Latest news with #CraigBrommers
The Sun
21 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Sydney Sweeney's ‘good jeans' advert isn't racist – it sent stocks surging… could it spell end of woke commercials?
LEANING over the hood of a classic car, actress Sydney Sweeney smoulders for the cameras. She turns around, leaving the lens to zoom in on her behind, which looks pert in a comfy-fitting pair of denims. 9 9 And the voiceover tell us: 'Sydney Sweeney has great jeans', before the beauty drives off and the brand name American Eagle flashes on the screen. Simple? Yes. Game-changing? Absolutely. There is no doubt Sydney is explicitly selling sex — as well as denims — and she is firmly in the driving seat. Gone is the virtue signalling that underscores so much advertising today. Instead, this new campaign is selling exactly what it says on the tin. Woke messaging, and woke backlash, be damned. The results over the past few days since the ads first dropped have been monumental. With just a few saucy clips and some accompanying sexy shots plastered on billboards across the US, the jeans brand has reclaimed its Noughties' selling power. Indeed, just 24 hours after launching the promos, American Eagle's stock price had surged by ten per cent, netting the clothing company $400million in just one day. It had also reminded us — definitively — that sex sells, and 'woke-vertising' is a thing of the past. In other words, woke is officially broke. The brand's chief marketing officer Craig Brommers has called the campaign their own 'Super Bowl' — which they've timed to coincide with the back-to-school period over the next few months. Hollywood bombshell unrecognizable as she transforms into boxer for new movie – can you guess who? Lapping it up He said: 'We really wanted to cut through in culture. It will signify to our audience that this is something different, unique, special and a big moment for us.' Yet even with all its efforts — including a 20-storey high, 3D billboard in Times Square, a massive social media drive and a 360-degree advert at the Sphere Arena in Las Vegas — the firm could never have foreseen the impact it has made. As well as the massive spike in stock price, elevating it to a $2billion company, it has also drawn a line in the sand when it comes to woke advertising. Granted, the ad did, unsurprisingly, get backlash from some snowflakes and corners of the internet. According to TikTok user Angie, who analyses ads under the handle @vital_media_marketing, the under-lying message of the campaign is inherently problematic as it postures a white woman with blue eyes and blonde hair as being the epitome of 'good genes' (or jeans). Taking to social media, she said that praising Sydney, in this context, makes for 'one of the loudest and most obvious racialised dog whistles we've seen and heard in a while'. Focus on genetics Another TikTok user likened the focus on genetics to '1930s Germany'. Despite the vocal complaints, the proof is in the pudding and, as far as American Eagle is concerned, a ten per cent spike in stock is worth a bit of outrage and protest. After all, this campaign is unabashed and unapologetic in its pursuit, offering us a throwback to 'the good old days' when ads were innuendo-laden, often un-PC and selling sex at all costs. It may not be particularly deep, but it's far more authentic than the performative social, political and cultural lecturing that has been clogging ad campaigns in recent years. Meanwhile, Sydney is once again proving her serious selling power. It is a niche the actress has been carving out over the past year, in addition to her soaring acting credits, and it's one that hinges on her undeniable sex appeal. We really wanted to cut through in culture. It will signify to our audience that this is something different, unique, special and a big moment for us Craig Brommers Make no mistake: this isn't a sexual object who is being exploited for the cameras. Sydney is smouldering, proving to consumers that she is in full control. In another clip for the brand, the 27-year-old wriggles on the floor, filming herself with a hand-held camera. Again, she is playfully selling sex and brands — and consumers — are lapping it up. It's what makes her such hot property, enabling her to keep nabbing critically lauded roles, including her Oscar -tipped turn in the upcoming biopic about boxer Christy Martin, while also marketing her overly sexualised persona. Rather than being cheapened by that persona, though, Sydney's success is rocketing and she has a reputed net worth of $40million, plus she is making companies millions. 9 9 According to brand expert Nick Ede, the genius is in Sydney's USP. 'She's a modern-day sex symbol,' he tells us. 'I think what's great about her is she owns herself and she owns the way she looks. 