Fashion, Fabric, Freshness in Focus As Jean Companies Vie for Attention - Brief Article

Brandweek, July 2, 2001 by Sandra Dolbow

With back-to-school buying about to kick into high gear, three trendy European jeans brands--Diesel, Miss Sixty and Marithe Francois Girbaud--are among the first to roll out print and outdoor campaigns.

"Everyone wants a piece of this market, everyone has a denim offering and new companies are entering." said Andrew Pollard, dir sales and marketing at Sixty USA. "Companies that have financial capabilities will survive."

As will those that have the look, which this season focuses on innovative fabric treatments and versatile styling. "People are demanding newness," Pollard said. "We're selling a wider range of product, but less of each of them. We're concentrating on fit for a flattering, sexy look."

Sixty USA touts its '60s inspired women's (Miss Sixty) and men's (Energie) lines in publications favored by its fashion-forward target, such as Nylon, Surface, Black Book, Paper and Flaunt. Photographer Ellen Von Unwerth tensed the shots.

Girbaud ads emphasize French extravagance and a divine approach to the theme "Body by God. Denim by Marithe Francois Girbaud." Images focus on the jeans, which were shot from the bottom up for "a godlike" presentation, according to David Sirieix, owner of agency DavidSirieix.Com New York, which handles.

"Last season's campaign showed faraway shots of a beautiful couple, but didn't get attention," Sirieix said. The new campaign focuses on lifestyle and the quality of the product, which are essential in successful advertising in the U.S., he said. One ad, shot from the rear with the model lying down, highlights the jeans in an extravagant fashion.

Ads break in August books, including Jane, vibe, Marie Claire, Stuff and Maxim. A billboard goes up in Times Square on August 1. Budget is close to $1 million. DavidSirieix.com also handles teen denim brand Mavi, soon to open a store in New York, which will launch TV ads later this season for the first time in four years.

Meanwhile, Italy's Diesel, fresh off its award-winning "African" campaign, launches "Save yourself," which highlights its Victorian-inspired denim fashions on surrealistic-masked models.