Diet Coke gets into fashion with curated collection

Diet Coke is making a splash in the fashion world by partnering with luxury online retailer Gilt.com to launch the Diet Coke Curated Fashion Collection. Each of the five collections (which include clothing, accessories and home décor) are inspired by the brand’s colour palette as well as one of five product attributes, said Shelly Walia, brand manager at Diet Coke. The items are available for purchase on Gilt.com, but people can also peruse the fashions at a new pop-up store, the “Diet Coke Get a Taste Style Bar,” in downtown Toronto. The Style Bar will be open for five weeks starting Tuesday. “The one-to-one connection with brand ambassadors and our consumers is really important in solidifying our role in people’s lives,” said Walia. The partnership with Gilt was born out of insights about the modern-day break… or its utter absence. “The traditional break has evolved into a much more fluid ‘check out’ moment that people take throughout the day,” said Walia. “Whether they check out to check their social feeds, look at news sites, or do online shopping, Diet Coke wanted to be a part of those moments.” The goal of the program is “start re-engaging with those who already love us and start new relationships with a new generation of young adults around our shared love of fashion,” said Walia. Diet Coke has a history of collaborating with leading fashion designers, including Marc Jacobs and Jean Paul Gaultier. “This is kind of an evolution of that,” said Walia. “It’s about finding passion points that our brand aligns to and are reflected in the things that our consumers are interested in. So fashion is really natural and lovely fit for us.” The partnership will be promoted on Diet Coke’s social media channels, and Gilt will also promote the collection to its members. A media event was held at the Style Bar on Sept. 22. This article first appeared in Marketing Magazine.