'She's a bit like Sabrina Carpenter. They both own their sexuality, and it's up to them what they push and what they don't push.' The genius is, by knowingly owning her sexuality — and cashing in on it — Sydney is empowering herself, and empowering other women, too. She is also putting her money where her mouth is, having struck a deal with American Eagle where 100 per cent of the profits made on the limited edition 'Sydney Jean' shape will go to the US-based Crisis Text Line, which supports survivors of domestic violence. Surely that is far more worthy than any woke-tinged ad campaign could ever be? She's a modern-day sex symbol. I think what's great about her is she owns herself and she owns the way she looks Nick Ede As Nick explains, Sydney knows full well what she is doing and she is in on the innuendo. It is something she proved earlier this year, following her tongue-in-cheek partnership with soap brand Dr Squatch, which saw her release a range of soap made of her own bathwater. Again, the messaging was overt, unapologetic, cheeky and displayed Sydney's greatest, ahem, assets, with a knowing wink to the camera — while playfully mocking the 'dirty little boys' who lusted after her. It is also something the actress is well versed in after debuting as the hyper-sexualised character Cassie in Euphoria in 2019. She has since learnt the art of capitalising on her sex appeal — last year wearing a T-shirt with a slogan that read: 'Sorry for having great tits and correct opinions'. And judging by her ad campaigns' continued successes, she is clearly striking a chord with punters who have grown increasingly tired of the 'woke' ads all over social media and TV. In the past year, Sydney has also struck million-dollar deals with MiuMiu, HeyDude shoes, Samsung, Ford and clothing firm Dickies, plus make-up deals with Armani, Laneige and Kérastase. Seduce audience The implication is that, with her old-school, sultry branding and her modern self-awareness, she is the ultimate saleswoman. Let's remember, dating back to the Mad Men -style days of the 1960s, advertising has always been aligned to the art of selling sex. It reached its peak in the Eighties and Nineties when — whether you were selling dishwashing liquid, shampoo or chocolate — you were aiming to seduce your audience. Just think of Diet Coke's infamous TV ads, that ran from 1994 to 2013, featuring a gaggle of women lusting after a topless workman to the soundtrack of Etta James' I Just Want To Make Love To You. Or who could forget the orgasmic-sounding commercial for Herbal Essences shampoo in 1998, which featured a woman in the shower oohing and ahhing as she massaged her scalp? 9 9 9 The suggestive marketing didn't stop there. Indeed, models such as Claudia Schiffer and Kate Moss became synonymous with risque ads, as they posed in very little for the likes of Guess and Yves Saint-Laurent's Opium fragrance. While fellow model Eva Herzigova stopped traffic with her infamous 'Hello Boys' billboard ads for Wonderbra in 1994. And we still blush at the thought of those very sultry ads for Cadbury's Flake in the early 1990s, featuring lingering shots of a woman lathering up in the bath, before locking eyes with the audience as she seductively bit down on her chocolate bar. Subtle, it was not. As for jeans, they've always sold something a little dirtier than denim. Think of Brooke Shields' 1980 Calvin Klein campaign which featured her alongside the tagline: ' . . . what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing.' Forty-five years later, the world of advertising is back to where it started, with an added level of playful awareness — but it had to take a few detours along the way. In recent years a plethora of brands embraced the so-called 'woke-vertising' of the moment — a trend where a political or cultural lesson emerges as the centrepiece of a frivolous campaign. The intention may have been worthy, but the outcome hasn't always had the positive effect intended, as Jaguar can attest to. Last year, the car firm was mocked over an ad featuring models of different races and genders in bright colours — but no cars. Critics slammed the brand for its 'woke corporate virtue signalling', claiming it had made a gross misstep in trying to stay relevant by over-pandering to PC culture and erasing its identity. Elon Musk weighed in on X, asking the firm: 'Do you sell cars?' Likewise, Pepsi made a faux pas in 2017, with their advert which showed Kendall Jenner giving a smiling police officer a can of the soda amid a race protest. Then there was Ben & Jerry's disastrous 2023 ad campaign, in which the ice cream giant called for the US to return its 'stolen indigenous land'. Consumers were duly dumbfounded by the unsolicited lecture. Amid the 'woke-vertising', it seems brands have lost sight of the point of ad campaigns — to sell a product, not lecture their audience. American Eagle's success should force them to think again. 9
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
How Sydney Sweeney earned a jeans brand $400 million in a day: Behind the insane American Eagle rally
If there was any doubt regarding the power of celebrity endorsement, Sydney Sweeney has dispelled that twice this year. First time was when she managed to get a company to sell her bathwater as soap (and boy did the product fly off the shelves). This time around, it was more conventional. The young actor came on board as an ambassador for American Eagle, an apparel brand, as they launched their new line of denim. The result was a stock market rally so insane that American Eagle became a $2-billion company overnight. Sydney Sweeney's involvement with American Eagle's new campaign has been a boon for the company. Sydney Sweeney's American Eagle collab On Wednesday, American Eagle announced that they had roped in Euphoria star Sydney Sweeney for its fall campaign. Titled 'Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans,' the push is not just cheeky wordplay. It marked the retailer's most expensive campaign so far, landing right before the critical