The all-new Volvo S60 is an eye-catching car packed with attitude and driving pleasure. As soon as the vehicle went on display at the Geneva motor show, the wraps come off an exclusive collection of selected accessories. They are a perfect match for the car and its target group. For instance, how about an exquisite pair of tooled goatskin gloves or three nail polishes in striking Ember Black, Vibrant Copper and Cosmic White?
“Volvo is probably the first car maker in the world to market nail polish. We wanted to do something a bit different, with a touch of humour and a little unexpected twist for the launch of the new car, while at the same time offering our female target group an unusual product,” says Yvonne Hall Tobiasson, Merchandise & Licensing manager at Volvo Cars’ Global Marketing department.
The three shades of nail polish echo three of the colour options offered on the all-new Volvo S60. Vibrant Copper is one of the new model’s launch colours. At the Geneva motor show, visitors to the Volvo Cars were greeted by a nail artiste where they could get their nails painted in one of the three special colours.
Ahead of the launch of any new model, Volvo Cars develops a collection of products designed to match the new car, improve brand awareness and generate increased business potential.
In conjunction with the launch of the all-new Volvo S60, Volvo Cars has launched a daring and different marketing campaign – the Naughty Volvo campaign. A “Naughty Volvo” website (www.naughty.volvocars.co.za) has been developed as part of the campaign. It will form the platform for various Volvo S60 marketing activities. And it even has a “naughtymeter” – a fun device that let’s you choose a level of naughtiness for the S60.
For example twelve short films have been produced at the Volvo test-track and visitors to the Volvo Cars Naughty website can put the S60 through four different ‘tests’, and by using the naughtymeter they decide just how naughty they want the S60 to behave.
S60 Merchandise:
The development of merchandise for the all-new Volvo S60 turned out to be a more concentrated process than before. “The products themselves had to have a strong link to the car. The Volvo S60 is a car that radiates attitude and driving pleasure. We wanted to convey that same feeling, that same self-assuredness, with our merchandise,” explains Anders Sachs, the colour and material designer in charge of the all-new Volvo S60.
He was also part of the creative team that developed the collection. The strong link between car and merchandise can also be traced in the choice of materials and colours. Craftsmanship and high quality characterised the entire development process, and this can clearly be seen in the products themselves.
As he worked on his ideas for the collection, Anders Sachs gave his imagination a free rein, drawing inspiration from new trends and emerging ideas in areas such as fashion, product design, interior design and architecture.
His favourite in the collection is the goatskin gloves with their fine tooling and their stitching in a contrasting colour – the same that is used in the all-new Volvo S60’s accent hide upholstery.
“They truly symbolise driving pleasure. They forge a link to racing with their cutouts for the knuckles and their perforated leather structure. At the same time, the design is a time-honoured classic – but with a glint in the eye,” says Anders Sachs.
The aim of the collection was for the various products to be able to be used by owners of the all-new Volvo S60 – and of course by other customers too – when they dash off on a weekend trip to Paris, London or some other exciting destination. “Being able to project one’s image is becoming increasingly important. The collection can be seen in this light too. With it, we are generating additional scope for our customers to express their personalities,” adds Anders Sachs.
Alongside the nail polish and driving gloves there are items such as attractive sunglasses, an exclusive weekend bag made of leather, an iPhone case and a key-fob.
“Today we are weaving together a new way of launching a new car model with associated merchandise in a well-rounded package. And for the first time ever, we are including these products in our car brochures,” says Yvonne Hall Tobiasson.
