I am totally confused by this Louis Vuitton campaign about Mohammad Ali.
This is a beautiful ad, full of poetry by a hip hop artist, calligraphy drawing in a boxing ring, quoting Mohammad Ali’s words, but what the heck does that have to do with Louis Vuitton luggage?
I went web hunting to discover that this is part of their core values campaign but how does it represent their values?
Their spokesman said “Core Values celebrates Vuitton’s timeless classics in real situations on ‘real’ people – meaning celebrities rather than models.” Well excuse me but how are celebrities more real than models?
I understand the print ads, with Angelina Jolie in Cambodia, her Louis Vuitton over her shoulder.
Another shows Bono and his wife in Africa, again carrying their LV bags.
So, these are people who champion causes they believe in and they happen to carry their own values in a designer bag – great. I see the point and understand how LV would like to associate people helping others with their luxury brand.
Where they lost me, is with the TV ad using Mohammad Ali quotes. Where does the value of helping others come in? What exactly are the “values” in Ali’s words?
I’ll give Ogilvy Paris credit, the ad is elegant and beautifully shot, even if I can’t see the relevance to the product or the appeal to its main customer, women with expendable cash.
Help me out here, I’m sure I’m missing something – what will this ad do for Louis Vuitton to position their brand in the eyes of consumers?
Kathy Reeves Consulting 