She built an empire from outfit photos. Then the internet receipts started piling up. If you’ve scrolled past drama on Instagram or seen Diet Prada calling someone out, you’ve probably crossed paths with this name. She’s the founder of WeWoreWhat, a fashion brand that’s equal parts aspirational wardrobe and controversy magnet.
Let’s break down who this influencer actually is and why her name keeps showing up in your feed.
The College Blogger Who Went Viral
Danielle Bernstein started WeWoreWhat back in 2010 as a college sophomore at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She wasn’t trying to launch a business empire or become a household name. She just wanted to document her daily outfits, share style tips, and connect with people who cared about fashion. The blog caught fire because her approach felt different at the time. She mixed high-street brands with designer pieces, proving you didn’t need a trust fund to look put-together.
By the time she graduated in 2012, she’d already racked up a serious following. Brands started sliding into her DMs with partnership offers, and she realized this could be more than a hobby. She moved to New York City, the unofficial headquarters of anyone trying to make it in fashion. Within a few years, she’d crossed the 1 million follower mark on her Instagram account, turning outfit posts into a full-time career before most people knew what influencer marketing even meant.
From Blogger to Business Owner
Who is Danielle Bernstein beyond the Instagram grid? She’s someone who saw an opportunity to turn influence into actual products. In 2016, she launched her first major collaboration with swimwear brand Onia. The collection sold out fast, proving her followers were ready to buy whatever she was selling. That success opened the floodgates for partnerships with retailers like Nordstrom, Macy’s, and Bloomingdale’s.
She didn’t stop at collaborations. Danielle expanded WeWoreWhat from a blog into a standalone fashion brand, selling everything from workout gear to loungewear. Her business model was simple: identify what her audience wanted, design it herself, and sell it through her site.
By 2018, she was pulling in millions annually from brand deals and merchandise. She became a fixture at New York Fashion Week and hung out with other influencers who’d made similar career moves.
The Controversies That Won’t Quit
Here’s where things get messy. In May 2018, watchdog account Diet Prada posted side-by-side comparisons showing striking similarities between her Lulu DK jewelry collaboration and pieces from independent designers like Foundrae and Retrouvaí. The post went viral, and suddenly people were asking uncomfortable questions about where her “inspiration” came from.
Danielle responded with a tearful Instagram Story, insisting the designs were personal and inspired by her late grandfather. Some pieces got pulled from Nordstrom’s website anyway. More accusations followed, creating a pattern that became impossible to ignore.
In July 2020, she posted about “vintage gym shorts from the ’90s” she planned to recreate for WeWoreWhat. Problem: They weren’t vintage at all but made-to-order pieces from an Australian Etsy shop called Art Garments. After Diet Prada called her out again, Danielle blamed a team member for the mix-up.
The same month, she launched face masks with safety chains. Latina-owned brand Second Wind had already done the same thing, and founder Karen Perez had screenshots of Danielle reaching out for samples just weeks before. The backlash was swift, and Danielle eventually deleted all photos from her feed.
August 2020 brought another round when Brooklyn designer Bailey Prado accused her of copying swimsuit designs for a Macy’s collection. By this point, the pattern was clear: small designers would accuse her of theft, Diet Prada would amplify their claims, and she would deny everything.
Building a Brand on Borrowed Ideas?
The accusations didn’t slow down her business machine. Danielle kept launching products, collaborating with brands, and posting like nothing happened. In 2020, she released her autobiography titled “This is Not a Fashion Story.” The book hit the New York Times bestseller list, but there was a catch: the Times added a dagger symbol next to it, indicating potential bulk purchases designed to game the rankings.
In April 2022, she partnered with fintech company Imprint to launch the WeWoreWhat Rewards Visa Card. On the surface, it sounded like a smart move for someone with millions of followers. Dig deeper, and people found issues. The cashback rewards could only be spent back on WeWoreWhat products, essentially turning it into store credit disguised as a credit card.
Her personal brand took more hits along the way. In February 2022, while Russia invaded Ukraine, she posted bikini photos with the caption “When I say you can do both, I truly mean it.” The internet collectively told her to read the room. She edited the caption to mention donating proceeds, but the damage stuck.
Where She Stands Today
So who is Danielle Bernstein today? She’s still posting on Instagram, still running WeWoreWhat, and still attracting attention for better or worse. Her follower count sits around 2 million, which is impressive but hasn’t grown much in recent years. The influencer landscape has changed since she started.
What makes her story interesting isn’t just the controversies but how she’s survived them. Cancel culture gets thrown around a lot, but she proves you can face repeated callouts and keep going if you’ve built a strong enough business foundation.
She represents a specific moment in influencer history. She came up when Instagram was newer, brand deals were easier to land, and followers equaled instant credibility. She built her empire during the gold rush era of social media monetization.
What Her Career Says About Influence
Who is Danielle Bernstein in the bigger picture? She’s someone whose journey highlights both the power and pitfalls of building a business on personal brand. She turned daily outfit posts into a multimillion-dollar empire, proving that influence can translate into real revenue. But her controversies also show what happens when growth outpaces ethics and when pressure to produce content leads to cutting corners.
The repeated accusations against her raise bigger questions about how influencers operate. How much original creativity is required when your business model is curating trends? Where’s the line between being inspired by something and copying it outright? And what responsibility do influencers have to the smaller creators they might overshadow?
These aren’t just her problems. They’re industry-wide issues that keep coming up as more people try to monetize their online presence. Her story serves as both a blueprint for success and a cautionary tale.
The Bottom Line
Who is Danielle Bernstein? She’s a fashion influencer who turned a college blog into a business empire, faced multiple design theft accusations, and kept building her brand despite the controversies. She represents both the promise of influencer entrepreneurship and its ethical gray areas.
What’s undeniable is her impact on how influencers monetize their platforms. She was early to the game, aggressive about turning followers into customers, and relentless about scaling her brand. The controversies might define her legacy just as much as her business success.
Her career continues as the influencer landscape shifts. New platforms emerge, audience expectations change, and accountability mechanisms get stronger. For now, she’s still posting, still selling, and still proving that survival in social media fame is its own kind of success.
