practicing self-love, and how she stays confident.

Hi, Manon! Thanks for chatting with us today. Can you share how you got started working in social media?

Hi guys! It all started when I used to work for an SEO agency back home in France in 2013. I’ve always been interested in digital marketing, and in France it’s much more complicated to find cute clothes or even basic lingerie at my size. So, I decided to start writing and posting about plus-size fashion on my Instagram and blog chicwithcurves (my first username and Instagram handle!) to show women that even past size 10 we can still feel beautiful, love our own body, and wear cute stuff! I wanted to help women feel okay wearing what they want to and helped them find online stores that were carrying our sizes. After a few invitations to be featured on TV, local news, and radio, I was booked for a photoshoot in Los Angeles. I fell in love with Los Angeles and decided to focus 100% of my time and energy to building my social media presence.

Was it always your goal to become an influencer?

Not at all. Haha! I was very surprised each time I grew my community a bit more because I never really had in mind that this would happen to me, and honestly I don’t really like the term influencer. I don’t consider myself as an influencer but more as a source of motivation for people who feel they can relate to me and my story.

What do you hope your audience takes away from your content?

By staying true to myself, I want to show that we don’t need to look perfect to feel at our best. I post more natural photos and authentic videos about the ups and downs of life. I like to be more transparent about my journey compared to the majority of influencers. I want to balance it out and show that we can still be natural and feel amazingly beautiful and happy, no matter our pants size, height, or where you come from.

You have a big following on Instagram and are always open with your followers, but is there anything you wish they knew about you that they might not see from your posts?

I’m pretty authentic on my social media, even on bad days it won’t stop me from posting. But I wish they knew how draining and stressful it is to create content on a daily basis, but I actually think they know. My point is that even if we are bombarded with viral videos and beautiful people online, social media is not reality. That’s all.

From your Instagram alone it’s easy to see that you’re a very confident person. Have you always been so confident?

I’ve always been motivated and determined to show people they can’t hurt me because I’m actually super sensitive. So I won’t say I’ve always been confident, but I definitely forced myself to fake it until it became easier and natural. Once you are more confident about yourself, a lot of opportunities and people are more attracted to you and it can change your life for the better.

You often share your favorite curvy and plus-size brands and style inspiration. What are your top tips for other curvy girls to feel confident in their skin?

My top tip is to stop paying attention to what people think, do, talk about. PERIOD. Mind your own business. This is you, your body, your skin. We are all different. Second would be to stop comparing yourself. Rich, poor, skinny, no matter who we are, we all struggle and we all have ups and downs. Life isn’t perfect so just take charge of your own happiness and don’t wait for anybody to save you. Third is to focus on yourself first and above all. Take yourself out on a date, take time to disconnect from social media and read, meditate, focus on building your strong foundation, build your ideal comfortable space. Don’t give yourself, your time, or energy to people who are not worth it.

What does body positivity/body confidence mean to you?

To me body positivity means that we are trying to change the stereotypes of beauty by showing more representation in the media. We need to show the world that we can be any size, any ethnicity, any height and still feel powerful, beautiful, sexy, and confident. Body confidence is more about how you feel looking at your body. Life is a long and crazy journey for us all. So you have to be confident on the inside first, know your value, what you bring to the table, your strengths, and weaknesses. You have to embrace who you are to feel confident in your mind to translate it also in your body. I don’t care that I don’t have a flat tummy or abs for example because it’s just not what will make me feel confident. I work out for my health not for how I’ll look in a dress.

You’re also a fan of our bras! Which Glamorise bra is your favorite? Tell us why you love it!

Honestly, I only wear Glamorise! I threw away all my other bras! My favorites are the front-closure, any styles! I have the WonderWire Front-Closure Stretch Lace Bra, the Lacey T-Back Front-Closure WonderWire Bra, and so many more. The front-closure is such a relief for me, it’s easy to wear and it’s the only bra that doesn’t hurt my fat arms on the sides and under the boobs. Bye-bye strap red marks on my shoulders!

Aside from your own Instagram, you’re also the co-founder of your own digital marketing agency, Berry Brand Agency. What are some of your goals for your company?

Berry Brand Agency was created to help businesses grow with social media, showing them how to advertise by not being too “salesy” like most brands are, and offering them all the different aspects of how social media can help them with: influencer marketing, paid ads, and content creation. I also created @berrybrandagency to offer a page for beginners who would like to learn how to create content for Instagram with tutorials and trendy IG Reels to reproduce to become a content creator and generate income from it.

Do you have any exciting projects in the works?

Yes, I actually am on the verge of releasing my first eBook in French (then in English) about how to become a digital content creator/influencer. I share all my secrets and strategies that I worked with and evolved over the past 10 years to generate income with social media.

Lastly, with what you know now, if you could give your younger self one piece of advice what would it be?

Stop overthinking Manon, you already know everything is going to be okay because we attract what we put out there. Don’t waste your time on people, focus on yourself first, this is the key. Be more patient, trust the process.