Fashion: Are you on the right side of branding?

When it comes to brand ambassadors and celebrities receiving endorsements, no one can ever truly tell what works and what doesn’t.

But if a beauty or fashion brand is strategic, they almost always surprise us by revealing someone who is such a good fit everyone goes, “oh yes. That makes sense.”

It is what happened with Serena Williams, her comeback and the Nike meets Virgil Abloh meets Queen Collection. It made sense when Lancôme picked Lupita as their first ever black brand ambassador in 2014, right when the world was going gaga over her deep dark chocolate.

And team melanin was only springing up at the grass roots. It was a positioning that put them ahead of the game even as other brands attempted to appease the dark skin market.

In July this year she was named the face of Calvin Klein Women by Calvin Klein, a woody floral. The noses behind the scent are highly accomplished female perfumers Honorine Blanc and Annick Menardo, brilliant chemists and scientists whose work reads like the who’s who of the fragrance world.

Perfume blog Fragrantica identifies as similar to Light Blue by Dolce & Gabbana or Naturelle by Yves Rocher — the latter have four outlets in Kenya.

This is how the scent was described. “With this fragrance, we wanted to put the concept of plurality centre stage. The campaign is an exploration of femininity — a group of women bonded by a common thread; the desire to have the power to create their own identity, and to support and lead the way for those that come after them,” adding this to be the “plurality combined with individuality; freedom of expression; and the notion that the collective is as vital as the individual.”

Then there was Colin Kaepernick, the newest Nike ambassador. And a most controversial one at that. The athlete, a former NFL player turned activist, was fired after he took a knee pre-game.

The Nike vice president called him “one of the most inspirational athletes of this generation.” The swish message scrawled across the ambassador’s face declares, “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” Apt. Adidas have a counter to this. It’s called Kanye West.

THE GREAT DIVIDE

Here is where there is a Great Divide. Brands, especially Kenyan brands, like wholesomeness. Which makes sense. Considering the strategic conversations that take place in boardrooms long before an ambassador is unleashed, there is a great deal of groundwork that goes into place.

In comes the case of Cardi B, she who took Fashion Nova to the heavens, based off a relationship that started long before she became famous.

spotted.us, a firm that does research and analytics, recognise Cardi B is also unpredictable. Her legal drama makes her volatile for brands. Authenticity, trust and likeability count for a great deal.

And for a lot of brands, that is more important than fame level, social relevance and “attributes like edginess and provocativeness” where she scores higher. Mainly because things like tweets have ended careers.

There are, of course, brands that love these traits in a celebrity. They identify Steve Madden and Converse as some. On their website, they break down traits that make each celebrity unique, making a case for rigorous investigation when it comes to celebrity partnerships.

It costs a substantial amount of money to make someone the face of anything in worlds where the creative industry is lucrative. But, I do wonder if a time will come when all celebrities will have to fit a certain mould. Surely there must be more Nikes who can leverage on notoriety.

There also needs to be more room for women who are not necessarily well-behaved and sweet. When it comes to brand ambassadors, brands, their representatives and their vision need to be more diverse when it comes to celebrities, tapping into talent considered ‘high risk’ without working to fence them in or change them.

If we were to be honest, the most memorable people tend to be standouts, owing to certain traits and quirks.

Remember Michael Phelps, 2009? When he was caught smoking a bong? Visa and Omega choose to stand by him. Why? On the one hand, money cannot buy that kind of publicity. On the other, I have a theory. How many of Phelps peers saw that luxury Swiss watch and started working towards acquiring one in the next decade or two?

The ripple effects of a brand ambassador go beyond their tenure and even their social media reach. It is a beast that has legs and a life of its own once it has been unleashed. The thing is though, brands may be businesses, but to the ambassador, they have faces and names, They are people. That is who they work with.

As a celebrity or personality, do you feel safe with the person offering you an endorsement? It is easy to think it all comes down to money, but the vetting needs to be two-way. You have their product and blessing, now make sure they also have your back by bringing in your people. Never negotiate an endorsement for you by yourself.