September 23, 2014
Stella McCartney teams up with Jaguar
British automaker Jaguar is entering the next phase of its "Feel XE" campaign with a fleet of vehicles inspired by British fashion designer Stella McCartney's Superhero print.
Jaguar shares both a British heritage and a pursuit of environmentally-aware products with Stella McCartney, which lends the partnership an air of authenticity. As the celebrity-studded XE debut continues to roll forward, Jaguar will attract diverse cohorts.
"The launch of the Jaguar XE, only a few weeks ago, has gained incredible exposure for our newest sports sedan and has garnered incredible social traction including 4.1 million mentions of XE on Facebook and a reach of 120 millions people on Twitter," said Stuart Schorr, vice president of public relations and consumer affairs at Jaguar Land Rover North America, Mahwah, NJ.
"Globally, Jaguar received over 27,000 new fans across Twitter and Facebook channels within 24 hours of the global reveal on September 8," he said.
Stop and start
The Stella McCartney Superhero print features cartoon superhero masks on a black base. Jaguar will be "draping" this print over a fleet of XE models Sept. 29.
Jaguar with Stella McCartney Superhero exterior
The fleet will travel to Paris for fashion week, where Jaguar will host a series of "exhilarating experiences."
Since many attendees will recognize the iconic print, and will be further notified of the collaboration by labels on the cars, Jaguar will likely see an enthusiastic response.
The experiences, most likely complimentary rides to and from fashion events or brief tours, will highlight cultural touchstones in Paris, but specific details will be released when the cars arrive on the scene.
Fans can contribute to the campaign with the hashtag #FeelXE.
As Jaguar aligns itself with the fashion community, it is also getting ready for the Paris Motor Show, where it will reveal the entire XE range.
#FeelXE campaign
The brand tapped a number of celebrities to help build hype for the XE debut.
For instance, British recording artist Emeli Sandé created the first project for the campaign to get fans excited about the vehicle debut. Fans of the brand and the artist were asked to share what makes them exhilarated on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram with the #FeelXE hashtag that has already been in circulation for a few weeks.
Words, pictures, sounds and films were all accepted forms of submissions.
Ms. Sandé looked to the submissions for inspiration as she wrote an original song to perform for the first time in conjunction with the XE debut (see story).
Here to stay
Jaguar consistently deploys campaigns that have staying power.
The automaker's "Good to be Bad" campaign stayed effective for around eight months, beginning with obscure teasers leading into a Super Bowl ad that fueled several months of extensions.
Jaguar then capitalized on the ongoing buzz generated by the campaign with a Jaguar Villain Academy that opened to select guests in May.
The academy gave guests a full day with the new F-Type Coupe on the Formula 1 track Circuit of Americas, Austin, TX (see story).
Just as the brand intends to be associated with its top campaigns, it also intends to align itself with environmental sustainability.
"Jaguar is investing heavily in the application of new environmental technologies and lightweight aluminum architectures," Mr. Schorr said.
"Sustainability is a major priority for the brand, so much so that Jaguar has a goal of using 75 percent recycled material by 2020 and so partnering with other environmentally focused brands, products or ambassadors, like Stella McCartney, makes perfect sense," he said.
Final Take
Joe McCarthy, staff writer on Luxury Daily, New York
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