A big question facing luxury brands: Are you a customer or an influencer?

Open this photo in gallery: A growing group of luxury consumers operate as both paying clients and comped influencers.Illustration by Salini Perera Content creator Sofia Baldassarra receives so many free beauty products, she jokes that she has her own “Sof-ora”, a wink to the retail powerhouse Sephora. “Every day, this doorbell is ringing with a million packages of beauty, skincare, even clothing,” she says, speaking from the bedroom of her Toronto home. “I just got a bag today from Moose Knuckles. Brands are very, very generous when it comes to PR.” But it’s not like Baldassarra needs the freebies. Her…