When luxury brands promote their products, they invest in ad campaigns that are elaborate and striking. The best promotional campaigns stay with you long after the advertisement itself. Expert photographers, celebrities, stylists and others join luxury brands in the hope of creating something special. Here is a look at some of the most stunning ad campaigns of recent times.
1. Dior J’adore
Luxury Brand: Dior
Celebrity: Charlize Theron
Luxury fashion house Dior signed on actor Charlize Theron to star in its promotional campaign for the iconic J’adore fragrance. The advertisement follows Theron as she rushes to reach a glittering fashion show. As Theron dons her runway outfit, the camera zooms in on other high-profile beauties like Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe. They too, are getting ready for the runway show. Theron’s golden runway outfit is inspired by the Dior J’adore bottle. Director Jean-Jacques Annuad filmed this advertisement at one of the most luxurious settings of the world – the famous Chateau de Versailles.
2. Hermes Spring/Summer 2011
Luxury Brand: Hermes
Theme: Fairy tales
Earlier this year, French luxury fashion house Hermes launched an ad campaign to promote its Spring/Summer 2011 collection. The luxury brand roped in the striking Jacquelyn Jablonski to model for the campaign. Photographer Nick Knight captured the theme through his expert lens. Romantic and magical fairy tales provided the theme for this beautiful photo shoot. The Hermes scarves and wraps photographed by Knight provided a splash of color to the ad campaign. The fluid movement of the wraps added a whole other fairy tale dimension to the entire Hermes campaign.
3. Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011
Luxury Brand: Louis Vuitton
Theme: 1940s’ affluence
Affluent women, vintage cars, cute canines and Louis Vuitton chic provided the subject matter of the Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011 campaign. The ad campaign went retro-chic and featured six promising young models. Zuzanna Bijoch, Daphne Groeneveld, Gertrud Hegelund, Nyasha Matonhodze, Anaïs Pouliot and Fei Fei Sun put their best feet forward for the Louis Vuitton shoot. Pat McGrath did the make-up, Guido Paulo worked on the hair, and Karl Templer was in charge of the styling. Veteran photographer Steven Meisel captured the models in the retro-chic setting.
4. Buick
Luxury Brand: General Motors
Theme: “Luxury As It Should Be”
Earlier this year, Buick’s “Luxury As It Should Be” campaign began doing the rounds. The ad campaign promotes various Buick luxury cars including the Enclave, the Regal, the LaCrosse and the newer Regal Turbo. This is possibly the first time in recent years that General Motors has decided to position the Buick as a luxury buy. In the past, the car manufacturer has deliberately steered clear of the luxury tag for the Buick. However, the “Luxury As It Should Be” campaign launches the Buick into the ultra-high-end league.
5. Burberry Autumn/Winter 2011
Luxury Brand: Burberry
Theme: 1960s advertising featuring Jean Shrimpton
Burberry returned to the 1960s, specifically to ad campaigns starring the world’s first supermodel Jean Shrimpton. The new ad campaign is an attempt to highlight Burberry’s association with Britain’s rising breed of actors, musicians and models. The campaign will feature musician Matthew Whitehouse, actor Amber Anderson and models Jourdan Dunn, Cara Delevigne and Jake Cooper. The luxury brand is looking to connect with younger customers and is promoting a number of labels including Burberry Prorsum. Burberry’s chief creative officer Christopher Bailey is the brain behind the campaign. The photographer is Mario Testino, the shutterbug who famously captured Princess Diana.
6. Bottega Veneta Fall-Winter 2011/2012
Luxury Brand: Bottega Veneta
Photographer: Robert Polidori
Ace photographer Robert Polidori created magic when he shot the Bottega Veneta Fall-Winter 2011/2012 ad campaign at a historic Venetian building. The Palazzo Papadapoli on the Grand Canal in Venice created a wonderful setting for the new ad campaign. The shoot took place on location in March this year. The ad campaign is yet another of the creative collaborations that Creative Director Thomas Maier has initiated. The campaign highlights the clean shapes and play of textures in the Fall-Winter campaign. Polidori is renowned for his photographs of buildings and human spaces. The Bottega Veneta campaign was his first time working with models.