back-to-school shopping rush. American Eagle CMO Craig Brommers told Marketing Dive, 'This is our Super Bowl.' American Eagle's stock prices soar As soon as the announcement was made on Wednesday, the excitement spilled over from social media to the stock market. A day-long stock rally for American Eagle Outfitters Inc. at the NYSE saw the share price of the retailer rise by a stupendous 17.65%. It went from just over $10 to almost $12 by the time the market closed. This took American Eagle's market cap beyond $2 billion for the first time in months. Trade estimates stated that the company earned over $400 million in valuation in the course of a single day. And at the back of it was the Sydney Sweeney-led campaign. Of course, the company and the market saw a reality check on Thursday as the share price dipped by 4% to settle at $11.52. However, American Eagle's market cap is still above what it was on Tuesday, and by hundreds of millions of dollars. American Eagle's campaign with Sydney Sweeney As per Marketing Dive, the campaign stretches across just about every platform imaginable. There is a 3D billboard in Times Square featuring Sweeney waving to pedestrians in head-to-toe denim. In Las Vegas, a 360-degree video display at the Sphere gives the star even more screen time. On Snapchat, fans can try on jeans virtually through a new AI-powered feature. Sydney has helped design a limited-edition pair of jeans for the line, called The Sydney Jean. They are styled by her longtime collaborator Molly Dickson.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Sydney Sweeney is bra-free in sizzling new ad campaign as she becomes Hollywood's biggest bombshell
Sydney Sweeney has landed a major ad campaign that shows off her sexier side as she climbs the ranks in Hollywood. On Wednesday, the Euphoria veteran was seen in the spread from the fashion brand American Eagle. The blonde bombshell had on no bra, and in some cases no shirt, as she modeled a denim while giving off sultry looks. American Eagle says it's thinking 'bigger than ever before' for its new marketing campaign The company's fall campaign, titled 'Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans,' goes live this week. 'I have great jeans…now you can too,' wrote Sweeney on Instagram as she debuted one of the commercials. AE is changing how it runs marketing campaigns by focusing on only one celebrity. In the past, it has featured multiple public figures in ads. Sweeney — who has also partnered with the brands Dr. Squatch, Baskin-Robbins and Jimmy Choo — seems to be an ideal partner for American Eagle. Sweeney's stylist, Molly Dickson, worked with the brand on campaign looks. Sweeney also designed her own American Eagle jeans with a butterfly design. All net proceeds from the jeans will benefit Crisis Text Line. American Eagle's CMO, Craig Brommers, told Modern Retail that Sweeney is 'the biggest get in the history of our brand.' 'We've had a lot of success working with multiple talent in one season, so it's not like that recipe is dead,' Brommers said. But there are only a few celebrities that have the cachet to be the face of a dual-gender brand, and Sydney is one of them. When she was into the idea of working with us, that's when you say, I think this is a special, unique moment, and it needs to feel like that.' This comes after news Sweeney is reportedly set to launch her own lingerie line. The actress' latest business venture has received backing from Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and his new wife, Lauren Sanchez, who have 'invested' in new brand. A source told Us Weekly that Sydney's new lingerie line is launching 'very soon'. The blonde beauty - who has recently become one of the most sought-after actresses in Hollywood - has actually been working on the lingerie line for 'for the last year' and it's now close to launching. The insider explained: 'This has been a huge project for her and something she's been working on for the last year.' Sydney has enjoyed a meteoric rise in recent years, starring in TV shows such as Euphoria and The Handmaid's Tale, while she's also worked with a host of big-name brands, including Laneige and Frankies Bikinis. 'We've had a lot of success working with multiple talent in one season, so it's not like that recipe is dead,' Brommers said The actress - who ended her engagement to Jonathan Davino earlier this year - has also been tipped to play a Bond girl in the next 007 movie, with director Denis Villeneuve reportedly keen to hire Sydney for his upcoming film. A source recently told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: 'Sydney is the top name on the casting sheet for Bond. 'Denis believes she is hugely talented, as well as having an alluring appeal to younger generations, vital in modernising the franchise. 'They've hung out together a lot and he has admired her stratospheric rise. 'Plus Sydney has the quality of being athletic and able to perform physical scenes, as well as being feminine and following in the legacy of the Bond girls.' Denis was unveiled as the director of the next Bond film last month and he vowed to ' honour the tradition' of the character, who will be played by a new actor after Daniel Craig walked away from the movie franchise. The filmmaker said in a statement: 'Some of my earliest movie-going memories are connected to 007. I grew up watching James Bond films with my father, ever since Dr No with Sean Connery.
