Do odd alliances make bad brand flirtations?

The proposed Tiffany & Co and Nike brand collaboration has evoked mixed response from fans and followers. For Tiffany & Co, it has been touted as an opportunity to try and appeal to a younger audience. For Nike, the teaming up is tied into the 40th anniversary of the beloved Air Force 1 sneaker. But the question being repeatedly asked is whether this is one of the most mismatched, and worst thought through, brand alliances in years?

The Tiffany & Co. x Nike Air Force 1 Low '1837' collaboration is said to be coming on March 7, but “sneakerheads” from the world over are already mocking the design. “Just do it”, they say should have been “Just do more”. Design collaborations can surely reinvigorate a company or brand — but it’s always a thin line to tread — and there will always be the danger of putting off as many people as you may impress.

Is the Tiffany & Co. x Nike partnership an odd-couple alliance or do opposites actually attract? Both are possible. The '1837' numerical is a reference to the original Tiffany & Co. collection, and the Nike sneakers will be paired with a new Swoosh-branded silver shoe brush, shoe horn, whistle and laces complete with silver tags. Seems novel enough, no?

The Tiffany take on the iconic Air Force 1 sneaker is a black suede shoe with the signature Nike “swoosh” coloured in the brand's robin's-egg blue hue. A small silver plate on the heel matches the Swoosh and “Tiffany” is written on the tongue in an elegant cursive font. The design is being criticised in social media as too subdued, and perhaps too Tiffany and not enough Nike. And the price tag of $400 is seen to be steep by Nike loyalists – who are seemingly more interested in the brush and the laces than the sneakers!

There have been brand collaborations in the past that have been really well done. McDonald’s and Burger King have been fast food rivals practically since the dawn of time. However, these two burger giants in Argentina came together for an amazing cause. In September of 2019, McDonald’s was raising money for childhood cancer. For one day only just in Argentina, all proceeds from Big Mac sales were to be donated. In an effort to help the cause, Burger King halted Whopper sales for a day, dubbing it “A Day Without Whopper.” Burger King displayed a unique charitable selflessness while McDonald’s raised more money as a result, and served up over 73,000 more Big Mac sandwiches that day! In the end, Burger King ended up getting its fair share of recognition and basked in the glory of its competitors’ good deed. Now that’s what I call a real collaboration.

Louis Vuitton, pioneers in the art of travel, recently partnered with BMW to create a tailor-made set of luggage crafted in carbon fibre for the newly launched BMW i8. The four-piece set of exclusive suitcases and bags were carefully designed to follow the sleek lines of the sporty i8. Each piece called on Louis Vuitton’s heritage of craftsmanship and innovation, bringing together leading edge design and materials with exacting, careful construction. Soft, flexible bags and semi-rigid thermoformed cases were cleverly calibrated, down to the last millimetre. They stacked and fit together in an ingenious way in order to allow the owners to carry their most treasured possessions in style and security, without compromising the comfort and elegance of luxury travel.

Nike itself has done wonders in the past. In 1985, Nike released the now iconic “Be True to Your School” collection, featuring seven Dunks doused in the colours of UNLV, Kentucky, Syracuse, Michigan, Iowa, Villanova, and St John’s — plus one entirely different shoe: The Terminator for Georgetown, the first sneaker it ever developed exclusively for a college squad, with “Hoyas” emblazoned across the rear of the team-only court version. The epic college series is a collector’s darling today.

Brand collabs have gained momentum in India too. Uniqlo roped in Eka’s Rina Singh for a special line of kurtas that eventually also sold off the brands’ shelves in Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia. Swimsuit specialists Shivan & Narresh surprised us somewhat by creating designer collars for pooches in collaboration with pet luxury start-up Heads Up For Tails. Mighty Aphrodite, a gin cocktail created by San Francisco-based Trick Dog — on the world’s 50 best bars list — teamed up with The Bombay Canteen to give Mumbaikars some really heady experiences.  And yes, dinner plates designed by couturier Sabyasachi Mukherjee have been seen on the shelves of British tableware brand Thomas Goode’s stores in London and Mumbai. 

Brand collaborations need serious thinking before making the nuptials public. The Tiffany-Nike tie-up is being sniggered at because both brands really represent different worlds with vastly different audiences. Making sport luxurious or making luxury sporty may appear tantalisingly challenging to brand strategists, but the ultimate outcome has to be effervescent, yet endearing.

The writer is managing director of Rediffusion