Emma Watson (she plays Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movies) is rumored to be the next face of Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle perfume. If it turns out to be true, Watson would be replacing Keira Knightley, whose contract reportedly ends this year. (via dailymail.co.uk, found via blogdorfgoodman, image via emmawatson-fans) Update: "Chanel is hotly denying the rumour." (per cosmeticsinternational)
Kate Moss has launched her second fragrance, Velvet Hour, in Berlin. The evening did not go well, apparently. Read more at Pop Sugar.
Welsh opera star Katherine Jenkins has been named the new ambassador of Femme de Montblanc, the "classically elegant and captivatingly feminine fragrance". (via fibre2fashion) Meanwhile, violinist Joshua Bell is fronting Montblanc's latest release for men, Homme Exceptionnel. You can watch the commercial for the fragrance here.
I'm not quite sure what Chanel is thinking…while I'm sure the Harry Potter angle is ingeneious… Watson isn't exactly the 21st-century embodiment of Coco Chanel (which this fragrance should represent if you believe in the Chanel PR machine).
(On the other hand Emma would be perfect for Chance IMHO.)
I very much like Virginie Ledoyen to be the face of Coco Mademoiselle but I am not sure if the North Americans still remember her after all these years (has it really been 6 years since she did “8 Women” with Deneuve and Huppert?).
I very much enjoy Bell as a violinist so thank you very much for the info. The commercial doesn't exactly persuade me to reach for a bottle but it's refreshing to see a classical artist fronting a campaign!
Oops…typing without thinking for a moment…Ledoyen isn't the modern reeincarnation of Coco Chanel either (I'm not sure who would completely fit the two-toned shoes nowadays) but her look is more in line with the Lepere/Mos/Knightley aesthetics Jacques Helleu had been honing for a couple of years now.
(I like Emma Watson so…please don't stone me Potter fans!)
Note to self…do not post message before going to bed!!!
So I presume a lot of Harry Potter-watching tweenage fans will be whining at their mummies and daddies to get them a (quite expensive) bottle of Chanel perfume because it's got their Hermione on it? … Good grief.
I agree – Watson is (most of all) way too young to front this campaign if you ask me. I guess this is the commercial Chanel of today, but here's hoping it's just a false rumour.
I heard that “Coco M.” sales were boosted after Keira Knightley signed on with Chanel. I'm surprised they'd let that one fly. Of course, she could just be sick of wearing the frag (or saying she does).
A, I don't know Virginie Ledoyen. But I wouldn't think you'd need a 21st century embodiment of CC for Coco Mademoiselle, only for Coco? At any rate, Keira Knightley was no 21st century embodiment of CC either, LOL…
Agree it is nice to see the classical music stars get some time!
I don't find that any sillier than whining because Keira's on the ads, though, do you? And those that started reading the series when they were 10 or 12 are now older than Watson.
Reportedly they have “other plans” for KK (?)
Yes. I started reading the series at that age, and i'm older than her (not by much mind you) But she does seem too young for it, even though she is 17 or 18 she appears child-like because thats how we see her in the films. Still she doesn't embody any qualities that immediately evoke thoughts of CM. Or any Chanel fragrance that comes to mind actually. This really is just all about the commercial aspect. Everything has lost sentiment and value, and its all about mass consumption. I'll say one thing for this though. I'd rather her front Chanel CM than to release her own bloody fragrance which I hear is the hype for anyone who has ever been in the media in Britain.
She is young, but in reading for this article, was shocked to see how glamorous she looks when she dresses up & puts on makeup — I had only seen her in the movies. I didn't think Keira Knightley looked much Chanel-ish either so it's all the same to me.
And SO agree — would much rather see her front Chanel than do her own scent.
I think she is perfectly appropriate — I wonder if some of the objection has to do with individuals' perception of themselves re the scent — and they cannot imagine themselves in the ingenue role for which Emma is such an ideal surrogate. Eh. Doesn't matter. She's lovely. The scent, for some, is lovely – whether they are ingenues or not. I wouldn't get too caught up in who's “fronting” it. xoxo
She is lovely. I am a huge Harry Potter fan, and I think she is a great role model for young girls, so am hoping against hope that they don't put her naked w/ a bowler hat they way they did Keira Knightley (and I think they did something similar w/ Kate Moss before that), but otherwise, the choice is fine with me.
The initial shock has worn off now (yes, I slept on it) so I completely second that. I too hope Emma doesn't get just a bowler hat when doing the photo shoot. (Yes, Kate Moss did pose nude for Coco Mademoiselle: it's the campaign right before Knightley.)
KK is not really the 21st-century embodiment of CC but the campaign presented it that way: that's why Coco's apartment was recreated for the commercial. The Chanel PR is quite subtle in presenting this suggestion but it's there if one looks closely.
Pretty sure I've got the Kate Moss ad on the site somewhere, but don't know where. And yes — hope Watson will refrain from that sort of thing at least until the Harry Potter movies are all finished.
Robin posted that ad on 28 February 2005 under the title “Spring ad campaigns: Chanel Coco Mademoiselle and Vivienne Westwood Anglomania”. (No, I don't have photographic memory…I just Googled your site.)
Aha, so I did! Thanks for checking.
I agree: she's simply too young (only 17!).
