Armani discovers what makes an icon in ongoing series

April 15, 2022

Armani Beauty continues in its exploration of beauty with an emphasis on icons. Image credit: Armani Beauty

Italy’s Armani Beauty is honing in on its most renowned products and exploring what makes consumers come back for more.

In the third episode of its “The only rule is beauty” series, Armani reviews some of the products that have redefined and reshaped the brand itself and the cosmetics sector overall. Premiered last month, the series explores the philosophy at the heart of Armani Beauty: there are no rules in beauty, only what makes a person feel their best (see story).

What makes an icon
The episode opens with Giorgio Armani international makeup artist Linda Cantello who explains how her team creates iconic products. She begins with the Luminous Silk foundation.

“How do we know, or do we know, when we are launching a product that it will become iconic?” she says. “Luminous Silk, for example, is still an icon after 20 years.

“Who knew that it would still be relevant and very successful,” she says. “The formula has been copied but never realized by anybody else, and it truly is a different breakthrough — it is flattering and addictive to the women who buy it.”

The third episode focuses on the brand’s most iconic items

Next up is the Lip Maestro liquid lipstick.

According to Ms. Cantello, this product has shot up the ranks in popularity due to good timing. As she is describing the product, the film showcases exactly how the lipstick appears on lips via close-up shots.

“We were seeing the demise of gloss, and people were beginning to wear stick lipstick again,” she said in the film. “Then we had this combination of a liquid lipstick — at the time, no one else had that.”

Additionally, Armani’s Lip Power long-lasting satin lipstick is on its way to becoming a classic, according to the makeup artist. In the film, Ms. Cantello shares that consumer tests have been overwhelmingly successful, suggesting the product has icon potential.

The next product in the expert’s review is the Neo-Nude foundation — one that she describes as a new generation of makeup for a new generation of consumers.

“It is easy to wear, it is subtle and it makes you look fantastic,” she says.

The last product in Ms. Cantello’s review is one that came about by accident: the Armani Eye-Tint liquid eyeshadow.

“It started as something called a slurry, a liquid which is put into ovens to be dehydrated to become powder eyeshadow,” she said. “We noticed that the slurry was actually far more interesting before it went into the oven than the powder.

“We took a chance at launching it, and that is how Eye-Tint was born.”

Ms. Cantello explains how various products came to fruition, whether by mistake or changing consumer demands. Image credit: Armani Beauty

Finally, the Armani makeup artist explores one of beauty’s most iconic and timeless looks: the smokey eye. While not unique to Armani, the smokey eye has evolved over a number of years.

What used to be a carefully constructed look has become a shadowy look without harsh lines.

Serial marketing
It is not uncommon for brands to publish campaigns in a serial format, as the consistency and more detailed nature of this type of messaging often help prolong and strengthen brands’ relationships with consumers.

French fashion house Christian Dior invited consumers into the ring to celebrate its new Dior Homme Sport fragrance.

To promote the fragrance, Dior enlisted seven models and boxers for its new “Into The Ring” series. Maintaining a mood of palpable intensity, the men discuss what boxing gives them, how it makes them feel and how the fragrance is connected to the sport (see story).

French fashion label Chloé explored ambition and curiosity in a serial effort for its Nomade fragrance.

Chloé leveraged social video for the “Nomad Stories” series. In the same manner as other Chloé efforts, the Nomad Stories campaign emphasized free spirits and female friendships.

The video style is intimate, with voiceovers by the women and several close-ups. Reflecting the default style of IGTV, each short is filmed in a vertical orientation (see story).

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Armani discovers what makes an icon in ongoing series

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