October 19, 2015
Stefano Gabbana's cats, Zambia and Congo
Italy’s Dolce & Gabbana introduced its followers on Swide.com, the brand’s content Web site, to four new members of its fashionable family.
As designers become more public about their private lives and personalities, their pets have also gained a starring role in social media content and digital efforts as a way to personalize the relationship a consumer has with a preferred luxury brand. In this case, Dolce & Gabbana shared the happy news that Stefano Gabbana's Bengal cats, Zambia and Congo, had four kittens last month.
The cat’s meow
Swide.com offers consumers in-depth content surrounding Dolce & Gabbana’s Italian heritage with posts often revolving around traveling and the cuisine of the country. Dolce & Gabbana also use Swide.com to promote advertorial spreads that feature the brand’s designs as well as its own happenings, some personal and others business.
Dolce & Gabbana encouraged its community of followers to see the new additions to its family by following a link shared via Swide.com. Snarkily, the opening line reads, “Move over Choupette,” the cat of Chanel and Fendi's creative director Karl Lagerfeld, who is often incorporated in the designer’s more lighthearted works, before delving into Dolce & Gabbana’s cats.
In the text, Dolce & Gabbana tells of the love story of its designer's cats Zambia and Congo who joined the canine-centric household a few years ago. Adding an additional personal touch, the content included snapshots of the cats shared by Mr. Gabbana on his personal Instagram handle.
The proud “cat granddaddy” shared a shot of mama Zambia snuggling with her litter. Keeping with the naming trend, Mr. Gabbana named the four kittens: Mali, Chad, Kenya and Togo.
Stefano Gabbana's Instagram post about the kittens
Within the post, Dolce & Gabbana used the hashtag #DGFamily as a way to connect its branded communications with the lives of its namesake designers, adding a level of authenticity.
Most recently, Italian fashion label Dolce & Gabbana paid tribute to mothers with a multichannel marketing push for its winter 2016 collection.
Dubbed “I Love You Mamma,” the line’s theme is now further explored in an animated film featuring children’s drawings and a pop-up at Japanese department store Isetan. Reflecting a moment in pop culture, this theme of motherhood is apt to resonate with consumers, who are either mothers themselves or can remember their own mammas (see story).
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