Former Lara Croft Model Is New Face of Jeanstar

Former Lara Croft Model Is New Face of Jeanstar

Posted by Fairchild Publications on Jul 21, 2006, 12:34

LOS ANGELES -- If female shoppers aren't familiar with Jones Apparel Group's moderately priced denim label called Jeanstar or a British-born actress named Rhona Mitra, they should be by August.

In Jeanstar's first ad campaign, budgeted at $2 million and set to break in August issues of Glamour, In Style and other fashion magazines, New York-based Jones will highlight an emerging denim brand and an up-and-coming talent.

Mitra, who was a model for the cyber-vixen Lara Croft in the "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" video games and is best known in the U.S. for her role in the TV series "Boston Legal," never has been featured in a print ad campaign. The 29-year-old actress is the first celebrity to be featured in what Jones plans to be an annual campaign focusing on a rising talent.

"We want to get in on the ground floor," said Jack Gross, chief executive officer of Jones' Gloria Vanderbilt division, which encompasses jeans brands such as Gloria Vanderbilt, Bandolino Blu and Jeanstar. "We don't want to be a `me-too' brand. We want to be more innovative and creative."

To that point, on a warm Sunday afternoon here in late November, Jones created a glamorous night out at a Mod airport-themed club with Mitra as a sophisticated lady who owns a wardrobe stocked with skinny blue jeans, black denim pencil skirts accessorized with silver charm bracelets dangling from the pockets, chiffon blouses and rabbit-fur-trimmed gloves. At her beck and call were five handsomely scruffy men who trailed her like puppies.

"I think she looks superchic," Maryam Malakpour, the campaign's stylist, said to Mark Kucharski, Jones' creative director, of the pencil skirt-and-trapeze coat ensemble Mitra was wearing for a particular shot.

"Let's go clubbing," Mitra said in jest as she swayed her hips in front of her entourage down the sidewalk toward the nightclub while facing photographer Cliff Watts' camera.

"This time we're going to have a sexy walk," Watts told Mitra, directing her to slow her pace.

"I don't know that walk," Mitra replied with tongue-in-cheek. "I don't have that in my repertoire."

It was Mitra's look, style and sensuality that inspired Gross to pick her for the new campaign after seeing her on an episode of "Boston Legal."

"I said to myself, `She really exemplifies somebody the Jeanstar customer could look up to,"' Gross said.

Designed for women who like the styling of Diesel and Joe's Jeans but can't afford the $150-plus price tags, Jeanstar launched in spring 2004 with wholesale prices from $15 to $22. Gross estimates that Jeanstar will generate more than $50 million in wholesale volume in its first two years through department stores, including Carson's, Belk and the Federated chain. He said the next step is to increase sales and build brand recognition.

Jeanstar's branding strategy will include magazine spreads of multiple pages featuring Mitra wearing pencil skirts, denim gauchos and slim-fit and boot-cut jeans. The point is to show the diversity of the collection, said Stacy Lastrina, Jones' senior vice president for corporate marketing and creative services, who oversees the company's ad campaigns.

As a glut of labels saturates a denim market that is beginning to show signs that it can't expand any more, companies need marketing campaigns that will help them gain market share.

Gross acknowledged that Jeanstar is one of numerous jeans brands in a challenging retail climate. But he said that, in the moderate market, consumers will be motivated by fashion and drawn to celebrity culture.

With the Jeanstar campaign, Mitra joins a growing circle of actresses who endorse mainstream jeans brands, such as Nicole Richie for Bongo and Brittany Murphy for Jordache. But Mitra's star quotient isn't quite as high as the others. She wasn't recognized by passersby who gathered across the street from the LAX nightclub to check out the brunette sitting still in a black Rolls Royce for the photographer.

"She's a model," a crew member told the crowd, when asked for Mitra's identity.

Mitra was a hard-working model, keeping her cool when a homeless woman slapped two crew members and menacingly circled the Rolls Royce and a silver Bentley that was used for another shot. The woman was arrested.

Mitra also revealed signs that she was ready to graduate from actress to director. For one shot of her leaning against the polished concrete wall inside the dim nightclub, Mitra suggested slipping her hands in the pockets of the brown leather bomber jacket as she looked seductively over her shoulder.

"There -- it just opens it up a bit more," Mitra said, upon reviewing the digital picture on the computer.

Every alluring photo will give a boost to Mitra's career.

"The Jeanstar campaign will get my face out there a bit more," Mitra said in a statement supplied by Jones. "Being in fashion magazines [will result in] much added exposure."

The outfits featured in the print campaign and point-of-sale displays also will help Jeanstar stand out from a moderate market occupied by Levi's, Lee and other mainstream brands.

"A lot of times, to be forward is to keep it simple and be timeless," said Malakpour, who also has styled for companies such as Costume National and Levi's, as well as music videos by Coldplay and Green Day.

Lastrina said Jones also plans to give away Jeanstar products to a small group of celebrities and consumers whom the company regards as socially active and highly involved members of their community.

"It's a way to get a brand buzz out there and have women talk about a great new denim brand," she said.

Here are some of the pictures from the jeanstar photoshoot...