It’s nice to see the mainstream media making so many mentions of Gwen’s contribution to World AIDS Day with the auction of the Bugaboo stroller she designed and which goes up for auction on ebay starting today-this article is from Portfolio:
Twitterati like Alicia Keyes, Kim Kardashian and Hallie Berry have gone silent today in observance of World AIDS Day, but ever-entrepreneurial designer Gwen Stefani has chosen to commemorate the cause by designing a bugaboo RED stroller.
Part of her Spring 2011 L.A.M.B. line, the stroller has everything an aspirational celebrity brand has to offer—exclusivity, luxury, and a style. Only two of the strollers have been manufactured, one for Stefani and one for the lucky highest-bidder on eBay.
Selling designer exclusives for a cause is hardly a new concept, but few organizations have done it better than Bono’s (Product) RED, founded in 2006 by the U2 frontman.
Companies like Gap, American Express, and even Apple, have participated by selling branded items such as t-shirts, a credit card, and iPods.
And while the organization has been criticized for profiting by using diseases as a marketing vehicle, it has donated more than $140 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The fund, in turn, has committed more than $19 million in 144 countries to support large-scale prevention, treatment and care programs against the three diseases.
And some companies are taking advantage of the day to hawk their niche products. Undercover Condoms based in Columbus, Ohio, is donating $1 for every new order placed on its website and offering shoppers a 10 percent discount. International publisher Penguin Classics is using the day as a way to rebrand some of its best-known titles like Dracula, Wuthering Heights, and Anna Karenina.
While Stefani’s one stroller may seem like little compared to initiatives by large retailers, other stars should take note of her approach. She’s leveraging her No. 1 asset, her celebrity status, to the cause in a way that brings in money. And it helps establish her fashion line as one that stands apart from those who just lend their names to a product without staying intimately involved in everyday operation or marketing decisions.
From InStyle:
One very stylish—and very lucky—tot will get the luxury of riding around in a Gwen Stefani signed and designed (Bugaboo) RED stroller. Only two of the strollers were manufactured—and Gwen owns the other one! The singer/designer created the strollers with fabric and studs from her Spring 2011 L.A.M.B. collection. The stroller goes on sale tomorrow on eBay in honor of World AIDS Day, and 100% of the sale price goes to The Global Fund, which aims to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.
PopSugar and baby sites like Essential Baby have also mentioned it.