text: It is true that Ms. Kardashian, along with her sisters Kourtney and Khloé, and their mother, Kris Jenner, command a branding empire that includes fashion boutiques, fitness videos, credit cards, a best-selling fragrance, skin care products and a self tanner. Ms. Kardashian herself has represented many other products in advertisements, including some that a reasonable person might consider to be sending mixed messages. In one ad she promotes QuickTrim weight-loss products; in another, Carl’s Jr. While it is not unusual for celebrities who are famous for being famous to aggressively capitalize on their exposure, Ms. Kardashian, who made her debut on the public stage in the form of a sex tape, stands out for the fact that she is generally still regarded in a positive light by many consumers. 
   
   Mr. Passikoff, the president of Brand Keys, a New York research company that monitors consumer perception of brands, noted that Ms. Kardashian is currently tied with Snooki at the top of its celebrity loyalty index, a survey that gauges consumer engagement with celebrities. Kourtney and Khloé Kardashian also figure in the top seven. 
   
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   “There was a time when Paris Hilton topped that list, when she was the most famous person for being nothing we had ever seen,” Mr. Passikoff said. (Ms. Hilton is now in third place.) Interestingly, he noted, many consumers associate Ms. Kardashian with entrepreneurship, far more so than other celebrities. 
   
   Outside Bebe, though, a more complicated picture emerged as to what draws all these young people to Ms. Kardashian. Most of them had heard about the event on Twitter, and most said they saw something inspiring in her example. But what does she represent? 
   
   “The average girl,” said Julie Sunday, 22, from Scranton, Pa., who recently left a job doing accounting work for a political media buying company in Washington. 
   
   “She represents fashion,” said Wendy Sosa, 22, a waitress from the Bronx. “I like the way she dresses.” 
   
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   “She has an ethnic sex appeal,” said Sarah Harooni, 26, a paralegal from Queens. “I like how she created a franchise with her sisters. That opens a lot of opportunities for women who have a spark of beauty and want to shine. She reminds me of Sophia Loren.” 
   
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   “She stands out from every other celebrity in the world,” said Emma Brodel, 21, a journalism student from Queensland, Australia. “She is natural and curvaceous. There are too many thin celebrities out there who make women feel they are overweight.” 
   
   Ms. Kardashian, who is 30, is unfailingly polite when discussing her brand, one that was largely created through her public exposure since 2007 on the E! reality show “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” She does not talk about fashion and image as most designers and celebrity designers do, with platitudes about quality and authenticity, but rather as a person who seems wholly content to allow consumers to project upon her whatever image they wish. 
   
   “I really do believe I am a brand for my fans,” she said. 
   
   She does not talk about design in terms of cut or craft, either, but of Twitter and Facebook, of blogs and text messages. When fans ask her what she is wearing or what lip gloss she uses, she answers them and then creates products in the vein of what they like. When she was deciding on a color for her Kim Kardashian perfume bottle, she asked her followers on Twitter whether they preferred a hot pink or a light pink. (It was light pink, by far.) “Twitter is the most amazing focus group out there,” she said. 
   
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   But ultimately, what Ms. Kardashian and her sisters create and sell are products based on their own image, and not much of it is particularly distinctive from the standard uniforms of Southern California nightclubs. At Bebe, the best-selling item has been a slinky one-shoulder dress for $98. At QVC, one of the most popular items on its Web site has been a slinky one-shoulder dress for $49.75. Both collections have leggings that can be worn with cute printed tunics. All of her jewelry collections have a slightly vintage feel and strong influences of Armenian design, reflecting Ms. Kardashian’s familial roots. 
   
   “I try to find inspiration from what is on the runway,” Ms. Kardashian said. “But I think hoops are a staple. Whether or not they are in, we always get compliments on them.” 
   
   The Bebe jewelry, priced from $24 to $98, includes Lucite hoops accented with gold flakes and gold hoops trimmed with what look like tiny jewels, which Ms. Kardashian wore to her store appearance Tuesday. 
   
