Luxury brands are diversifying their brand ambassador lineups by appointing Chinese athletes instead of celebrities from the entertainment world.
Competition between luxury brands to bag top Chinese athletes as representatives is heating up – prompted in part by the rapid turnover of emerging celebrity idols and frequent backlashes against superstar spokespersons sparked by scandals involving reputation-damaging issues like tax evasion or illicit sex.
Prada last month named homegrown basketball player Yang Shuyu as its face for China, and Dior and Lululemon competed in January this year for the endorsement of the country’s first-ever Formula 1 driver, Zhou Guanyu.
Meanwhile, 19-year-old freestyle skiing Olympic gold medallist Eileen Gu endorses over 23 brands, including IWC and Tiffany & Co., and Louis Vuitton. Domestic high-end brands, like Erdos, and Bosideng, are also diversifying their brand ambassador portfolios by collaborating with Chinese Olympians.
By appointing athletes as brand ambassadors and celebrating China’s achievements in sports, “luxury brands can create a sense of admiration and inspire consumers to embrace the brand as a symbol of China’s excellence, resulting in positive brand associations,” Kim Leitzes, Managing Director of APAC at Launchmetrics tells Jing Daily. Continue to read the full article here
