Okonkwo Prelims

Vuitton also teamed up with American rapper and music producer Pharrel

Williams to create a limited edition sunglasses line in 2005. Also non-

luxury fashion brands like Dorothy Perkins have collaborated with stars

Sienna Miller, Nicole Kidman, Sharon Osbourne and Charlotte Church to

create a T-shirt collection in aid of breast cancer research.

• Naming products after celebrities, (with their approval of course). Gucci
  has the Jackie bag, named after Jackie Kennedy and Hermès has both the
  Kelly and Birkin bags named after actresses Grace Kelly and Jane Birkin.
  Tom Ford also named one of his newly launched eyewear after celebrated
  actress, Farrah Fawcett.


• Other creative cross-marketing methods such as Jimmy Choo’s book Four
  Inches, which featured photos of several celebrities including Paris Hilton,
  wearing nothing but Jimmy Choo shoes. Also, Pamela Anderson posed as
  a nude mannequin at the window of Stella McCartney’s London store. The
  two endorsements were aimed at promoting several social courses but also
  generated immense publicity for the brands in the process.

Celebrity endorsement entails that the personality and status of the

celebrity as successful, wealthy, influential and distinctive are directly linked

with the brand. Other personality attributes that the celebrity may have such

as glamour, beauty, talent and style will also be ultimately linked with the

brand. This factor however appears to be required less among luxury brands

than consumer brands because luxury brands already have well-defined and

strong brand personalities. The reality is that luxury brands need to define the

connection between their brands and celebrities. This fact raises the question

of the choice criteria of a celebrity for a luxury brand. How can the right

celebrity be matched with the right brand in order to achieve the desired

maximum impact and results? The following five rules of celebrity endorse-

ment for luxury brands provide an indication of this.

Rule 1: Credibility The celebrity must be credible. This means that he/she

must have a high level of expertise and talent in their field. These merits bring

value to the brand and indicate the intent of the brand to be associated with

the very best. Actors Tom Cruise, George Clooney, Nicole Kidman and Hilary

Swank have star power because of their talent.

Rule 2: Global Appeal The celebrity must have global appeal. This means

that the celebrity must not only be known worldwide but must also be appre-

ciated and liked by the majority of the people in the consumer and fashion

societies. Charlize Theron and Halle Berry are two actresses that satisfy this

criterion effortlessly.

Rule 3: Personality The celebrity’s personality must match the brand’s

personality. Several brands often wrongly choose a celebrity to endorse their

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luxury fashion branding