Puig has officially unveiled the new men’s fragrance from the house of Prada, called Luna Rossa. The fragrance was previewed in May, at a special launch event in Venice. The scent, which is being introduced in domestic and travel retail markets this month, was named after Prada’s America’s Cup Luna Rossa Challenge, of which Prada Chairman and CEO Patrizio Bertelli is Team Principal.
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Prada Luna Rossa is being launched this month |
The literal translation of Luna Rossa is ‘Red Moon’. The name was reportedly chosen because of the red moon that appeared the night Bertelli decided to enter the America’s Cup. It is also the name of a famous Neopolitan song.
Bertelli, a passionate sailor, first became involved in the America’s Cup in 1997, and in 2000 won the Louis Vuitton Cup. The 2013 America’s Cup will be raced in two phases, and features a new class of catamaran. The first phase involves a number of regattas, called the America’s Cup World Series, which are being held in different venues worldwide.
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The Prada Luna Rossa fragrance was unveiled prior to the Venetian fleet races on 18 May, in which both Prada boats claimed victory. Prada’s Luna Rossa – Swordfish boat took the day’s opening race, while Prada’s Luna Rossa – Piranha won the second.
The Prada Luna Rossa fragrance was inspired by the Prada Luna Rossa AC 45 Catamaran, and the juice, packaging and advertising clearly reflect that. It is a key launch for the brand, with ambitious objectives.
“This is the biggest ever masculine fragrance launch from Prada,” declared Prada Fragrance and Skincare General Manager Francesco Riosa, at the launch presentation. “We aim to achieve sales of €20m in 2012, rising to €60m in 2014. It’s a big vision.”
Riosa emphasised the coherence of the concept, and its many links to the sailing world. One of the actual Prada Luna Rossa AC 45 catamarans will feature in the ad campaign, alongside crew member Nick Hutton. The fragrance’s colour-scheme of red, white and silver reflects the team’s racing livery.
“This is a really exciting launch for us,” echoed Prada Parfums’ Marie Ousmane. “Let’s talk first about the bottle. Striking and emblematic, it is made of aluminium and glass, and represents the key values of Prada Luna Rossa; masculinity, performance and technology.
“It was designed by Yves Behar,” she added. “It is presented in a graphic, contemporary carton, which features contrasting matte and gloss textures and the famous Prada Linea Rossa red stripe.”
The juice, composed by Daniela Andrier, is said to offer a new interpretation of freshness. Key ingredients include orange essence, lavender absolute, clary sage, spearmint and ambrette. The product line-up comprises 50ml, 100ml and 150ml edts, a 125ml after shave lotion, a 200ml shower gel and a 150ml deodorant.
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Whatever Floats Your Boat |
| “There is nothing – absolutely nothing – half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” So said Ratty to Mole in Kenneth Grahame’s “Wind in the Willows”, and (apart from shoe shopping perhaps), it’s a sentiment I share. So I was overjoyed in May to be invited to Venice by Puig, to the official reveal of Luna Rossa, the new men’s fragrance from the house of Prada. |
“For the communication, we wanted to stay very close to the DNA of Luna Rossa, so we decided to work with the team sailors,” Ousmane explained. “The single page ad features Nick Hutton, wearing the official crew uniform. The dps version includes the bottle and also the second ‘hero’, the Luna Rossa boat. The campaign was shot by photographer David Sims.”
Ousmane revealed that the TV spot was filmed in a studio in LA, which involved shipping one of the Luna Rossa catamarans all the way from New Zealand. “We worked with director Adam Berg, who specialises in slo-mo techniques, as seen in the Matrix movie,” she explained.
To film the ad, the catamaran was suspended high off the floor. Filming took place over the course of seven days, and featured the genuine crew (as opposed to models), who were blasted with 500 litres of water a day, to simulate an authentic racing environment.
According to Ousmane, the launch will also be supported with well-branded POS merchandising, including shelf tester stands featuring the colours and codes of the bottle, outpost merchandising and impactful window displays. “And of course there will be a qualitative and comprehensive promotional programme, which includes gwps and a gift that is specific to the travel retail channel,” she observed.
Ousmane concluded: “2012 is just the beginning. We really believe in Prada Luna Rossa and have great expectations for the project. So we are already thinking about the future. This year is the edt launch, but we will follow in 2013 with an America’s Cup Collector Edition, and in 2014 we will introduce an Extreme version.”
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