From Benz to Lens: 7th on Sixth Shows Snap Up Olympus
NEWYORK - Seventh on Sixth is ready for its close-up.
The fashion show production company confirmed on Monday that Olympus, the
camera company, will take over as the title sponsor for its biannual
collections held in New York's Bryant Park, replacing Mercedes-Benz, which
had been the title sponsor since 2001. This means that the 7th on Sixth
shows will be called Olympus Fashion Week beginning with the fall 2004
collections, scheduled for Feb. 6-13.
Olympus is the third company to hold the title sponsor position since the
shows formed in 1993, first as an off-shoot of the Council of Fashion
Designers of America. General Motors had been the title sponsor of the
shows for three years beginning in 1998.
The intention of such sponsorships is to connect those brands to the
high-energy, celebrity-infused fashion world within the minds of consumers,
retailers and the press. IMG, which acquired 7th on Sixth in 2001, has
augmented the event's sponsorship roster in an effort to capitalize on the
value of the 7th on Sixth brand, as its most recent edition in September
featured 17 sponsors, including a mobile phone company, a water brand, an
airline, a sunglasses firm and the maker of a birth control patch.
IMG also produces fashion weeks around the world under different title
sponsors, including Mercedes-Benz Shows LA, Mercedes Asia ,Fashion Weeks in
Singapore and Lakme Fashion Week in India.
Rebranding the New York event will be another challenge for the
organization, which has been facing its first competition from alternate
fashion show venues in recent seasons, both in New York and Los Angeles.
The combination of other venues and designers who show off-site on their
own tends to complicate the distinction of an Olympus Fashion Week from a
New York fashion week, from 7th on Sixth or even the CFDA, which many
guests mistakenly believe is still involved in the production.
However, Fern Mallis, executive director of 7th on Sixth and a vice
president at IMG, said the connection of the camera company to the event
was a natural because of the number of professional photographers - about
600 to 800 - who register to cover the event each season. Also, Olympus
plans to be more aggressive in its external promotion of its relationship
to 7th on Sixth, incorporating the runway shows into its consumer
advertising campaigns and marketing program, as well as a new charity
initiative being developed for 2004. That's something that Mercedes tended
to avoid, although the company recently signed Giorgio Armani to design a car.
Also, whereas Mercedes' introduction of new cars at the tent each season
drew only passing interest from the majority of the fashion press who
probably couldn't afford even an introductory coupe, the changing nature of
fashion photography with the introduction of digital imaging is something
that is being widely studied by industry publications, a process in which
Olympus, as a camera maker, is directly involved.
When Olympus joined the roster of fashion week sponsors in September, the
company made its presence widely known with onsite marketing executives and
a publicist highlighting its various activities, including unusual treats
for the generally maligned photo crews, such as shuttle buses to off-site
shows, lockers, snacks, cocktails and back rubs. The company also used the
event to showcase a new product launch, the Olympus E-1, a digital camera
with interchangeable lenses.
"Olympus is a sponsorship that is so appropriate and fitting," Mallis said.
"They did such a nice job in their inaugural season in pampering and
spoiling the photographers, who are a critical part of the success of these
weeks."
Olympus signed a three-anda-half-year deal as title sponsor Olympus
officials would not disclose their investment, although Martin Lee, vice
president of marketing for the consumer products group of Olympus America,
said the company's marketing budget was increased this year by 70 percent
to $50 million to primarily cover two new sponsorship opportunities - the
fashion shows and the U.S. Open tennis tournament.
"We're a company that firmly stands behind the design of our product," Lee
said.
Mallis portrayed the change from Mercedes to Olympus, and General Motors
prior to that, as reflective of the nature of corporate sponsorship.
"Companies don't make those decisions for 10 or 15 years out," she said.
"The climate is changing landscape, reflective of the economic environment
and how things change in the industry."
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