These Brands Found The Perfect Celebs To Partner With
What was the first clothing brand you ever saw a celebrity wearing that made you want to jump on the bandwagon and rock that style too? Maybe it was Ashley Tisdale sporting Limited Too-esque looks in the early 2000s or any number of celebs wearing Paul Frank T-shirts or Juicy Couture tracksuits on the red carpet. Whatever your answer is, it serves to prove that we normal folk have been looking to celebrities for cues on which brands are in and which are out for years.
Just like the above examples, there are certain celebrities that are a better match for some brands than others. In this blog, Hollywood Branded looks at brands that have managed to find and work with celebrities who perfectly embody the style and attitude they want to portray.
Celebrities And Brands That Match Each Other's Energy
You have probably bought items from a brand specifically because of a partnership or endorsement from a celebrity that you adore and want to be just like. None of us are above seeing celebrities looking sexy in a pair of underwear or shoes and thinking, "I'll look just like that if I buy that item." Brands know that just as well as we do, which is why they find celebrities whose personal image aligns with the target audience they aim to reach.
There are celebrity and brand partnerships that work with each other better than others, but it is easy to see why partnerships like Rihanna and Puma, Amy Schumer and Tampax, Cardi B and FashionNova, Taylor Swift and Keds, and Justin Bieber and Calvin Klein had fans pulling out their wallets. If we all could look like Rihanna in sweatpants or Justin Bieber in Calvins, we would be too.
Rihanna Made Athletic Wear Sexy
Even though Rihanna and Puma's partnership ended in the Spring of 2018 after a wildly successful four years together, it can still be identified as one of the smartest brand endorsements by a celebrity to date. Because of Rihanna's own personal success as a musician, it comes as no surprise that Puma would want to bring her on in order to boost their own sales and success. In the third quarter of 2017, Puma reported a huge upward trend in sales, especially in women's, after Rihanna's collection dropped that year. This success came as no surprise though; executives at Puma knew Rihanna would bring them back to the young market and make them "hot again," as Bjorn Gulden, Chief Executive Officer of Puma, states.
Image credit: Worldfootwear
Everyone who knows Rihanna sees that she represents everything sexy, powerful, cool, and badass. With her assistance, Puma has managed to become all those things again and is back to performing as real competition to similar brands like Nike and Adidas. Because Rihanna supports feminism while being an active advocate for women's rights, she is the perfect connection for Puma. This partnership gave the company the opportunity to once again appeal to a larger female audience and associate themselves with the positive connection that fans have with the singer.
With Amy Schumer, Periods Don't Have To Be Awkward
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think about periods and tampons? Maybe discomfort or awkwardness. Now, what is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Amy Schumer? Maybe awkwardly hilarious and unafraid to speak her mind. All that being said, is there anyone better than Amy Schumer to be the spokesperson in Tampax commercials and dispel common myths about tampons and periods? Maybe only Aunt Flo herself.
Tampax's goal for their partnership with Schumer is to use her to eliminate common misconceptions around tampons and periods, like how long the average menstrual cycle lasts. Amy Schumer is a comedian who has never been afraid to make a little bit of a fool out of herself, whether she is in character or simply being herself. That being said, she is the perfect person to help "normalize women having their periods and take away the stigma." Schumer states that she wants to be everyone's "older sister" when it comes to uncomfortable conversations around periods. Her personality and goals make her the perfect person to balance comedy and facts.
Image credit: People
Hot Girls Everywhere Want To Look Like Cardi B In FashionNova
Cardi B isn't only making money moves in the music and rap game, but also, in the fashion industry. She put out her first collection with FashionNova in November of 2018, but it wasn't until her second collection, "Season 2," which was released in May of 2019, that she saw massive success. According to TMZ, this collection surpassed $1 million in sales within the first day of its availability. It is clear that FashionNova and Cardi B both made a wise choice in working together as many of the items from her collection were marked "unavailable" or "low stock" quickly after going live online.