Forbes
16-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
American Eagle Puts Fans In The Driver's Seat With Live Your Life Affiliate Community
American Eagle appeals to a Gen Z audience with looks like this. American Eagle has launched the Live Your Life Affiliate Community, a network of creators, brand advocates and trendsetters dedicated to sharing their love of the label with the world. The community is open to anyone, from seasoned influencers to creators just starting out and members will have the opportunity to create dedicated AE storefronts that can live in their bio/linktree on social media channels. Live Your Life is the brand's anthem, first introduced by American Eagle 20 years ago. Today, it's a call to action meant to inspire the digital generation to enjoy the world around them through optimism, culture and connection. 'We have passionate fans of the brand,' said Craig Brommers, chief marketing officer of American Eagle. 'We have a very entrepreneurial generation that we're targeting with Gen Z. How do you activate that insight. Not only is this an influencer community that can help us create content, it can help engage with various audiences. This is a real business opportunity for both sides of the equation.' Creator perks include affiliate commission, gifting opportunities, early access to new collections, exclusive discounts and features on AE sites and marketing channels. American Eagle is giving its fans a lot of latitude to tell their stories and express themselves the way they want to. The brand doesn't want to cramp their style. An affiliate influencer known for a particular style, say streetwear, will talk about jeans, for example, in the context of her own specific look. 'The one thing I know is that Gen Z has a very high BS meter, so forcing certain influencers to talk about things you want to talk about or the brand wants to talk about is definitely not as successful as doing things more organically and more authentically for the influencers themselves,' said Brommers. He added that the ranks of affiliates will reach the thousands. 'What we have found is that momentum builds momentum and as the Live Your Life community builds, our expectation or hope is that we'll see a real scaling of the opportunity,' Brommers said. 'A year or two ago my team would have been self-selecting a handful of creators. At AE, we work with 600 creators so that will likely go to the thousands in the coming years. We're intrigued by any opportunity that allows us to scale the influencer community that we work with and this will be one of those levers that we're going to be curious about and excited about building.' 'Scale is going to be so important going forward,' Brommers added. 'We'll continue to work with the big names out there, but just as important are these mid-level influencers who have a million followers, and also influencers with followers in the tens of thousands. We've found those people have a very high level of influence in their very specific communities. It's kind of the diversity of follower base and diversity of reach that will be really interesting for us to follow.' That feedback loop is important from a marketing perspective, an operational perspective and in some cases a production perspective so that AE can react very quickly to what it's seeing in the market. 'This world is moving very fast and will continue to move at a faster pace.' Brommers said. 'Trends come and go at a furious pace today and this community will allow us to tap into trends almost instantaneously. I could wake up on a Tuesday morning and the trending color is neon green. Our ability to ask our community to create content at scale almost instantaneously will really set us apart from the market. Today, it could take a brand a week to turn around product depending on how nimble and flexible they are. Now, we can turn something around in hours.' Apps like TikTok have had a profound effect on how the brand conducts business. And when a certain jean is the 65th bestseller one day and is the number five seller the next it's almost always due to a creator singing its praises, said Brommers. 'It's amazing how dramatically and how quickly these creators can have an impact on the revenue of our business,' he explained.
