Happy Summer by Kenzo

Perfume brands bombard potential buyers with one slick ad after another, This tired marketing approach fails to truly differentiate each perfume. Kenzo wanted the approach for its perfume FlowerbyKenzo to be completely different.

Perfume is a sensory experience, not just a visual one. Kenzo needed to create a multi-sensory approach to marketing FlowerbyKenzo. Traditional magazine advertising by itself would not convey the full experience.

The iconic poppy of FlowerbyKenzo perfume has for years celebrated the arrival of the Summer. This summery focus ensured sales increased year-on-year, but Kenzo wanted to grow them further. So FlowerbyKenzo took to the streets of Madrid in June ‘09 so people could experience the perfume, and create a spectacular event the city would not forget - mixing theatre, performance and the visual arts.

Apart from the improved weather, Summer also represents a time of the year for renewal. Wardrobes, hairstyles, spirits and minds are refreshed. This was identified as the perfect time for FlowerbyKenzo. Madrid, like other major European cities, houses a thriving arts and culture scene. Stunning architecture, major exhibitions, urban art, and impressive cultural events all contribute. The San Isidro festival in Madrid is an incredible mix of art, music and theatre during the Summer. It was decided that this festival perfectly defined the essence of FlowerbyKenzo.

In June ‘09, the Spanish capital woke up to poppy gardens where 100,000 flowers blossomed unexpectedly overnight. Grey urban plazas ahd been transformed  into colourful and vibrant spots. For the main experience, Kenzo created the first-ever ”Vertical Garden” in the famous Felipe II Plaza in Madrid’s city centre. A blank vertical canvas was erected. Upon the blank vertical stage came fourteen artists from French Compagnie Les Passagers, who went on to blend their acrobatic, acting, painting and dancing skills in an urban art performance. Suspended by wires, these performers moved across the canvas as if in a ballet, bringing the iconic Kenzo poppy to life as they went.

The communication prior to the event was highly critical to the success. A teaser e-mail was also sent out to four thousand carefully selected people a week before the event with a follow up reminder a week later. Kenzo’s Facebook group arranged to meet at the event, while the Kenzo performances were included in the San Isidro event schedules within the festival programmes. Journalists picked up on the story and featured the event in editorials of women’s magazines, newspapers and online sites too, such as Elle, Vogue, Glamour, brandlife, telva.com, Yo Dona and periodista digital.


The Kenzo poppies reached an estimated 25,000 people. They were participants rather than an audience. Their spontaneous reactions to the unfolding event contributed to a successful day. Significantly more people were reached through word of mouth and editorial coverage. The event appeared on the news programmes of 3 national and 2 regional TV channels. Online buzz was strong too, with 30 news stories, mentions on city guides and cultural sites amongst others.

During the week of the event, sales of FlowerbyKenzo in the Madrid were up more than 60%