The First Family of Instagram

One night a few months ago, Sarah Phillips opted for white ceramics upon which she set olives, meats, cheeses and a baguette, all angled just so. Sauces were not in their store-bought containers but spooned into tiny dishes. Olive oil was ready to be drizzled from a glass bottle. Candles were lit and strategically set.

A pre-meal photograph is traditionally a family ritual, a modern-day version of saying grace. But an exception was made to the household rule of “Don’t touch your food until a picture has been taken”. That’s because another rule supersedes it: “Don’t post more than two photos a day.” And Phillips, 61, had already posted twice that day to her feed @food. There was a photo of corn and pumpkins shared with her more than 330,000 followers. It garnered about 4,500 likes. The other photo showcased a strawberry mousse cake; 6,900 likes.

This night was different because, for a change, the Eswein-Phillips family just went ahead and ate dinner.

Phillips is the matriarch of what may be called the First Family of Instagram. In addition to the @food handle, she has another account, @baking, which has more than 27,000 followers. Her son, Tom Eswein, 29, is behind @realestate, with its modest but growing following of 3,800.

Until recently, he worked on @food with his mom, but they recently decided to separate their @interests because family is complicated. Her daughter, Liz Eswein, 25, is the force behind @newyorkcity, which has 1.1 million followers. Liz Eswein is also the executive director of Cycle, a division of a social media talent agency. Cycle represents influential Instagrammers and tries to help them make money from their feeds.

Aside from the fact that family life revolves around an app, there is something normal about the Eswein-Phillips crew. Tom Eswein, who recently married, lives on the Upper East Side. Until recently, Liz Eswein lived at home with her mother and stepfather in their midtown apartment. They are a close family and sit down together for meals often. Around well-dressed, perfectly lit tables, Phillips espouses important family values.

“Stick to your brand,” she chanted on this night. “Stick to your brand, stick to your brand,” she repeated.

As even adult children are wont to do, they bristle at their mother’s advice. This dynamic is particularly electric between mother and daughter. Phillips calls it the “prom dress thing”, referring to a time when Eswein as a young girl would ask for her mother’s opinion and then proceed to do the opposite.

Like sticking to the brand, lighting is also a big family issue. When they eat at home, Phillips can dim or illuminate the chandelier that hovers above the table and the perfect background is provided by the Empire State Building, which is visible from the windowed room.

But when they’re dining out, they’re at the mercy of others. “If the light isn’t right, I’ll ask to move tables,” Phillips said.

“Yep,” a voice from the living room chimed in. It was Reed Phillips, Phillips’s husband and the Esweins’s stepfather. “A few times.”

Reed Phillips, an investment banker, has an Instagram account but does not much use it. “That’s their thing,” he said.

And now the family dogs are getting in on the action. There is a new Instagram account started by Sarah Phillips for Duke and Coco, the clan’s doxies. The feed has more than 80 followers — but the Esweins and Phillips have not yet thrown their promotional might behind the account. This week, Phillips posted a photo of Duke and Coco, both outfitted in matching red holiday outerwear.

“The redcoats!” said the caption, which helped elicit a healthy 35 likes. With 80 followers, that’s about a 40 per cent rate of liking.

The family passion began in early 2011, when Liz Eswein learned about the photo-sharing app called Instagram. She registered the handle @newyorkcity and suggested that her mother and brother join as well.

Phillips had been quick to adapt to the Internet back in the 1990s. She understood the concept of “domain squatting”. She created an online baking business in 1995 that she maintains to this day. In the beginning, she said, her friends would tell her she was crazy for investing her time in the passing fad of the Web. But Phillips listened to her gut.

Relying on a similar instinct, Phillips heeded her daughter’s call. She grabbed the @food and @baking handles. Tom Eswein chose @realestate.

The family that posts together makes money together, although no one will say how much.

A few weeks ago, Liz Eswein posted a photo of the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Plaza against the backdrop of Rockefeller Center’s art deco buildings.

“Checking out New York City’s most iconic Christmas tree with my brother @realestate!” she wrote as a caption.

It generated 37,000 likes and resulted in a few hundred new followers for Tom Eswein’s feed. In this family, there could not be a better holiday gift.