The hallways of the Four Seasons, Peninsula and L’Ermitage hotels in Beverly Hills once looked like a Rodeo Drive of designer suites in the pre-Oscars hubbub — but this year is different.
The 14-week writers’ strike that jeopardized the 80th annual extravaganza before ending last week appears to have reduced the number of gift suites. In addition, more fashion houses now have VIP salons in their boutiques and others prefer to send their sketches, gowns and celebrity dressers directly to the homes of stars and stylists.
“I spend most of my time this week working in my office, with Julie and a tailor,” said stylist Tanya Gill, who is dressing best actress nominee Julie Christie. “Designers are very much focused and they just pick one or two people to work with. They deliver the things to you.”
Gill has noticed there are fewer suites, though she tries to visit those that have set up shop. “It’s not only respectful of all the beautiful things that get flown to Los Angeles, but it’s important to see what’s out there because things can change at the last minute and you have to be prepared,” she said.
But the biggest names in fashion still jockey to dress top actresses and do their jewelry and makeup for the show on Sunday, which can lead to millions of dollars worth of publicity and help boost the bottom line.
The Oscars generate an estimated $130 million for the local economy alone, according to the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. This includes $51 million spent by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the ceremony and all related events; $56 million in studio spending on Oscar campaigns; $5 million in gifting and “perk” related business; $3 million on parties (this is usually $4 million but cancellations this year brought it down), and $2.5 million on hotels.
The mood in Hollywood may have affected fine jewelers the most. Many actresses didn’t break out the diamonds for last month’s Screen Actors Guild Awards — as proven by Marion Cotillard’s pairing of a small and simple white gold Chopard pendant with diamonds to go with her Nina Ricci gown.
“A lot of people in the luxury industry have had a tough time,” said Diamond Information Center director Sally Morrison. “The economy was uncertain last year….For the jewelry industry, it’s a difficult moment. But for the superelite brands, it’s business as usual.”
Related Articles
You May Also Like
Morrison said that, if there’s less marketing, it’s because of the shortened awards season and uncertainty about the Oscars. “Many companies either didn’t commit or make plans until they could see what was going on,” she said.
There are two basic approaches to marketing jewelry during Oscar week. One is to take a suite and show everyone everything, with the goal of getting press and building relationships rather than dressing specific people. The other is to target celebrities or stylists exclusively.
“If you are really serious about dressing a nominee, you can’t show the jewelry to many people,” Morrison said. “It’s the ultimate fashion moment and they want to be wearing something that hasn’t been seen outside of their house.”
But jewelers such as Harry Winston and Kwiat have hopes of dressing nominees and presenters, and are showing jewelry such as rare colored gemstones and diamonds. Winston gathered significant pieces from its 18 boutiques across the globe for its Beverly Hills store.
Kwiat, the Manhattan-based diamond jewelry firm, scaled back its celebrity efforts because of the strike, but continued to dress the likes of Sienna Miller, Ali Larter and Anna Friel for smaller red-carpet events.
For the Oscars, Kwiat hosted a three-day suite for the fourth year at the Four Seasons hotel to showcase its jewels for celebrities, stylists and the media.
Fine watch firm Ebel shared the Penthouse suite at the Sunset Tower Hotel with jeweler Kara Ross and designer J.Mendel for the second year. Ebel is showcasing several vintage-style watches and Ross is offering her jewelry and handbag collection. New to the assortment is a collection of petite evening clutches made of satin and topped off with Ross’ signature gemstone closure.
“Because of the price of gold being higher than it has been in years and certain jewelry companies paying celebrities to wear their gems, we decided to focus on the handbags,” said Robyn Brooks, vice president of Kara Ross.
Others devised alternative events in case the Oscars were canceled. Cultured diamond company Gemesis hosted a Valentine’s Day program at Frances Klein jewelers in Beverly Hills to introduce pieces to celebrities and meet with stylists who have Oscar clients. Gemesis brand ambassador Joan Parker said jewelers are being more selective about who they dress and focusing on actresses without preexisting deals. “Everyone is narrowing down their lists so they don’t waste their efforts,” she said.
Like fine jewelry firms, several beauty companies toned down their Academy Awards blitz. Skin care leader Sonya Dakar and hair care specialist Frédéric Fekkai, both of whom transformed their Beverly Hills facilities into gifting outfits with a number of vendors in previous Oscar seasons, have opted to focus solely on their own brands instead of holding multibrand events. Estée Lauder has no Oscar program, although brands under the Lauder umbrella (Michael Kors, for instance) are represented at suites.
Despite the cost, many beauty companies insist that participating in the pre-Oscars courtship of Hollywood notables is a valuable investment. Matrix-owned professional hair care brand Biolage is setting up a spa and salon at the Thompson Beverly Hills hotel along with partner Elle magazine, at which hair stylist Mark Townsend will perfect celebrity dos. L’Oréal-owned hair color treatment brand PureOlogy is at the TMG Luxury Suites, while L’Oréal Paris is the official sponsor of the Oscars broadcast and is providing a compact designed by Kwiat to nominated actresses.
“It is about the brand exposure,” said Darienne Howe, director of public relations at PureOlogy. “It is a small brand. Hopefully, people will go to salons and talk about it.”
— With contributions from Sophia Chabbott, Rachel Brown and Anne Riley-Katz