Coco Mlle. isn't a fragrance I would think of if I was asked to recommend a scent to a young girl of that age. It's sweet and playful, yes, but kind of “grown up”, too.
It is logical to feature Emma Watson in the ad. I like her a lot and think she's Chance material, but she's quite sophisticated so perhaps Coco is not off the mark. Aftr all, I was wearing Madame Rochas at 14 …
Personally I would not buy or wear anything from Chanel except Allure Sensuelle, no matter who they feature in the ad. The fragrance smells the same, doesn't it?
Same goes for more seasoned customers who know the fragrance and have already made up their mind as to whether it suits them or not.
It's actually the same case with me…of all the Chanel fragrances I only use No. 19 because it suits my skin chemistry the best…even Pour Monsieur and Allure Homme smell too spicy on me.
(Madame Rochas at 14? What fine taste you have!)
In all fairness hiring a new spokesperson is a very important matter: it's always a balancing act between the “heritage” of the brand and the “needs” of the potential customers. As my Marketing teachers might say it's all about having an integrated marketing strategy nowdays. (Yes, I actually enjoy marketing!) Ultimately the persona of the individual projects the target message, thereby attracting the new customers and establishing “relationships” with them. Otherwise the audience shall not covert into “seasoned customers”. (It's actually more pertinent than ever to establish a relationship with the young consumers since brand loyalty is so fickle these days.)
I hope I don't bore anyone with my take on the marketing concepts…I buy fragrances with my nose and heart like any other knowledgable perfumistas but I just want to point out why cosmetic brands spend millions and millions on those endorsement deals.
Oops…typed way too fast again…I shouldn't have said “otherwise the audience shall not covert into “seasoned customers”…the principle only applies to mass advertising strategies (niche distribution strategy relies on completely different means). Anyhow, there are always exceptions to the rules but right now having the right spokesperson means a great deal from the brands' perspective.
(Which is, again, not my perspective. I'm just applying what have haver learnt from my education.)
One last thing…sorry for all the typos…(wish I could've fixed all of them).
Once a big fan of marketing, it is starting to get on my nerves these days.
Take Dilberg & Kern jewellery. They look like they cost 1/3 of their actual price and they probably do. The rest is the “cost of the hype” – presence, fancy display cases and catalogues, but what you end up with a grossly overpriced product.
Same goes for many fragrances. Celebrity fragrance a speciality.
On the other hand, Palais Shiseido spends more on fragrances and you end up with a quality product.
I would like to exercise the choice of not being aware of all products on the market. Is that impossible?
Look at this pic:
http://fashionista.com/images/emma%20watson%20chanel%20party.jpg
I did look her up all done up, and in this pic at a chanel party, she is wearing all Chanel, and she does actually wear it quite well and look relatively sophisticated. Atleast she's not dressing tarty like most young celebrities eg. Lindsay Lohan. I definately could not see her fronting Chanel.
To all: looks like Emma Watson is NOT it (see the update in the article).
oh wow. “hotly” denying. thats the worst kind of denial :p
did you see the bit at the bottom of that article about Angelina Jolie in talks with Coty about creating a fragrance?
I never thought she'd do that. Kind of figured she was too much of a humanitarian to waste time on beauty products… oh well.
Exactly — hotly!
I did see that about AJ. I've already reported it as a rumor, so didn't see the point in repeating it since it's still at the rumor stage, LOL…we don't want to make Coty “hotly” deny anything
For God's sake she looks like Lolita! That suit is too old for her, and the lipstick – did she steal her Mum's?
I see her in sands and pale golds – she could do Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, or if it really must be top of the tops – then Hermes. She is not vampish enough for Chanel, which at 17 is a good thing.
I thought the ad with Vanessa Paradis in a birdcage was brilliant.
You're absolutely right about the vices! Yes, you can tune it out once you know what kind of game the corporations are playing. But it's out there so we might as well have a sense of what going on so we don't get caught dancing to the tune.
Two things:
1. “Hotly denying” a rumour is very typical of Chanel. The PR division usually either refuses to comment or hotly denies a rumour. Neither of which are the best strategies (sigh).
2. The Emma Watson + Chanel rumours have been going on since last July so we'll see how it unfolds next month.
3. To be quite honest I'm very surprised that Chanel doesn't exercise an extension option with Keira's contract. The latest campaign is barely a year old and dropping Knightley represents another major investments. I would think it's cheapter to release another print ad…it's still costly but a fraction of the other option. (Must have something to do with Helleu's passing, but who knows?)
Those are my thoughts for now.
I liked that one too.
How did I manage to say three things when I meant to say two? Mine, I'm meant to post comments! (At least I still have my common sense…)
It does seem really artificial for her to come out with beauty products; she's always “Oh, I'm so above being pretty.” However, it would almost certainly be interesting, no? She doesn't seem like a gourmand/floral/fruit person, does she? At least an oriental; maybe even a hard leather. =o
Kiera Knightly is kinda creepy, no? The commercial always gave me chills when it came on and she looks positively… not nice… in the ads; airbrushed to high heavens but still…. She's just off-putting to me. I, for the life of me, can't think of a better replacement, though.
I don't know about “almost certainly be interesting” — so far I've seen very little correlation between the personality of the celebrity & the scent, you know? Except a tiny bit w/ Sarah Jessica Parker. The rest of them seem to do whatever Coty/Parlux/whomever says will sell.