   “We make the kind of clothes we like to wear,” she said. “We give answers to the questions our customers are asking. I think that’s why we’ve been successful.” ||||| It Would Be Bad Business for Kim Kardashian to Get Married Now 
   
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   Sorry Kris! We just don't think it is a great idea for 
   
   
   
   While Kim is the undeniable kingpin of the Kardashian empire, she is also a cog in a well-oiled machine that uses the show 'Keeping up With the Kardashians' to sell a slew of consumer products -- from shoes to perfume, weight loss aids to bathing suits. 
   
   
   
   The trifecta of Kardashian sisters -- Kim, Kourtney and Khloe -- assault and delight consumer sensibilities weekly on their reality show and from the pages of celebrity news magazines. The brilliance of their marketing is that they each appeal to a different demographic of consumer. 
   
   
   
   The Kardashian klan (had to do that) is utilizing some skillful product differentiation to appeal to various groups of women. Sorry Kris! We just don't think it is a great idea for Kim Kardashian to walk down the aisle too soon. Secretly, the savvy momager business lady in Kris Jenner must agree.While Kim is the undeniable kingpin of the Kardashian empire, she is also a cog in a well-oiled machine that uses the show 'Keeping up With the Kardashians' to sell a slew of consumer products -- from shoes to perfume, weight loss aids to bathing suits.The trifecta of Kardashian sisters -- Kim, Kourtney and Khloe -- assault and delight consumer sensibilities weekly on their reality show and from the pages of celebrity news magazines. The brilliance of their marketing is that they each appeal to a different demographic of consumer.The Kardashian klan (had to do that) is utilizing some skillful product differentiation to appeal to various groups of women. 
   
   Khloe is the newlywed! She markets to all those married ladies who fretted about losing weight before they walked down the aisle and are now looking for new ways to make their husbands happy and keep them interested.Kourtney plays two roles. She is the new mommy! Yay! Everyone loves hearing stories about the baby, and with mommy bloggers growing in influence in the consumer market, she is perfectly positioned to sell them all sorts of Kardashian goods.But Kourtney is also the one with the crappy boyfriend. Every time Scott pops a collar, throws a tantrum and comes home at 4AM, frustrated girlfriends everywhere give Kourt a virtual high five ... and then buy some QuickTrim.And finally we have Kim. What is Kim besides hot? She's single AND SHE HATES IT. Last week, Kim appeared on the cover of PEOPLE magazine with the cover line: "I thought I'd be married by now."Inside, she told the mag: "If you were to ask me in high school where I would be at 30, I would have said I'd be a housewife with four kids."Fortunately for Kim, the single businesswoman is a pretty big niche. Her PEOPLE declaration made single women between 25 and 35 everywhere say, "Yes, I thought I would be married by now too. Thank you Kim. Now I relate to you, and where can I buy your perfume?" Or something along those lines."It's not only appealing for the Kardashians to appeal to a broader set of demographics, but they do so in the context of a family unit, which allows them to differentiate themselves further. It also makes them more relatable to audiences in the context of friends and family," explains Nelson Gayton, executive director of the Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment & Sports at UCLA's Anderson School of Management. "The life experiences of each woman create a rooting interest in the family that perpetuates interest in each one of them, thereby growing their audience for their core brand."These ladies (with some help from Kris) know exactly what they're doing. If Kim gets hitched, we fully expect Kourtney to ditch Scott and move into her sister's single shoes, followed in short order by a Khloe pregnancy announcement. They're evil marketing geniuses through and through. Now, where can I get that perfume?
target: – Kim Kardashian is nothing if not polarizing. A New York Times profile acknowledges that for every person who hates her (her fans are "classless, tasteless, and clueless sheep," says one) there are many more who will follow her on Twitter, wear her clothes, buy products she's endorsed, and even compare her to Sophia Loren (yes, really). "You would have had to be living in a cave in Nepal to have not been exposed in one way or another to the celebrity ilk of Kim Kardashian," says one branding expert. Perhaps shockingly to some, Kardashian—whose empire includes fashion and jewelry lines, boutiques, fitness videos, credit cards, and cosmetics—actually tops the celebrity loyalty index at one research company, meaning consumers view her quite positively. (Even more shockingly, she's tied for the top spot with Snooki.) Consumers associate Kardashian with entrepreneurship, the branding expert says. And Kardashian seems to revel in her role: "I really do believe I am a brand for my fans," she says. (Click here to read why it would be bad for business if Kim were to get hitched.)