Chester Bennington modeling the capsule collection
German fashion label Porsche Design is bringing in new consumers with a capsule collection designed in collaboration with United States rock band Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington.
The lead singer of the band collaborated on a capsule collection of pieces and appeared in-store for a launch party, drawing thousands of fans. Partnering with a popular artist who fits the aesthetic of a brand can open a brand up to an entire group of new potential consumers.
“The capsule collection, designed by Porsche Design, is abetted by a brand consistent with the edgy design,” said Chris Ramey, president of Affluent Insights, Miami, FL. “Linkin Park and Chester Bennington fit that category.
“Porsche is injecting ‘hip and cool’ into their mix,” he said. “These products are designed for the aspirational market that may be influenced by Linkin Park.
“Although Mr. Bennington is the brand ambassador, it’s unlikely his name has much brand equity. It’s more about his zoolander.”
Mr. Ramey is not affiliated with Porsche Design but agreed to comment as an industry expert.
Porsche Design was unable to comment directly before press deadline.
Star-studded
Porsche Design announced its capsule collection on social media and its Web site, giving it prime space on its homepage.
Porsche Design homepage
The collection includes six pieces for the brand’s men’s store: two t-shirts, a pair of skinny jeans, a leather weekender bag, leather jacket, sunglasses and lace up boots. Prices for the line range from $109 to $1,950.
Porsche Design Chester Bennington ecommerce page
When the collection launched on the Porsche Design ecommerce site, the label kept up a stream of Facebook posts promoting it.
Linkin Park also promoted the launch on its own Facebook, providing links to purchase the pieces to its 63 million fans.
Facebook post from Linkin Park
On June 10, Porsche Design hosted an autograph signing event at its recently opened Milan store (see story) to celebrate the collection. About 2,000 people showed up to get the singer’s autograph and meet him in person, with a line spilling out onto the street.
Facebook photos from Porsche Design of Milan event
Linkin Park tweeted about the signing while Mr. Bennington was at the event.
Tweet from Linkin Park
Following the event Porsche Design shared photos of the crowds that attended. To help fans feel more included in the brand’s lifestyle, Porsche Design also shared video footage of the official launch event in Berlin.
While the collection is available in Europe now, it will launch in U.S. Porsche Design stores in July.
Spreading word
For luxury labels, partnering with a popular singer can provide mass appeal.
Italian fashion label Versace and French design house Givenchy boosted brand awareness through product placement on a world stage.
Both brands designed costumes for pop star Beyoncé Knowles-Carter for her Mrs. Carter Show World Tour, with their creations unveiled during the European part of her tour that began on Feb. 24. This has given the brands global exposure, both on-stage and online (see story).
Also, Swiss watchmaker Hublot, together with Shawn “Jay Z” Carter, unveiled two wristwatches that make up the rapper’s larger collaborative effort with department store Barneys New York to further align the watch brand with the iconic figure and the retailer.
The watches were part of Jay Z’s “A New York Holiday” capsule collection that was exclusively available at select Barneys’ locations. Jay Z’s A New York Holiday collaboration features multiple brands to create a total affluent lifestyle that appealed to consumers beyond timepiece enthusiasts (see story).
These partnerships might not boost sales, but they have the potential to expand the brand’s awareness among consumers.
“The collaboration is peculiar,” Mr. Ramey said. “Linkin Park has a heavy down-market Latin and Asian male following, aged 18-24 according to Quantcast.
“The collaboration with Bennington separates the capsule collection from Porsche Design’s luxury objects,” he said. “It may be about protecting the latter rather than promoting the former.”
Final Take
Sarah Jones, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York