That’s what Thomaï Serdari, professor of marketing and director of NYU’s Fashion & Luxury MBA calls a luxury approach to media: “Let others talk about you — you are above it all,” she says. “Exclusivity, dominance, true luxury positioning.” Bottega Veneta declined to comment for this article, or share details on the team behind the idea. A representative from Bottega Veneta said it was a concept by Matthieu Blazy.
It’s not the first time a Kering brand has tapped into the tabloid aesthetic. In September, Gucci featured Jenner and her boyfriend Bad Bunny in a campaign captured as if papped at the airport. And celebrities are often gifted full looks by brands to wear around town, as if they’re walking advertisements. Bottega’s point of difference is that Jenner and Rocky weren’t just papped wearing the looks, they were modeling a campaign before we knew it was one.
The rollout is the significant strategy here, says Sophie Roche Conti, founder of communications agency Conti Communications. “[Its ability to] prompt the consumer to look at the images twice is what makes it intelligent. The images are acknowledged initially as traditional paparazzi images, and now in our second sitting, we are re-digesting them in the context of a campaign. It’s a built-in double take.”
This new and organic marketing model relies upon a well-established pipeline where in paparazzi photos of celebs outside hotspots, like Sushi Park and Carbone, are quickly splashed across fashion media sites and the Instagram and Twitter feeds of industry commentators and mags alike — and brands reap the benefits. Bottega took things one step further.
A luxurious approach to media
Bottega Veneta doesn’t have an Instagram account — and it doesn’t need one. In the month leading up to the official campaign, fashion press and social media commentators shared the images of Rocky and Jenner widely, crowding consumers’ Instagram feeds with full Bottega and essentially filled the gap through collective labor.