January 4, 2010
Audrina Patridge (The Hills) stopped by the Look LA showroom to sample many of the collections on display at this incredible location in the center of Hollywood. Audrina is wearing Nicole boots, shirt by 35MM and beige leather jacket and pants by Ever.
New Look Los Angeles Showroom
We are very excited about the opening and prime location of our new showroom. Our designer clients now have a new highly visible high-end location to display their collections as celebrities, stylists and representatives get ready for frequent visits.
1680 North Vine Street
Suite #202
Hollywood, CA 90028
Screen Shots
Product placements aren't just for big companies anymore
Stardom is calling.
Product appearances in TV shows and movies are no longer exclusively for big companies with marketing budgets to match. Publicists and other promoters are actively going after small businesses for product-placement opportunities. And from Facebook to Twitter to bloggers, more ways exist to chat up and spread the word about a product after it's been discovered by the entertainment world.
The Journal Report
Eileen Shields, a New York designer whose shoes were worn by actress Cynthia Nixon in the film version of "Sex and the City," says the movie spawned mentions of her shoes in fashion magazines and blogs—which led to more stores ordering her footwear, which is priced from $495 to $595.
"There was a surge in sales because of the movie," says Ms. Shields. "Stores wanted to be part of it." As a result, her business world expanded, she says, as far as the Middle East. Among her new customers: Saks Dubai.
Good Buys
For small companies on tight budgets, product placement may offer better value than purchasing traditional TV spots.
"With TV ads these days, people can just record the shows and zip right through the commercials," says Steve Newton, chief executive of Designers Surplus, a year-old retailer based in Braintree, Mass., that sells kitchen-renovation materials, such as cabinets, through its own stores in six states.
After becoming disillusioned with traditional advertising, Mr. Newton says he approached Hero Entertainment Marketing Inc., a product-placement firm in Sun Valley, Calif., that got his business an appearance on TLC's "Moving Up" home-improvement show.
"We hope our truck will show up well," says Mr. Newton, who expects a scene to show a Designers Surplus truck arriving for a delivery. "Being on the show is a chance for credibility," he adds. And all it cost, he says, in addition to an undisclosed fee paid to Hero, was a donation to the show of some kitchen cabinets with a retail value of about $3,000.
Often small businesses pay a publicist for arranging such renown. Like many, New York publicist Nicola Parish charges an annual retainer fee for her services. Ms. Parish, who obtained the "Sex and the City" cameo for Eileen Shields Footwear, says she focuses on emerging fashion and "life-style" companies. Retainer fees charged by most publicists for small businesses run to several thousand dollars a year.
Other publicists, like New York-based Terri Pitts, charge more modest fees, on a per-placement basis. Ms. Pitts is also among those publicists reaching out to entrepreneurs at a time when many big companies are cutting their marketing budgets. Her entertainment marketing firm, Ostrow Alliances, started a new division in March specifically to represent small businesses.
A handbag by designer Laura Bradford Godfrey made an appearance in the show “Desperate Housewives”
Although she seeks monthly retainers from large clients such as Sony Corp. and Sega of America, the U.S. unit of Sega Corp., she says, "We'll give small companies a menu or possible placements with defined costs" for each.
Recession Appeal
Some see product placement as especially appealing during tough economic times, because it's a relatively inexpensive way for a small business to promote its brand. After publicists' fees, getting a product into a film or TV show can cost as little as a few discounted samples.
That's quite a bargain, compared with the typical deals struck by large companies, which often have to agree to promote the film or TV show in large-scale ad campaigns.
"I couldn't believe 'Desperate Housewives' wanted one of my handbags," says Laura Bradford Godfrey, owner of claire v, a purse designer based in Roanoke, Va.
Ms. Parish, claire v's publicist, says she landed the spot by mailing a sample to the head of wardrobe for the ABC show, Cate Adair. "Wardrobe designers are always looking for something different and special," says Ms. Parish.
Ms. Adair quickly struck a deal to buy four of the same model, at a discount—a carryall dotted with pink flowers and fitted with circular handles. Says Ms. Adair, "Sometimes we like to get more than one in case something wacky happens on the show, like they get run over by a car."
Ms. Adair says she's always on the lookout for fresh fashion accessories to adorn her cast, and it's a seller's market. She welcomes overtures from publicists offering new items on the chance they might fit in a particular scene.
"I rely on certain publicists who I know to be tasteful," says Ms. Adair. "They'll send pictures of products and say, 'Tell us what you think.' "
But getting the product into the shot is only half of the battle for an entrepreneur. While the movie-going public didn't have to be told where to buy a Pepsi after seeing it featured as the soft drink of choice in the movie "Back to the Future," much smaller companies, especially new ones, have no such luxury. They have their work cut out for them if they want the instant fame of a successful product placement to last.
"They have to wrap promotions around that appearance to maximize the impact," says Caley Cantrell, professor of communication strategy at Virginia Commonwealth University's Brandcenter graduate program in advertising and marketing in Richmond, Va. "Getting into the hands of a star is just a start. To make that catch fire, you have to promote the 'as seen on' angle.'"
That means a small business must use fliers, a Web site and other promotions to bring its product's newfound stardom to the attention of retailers, wholesalers and the public.
Cookie Dough
Alexandra Bruskoff hired Ms. Pitts to help her Austin, Texas, cookie company after it was touted earlier this year on Rachael Ray's daytime television talk show as the "snack of the day." Ms. Bruskoff says the show discovered her cookies on a food blog. "We gave them cookies for the whole audience," Ms. Bruskoff says.
Since that January appearance, Ms. Bruskoff says, sales of her Alexandra's Cookie Dreams brand have increased and she has gained notice from several food writers.
"It gave us a name that people nationally can recognize," Ms. Bruskoff says.
But now she wants Ms. Pitts to put her cookies in the spotlight on other shows and says the publicist is currently sending samples to various celebrities and film and TV production staffers.
"I don't want to discuss which ones in case it doesn't happen," Ms. Bruskoff says. "I need to be realistic."
Ms. Godfrey, meanwhile, whose claire v handbags appeared on "Desperate Housewives," says she has included mentions of the appearance in samples sent to retailers ever since. A publicist also used that appearance as an entree for securing mentions in several fashion magazines, she says.
Now Ms. Godfrey has a new product-placement mission for claire v, and makes no secret of what that goal is. She has assigned claire v's in-house marketing representative, Kelly List, to pursue Oprah.
Says Ms. Godfrey, "That would be my ideal."
--Mr. Johnson is a writer in Roanoake County, Va. He can be reached at reports@wsj.com.
