A Loro Piana Story
When making fun of the brand consumers' target has in the end made a 100-year-old luxury brand more popular than ever
You probably may have seen this face before in one of his ironic videos on TikTok or scrolling IG giving bits of advice and tips on how to live the ‘right’ life. In case you haven’t, I definitely recommend you to go watch his videos for a sprinkle of irony and laughter - you will not regret it. This is The Gstaad guy, he plays this character, called Constance, who lives a super comfortable lifestyle while wearing (only) Loro Piana’s full looks. But the interesting fact is that his iconic videos made Loro Piana more successful than ever through the weirdest marketing strategy that you would ever think of.
Take notes.
Loro Piana is a luxury brand, owned by LVMH, best known because of its super high-quality finest wool cashmere pieces that come from the best manufacturers in the world.
Did you know? Loro Piana stands out from its competitors partly because of its ownership of Vicuña goat farms in Bolivia and Peru, which produce the rarest cashmere yarn in the world - this is why it is so expensive. Since the growing interest in the quiet luxury trend - a trend that abdicates high-quality minimal pieces that recall the so-called aesthetic of Old Money - this brand already had a resurgence of popularity throughout last year.
But what made the real difference in sales was this genius marketing strategy in collaboration with Gstaad Guy. Who is he? A few years ago, around 2021 he started making fun of a friend of his, calling himself the Gstaad guy. After an instant success, he created this snobbish character, called Constance (fake nickname) that lives a super pompous lifestyle while giving ironic advices and tips on how to be part of this world - and if it doesn’t apply to you, à la poubelle!
He then created an alter-ego, called Colton, which is exactly the opposite of the first character. While Constance pushes people to retire from the mundane life, picturing the more sophisticated, private, and calm character, Colton is the cousin who lives the good life willing to enjoy it and not suppress his flashy lifestyle. It reminds of Hannah Montana as we see him living the best of both worlds in a real-life scenario.
People loved his irony since the beginning and I even started to appreciate his rule of ‘last one in and first one out’ when referring to party behavior but I still need to get better at the ‘first one out’ part. Work in progress.
One thing to analyze here is that Loro Piana started to collaborate with him because of his highly influential following on his accounts, featuring few of the billionaires listed on the Forbes List and even leaders of states.
This marketing strategy of Loro Piana is genius because of its subtle approach - by infusing humor and irony into his portrayal of a lavish lifestyle, he automatically made Loro Piana's exclusivity more approachable and desirable. His videos, while playful, underscore the brand's association with this niche lifestyle, making it not just a symbol of wealth but also of cultural savvy or as he would say ‘If you know, You know’.
Product placement, when executed subtly, it becomes more powerful than mere advertising as it instantly connects a brand to a lifestyle or narrative that audiences aspire to. Loro Piana's strategic placement in Gstaad Guy's content is a masterclass in this art. Instead of making the advertisement too obvious, the brand becomes an intrinsic element of Gstaad Guy's lavish yet ironic lifestyle, making viewers associate Loro Piana not just with luxury, but with a particular, aspirational way of being. This method of product placement is far more direct than traditional advertisements because it engages viewers' imaginations and desires, making the idea of owning Loro Piana pieces not just a purchase but as a way to be part of this niche world.
Each Loro Piana capsule collection that Gstaad Guy sponsored in its videos sold out in a matter of hours - which never happened before in the history of the brand.
I guess irony and laughter are what wins at the end of the day.
The character that he’s playing works mainly because it seems to be not too far from his actual lifestyle, making his character an actual point of reference for people who want to be part of this world. He stated, in fact, that the most common DMs he gets are about tips on places where to go in X city (Financial Times).
This was a fun case to see especially for a brand like Loro Piana who never used influencers before, usually sticking to a more minimal and quiet strategy as it connects to the politics of the brand. What changed is that they found the perfect person to narrate to the consumer what it means to wear Loro Piana. So instead of simply showing the product, Constance is portraying a way of being that encapsulates the values of most of the target consumers of Loro Piana. By making it ironic and fun, it becomes fun to watch even for those who are not entirely part of that niche of people.
Girls, I will leave you with my favorite statement of his: ‘If he goes to Mykonos as a vacation during the summer - à la poubelle!’
Thanks for following, Ã la prochaine!