FashionNova is most well known for being a women's fashion retailer that provides sexy, stylish, and trendy pieces for women of all shapes and sizes. Cardi B has worn lots of clothing (on and offstage) that is very similar to something that you would see on the FashionNova website, so it only makes sense that they would work together to produce clothing that represents them both. When Cardi B talked about her second collection, she called it "a little more sexy" and said that you would get to "see a lot of skin [and] a lot of cleavage. But it's so pretty and so elegant," which seems like the perfect way to describe her too!
Image credit: FashionNova
Just like you can see in the above image, Cardi B's style is over the top and sexy, without being too provocative. She pushes the envelope and isn't afraid to show off the curves that she flaunts on the Red Carpet and in her songs. Many of her fans want to mimic her style which so seamlessly fits into the vibe that FashionNova has created with all of their clothing pieces.
Taylor Swift's Girl Next Door Vibe Hits An All-Time High In Keds
Taylor Swift's whole brand, especially during the beginning part of her career, was "innocent, cute, neighbor girl that everyone loves and the boys are secretly in love with." It's a character trope that appears over and over again in television and film, and what are those characters always wearing? A cute but casual dress with some comfortable but stylish little sneakers, making Taylor Swift the ideal partner to appeal to the target market for Keds' women's line.
Image credit: Taste of Country
When Keds first partnered with Taylor Swift in 2013, they hoped she would encourage more female consumers to purchase their shoes. Their first campaign together centered on female empowerment which is something that is a core part of Swift's life. In order for this particular Keds campaign to be a success, they needed an ambassador who valued the goal of it as much as the company did, and Taylor Swift was the perfect match.
Even though Swift first came across as the shy, girl next door type, she was (and still is!) an outspoken advocate for not only women's rights, but human rights in general. She fit the look of someone that could wear Keds with a little black dress or with jeans and a tee and make it look stylish no matter what. These two factors combined made her the obvious choice for the face of the "Ladies First" campaign launched by Keds.
Bieber Wears Calvin Klein: Everyone Either Wants Him Or Wants to Be Him
Imagine your childhood celebrity crush. Now image them in Calvin Klein boxers, no shirt, perfectly quaffed hair, and a sexy pout. Chances are, a vast majority of girls born between 1990 and 2003 imagined Justin Bieber, and luckily for those girls, these pictures exist. In 2015, Bieber's first round of Calvin Klein ad photos went viral as fans (and pretty much everyone else in the world) went insane over the steamy photos that feature him in nothing but his tighty-whities.
Image credit: Entertainment Weekly
A few years later, Justin and his wife Hailey Bieber posed together in their matching sets of Calvins, looking just as sexy and swoon-worthy as the first campaign with CK. The partnership turned out to be one of the most genius ideas of the 21st century, not only because girls everywhere got to drool over photos of Biebs and his ripped abs, but because Calvin Klein made $723 million after the ads were released.
However, JB's ripped body and beautiful face aren't the only things that make him a great marketing addition for Calvin Klein. By the time his first ad campaign with CK was released, Justin already had a huge following and millions of fans worldwide. Because of this massive mob of people that followed Justin's life, the marketing pretty much worked for itself as people flocked to buy the underwear worn by the man they wanted or wanted to be. As evidenced by Mark Wahlberg's own Calvin Klein ad from 1992, there is no better face for Calvin Klein Underwear than the sexy bad boy with a smile that steals hearts. Justin Bieber proved that two times over with both of his Calvin Klein shoots.
Brand Partnerships & Endorsements & Celebrity Success, Oh My!
Want to read more about the successes celebrities and brands have had when working together? Take a look at some of our other blogs below:
- How Celebrities Have Found Success By Launching Beauty Brands
- Top Celebrity Beverage Endorsers
- Top Crocs Celebrity Partnerships
- 20 Celebrities And Their Alcohol Beverage Brands
- 45 Celebrities And The Beauty Brands They Own [Infographic] Part III
If you are looking to hit Justin Bieber-partners-with-Calvin-Klein levels of success, here's a homework assignment for you. Click below to download the E-book Guide that will tell you everything you need to know about getting your brand and products into the hands of celebrities who can launch your success.
