When “Nicolae and Elisabeta Petrescu” – an odd pair supposedly from Romania – went cruising around New York Fashion Week with their fluffy cat Leo and rose-petal throwing cohorts, there were plenty of curious whispers rippling through both the real and online worlds. The hoax has now been revealed, and what a clever way to spin publicity without splashing the cash.
Having just blogged recently about designer spending millions of dollars on shows, it seems a funny twist to have this little hoax show up.
The pair were actually actors hired by John Whitledge, the founder and head designer of Trovata. And yes, they were wearing Trovata outfits the whole time. Without spending millions on a show, the label has managed to get people talking about them, as well as getting pictures of their garments scattered across the media.
We don’t expect big names to take the same strategy, or stop putting on amazing displays of entertaining fashion for us to watch (nor do we want them to). But it’s certainly something upcomers with little cash can take a lesson from – if you don’t have the money to spend on getting publicity, turn to creative thinking – it might just be worth your while.
