Fashion PR: 5 Tips for Celebrity Outreach

Working as a fashion publicist, you’ll eventually have clients who will want to reach out to celebrities to have them wear or endorse their product. Perhaps you’re the designer looking for celebrity outreach and need someone famous to rock your wares. First thing, unless you’re one of the Kardashian sister’s best friends, it’s going to take time and patience to get Kim, Khloe or Kourtney to wear your garments, and even then it’s not a guarantee…those girls are busy.

Celebrities, like journalists, are inundated with e-mails, product samples, etc. Actually, celebrities typically receive better swag than journalists and it’s not the celeb themselves who always receive the gift, but their publicists who filter accordingly. Celebrities know their value as well and typically proceed to only wear clothes or accessories that they a) really, genuinely like, or b) have a connection with via a cause or interest (e.g. organic cotton blouses, garments that benefit a non-profit, etc.)

Here are things to consider when going the celebrity route:

Who do you want to wear your clothes and why?

• Just because you admire someone’s acting skills is not enough to get them to wear your apparel. You’ll have to view magazine articles, website images, etc. to get an idea of what your targeted celebrity actually wears. Always dressed up? T-shirts and jeans? The “why” should be answered ensuring that you are reaching out to a celebrity who makes sense for your line.

Embrace up-and-coming celebrities

• We all had to start somewhere, so be open to emerging celebrities who are on their way. Do your research to ensure that their acting, singing, modeling, etc. skills are legitimate, and consider dressing or gifting those individuals. Since they are new on the scene, they may be more open to wearing those gifted items.

Be on the prowl for pics

• After you’ve gifted an item to a celebrity, you’ll want to follow-up with the publicist for pics. You can also search paparazzi websites to see if your item was captured on [insert name]. Often publicists will follow-up with a pic if they are able to, however, sometimes they forget or the opportunity for a pic was missed.

Write a personal introduction note

• Let the publicist know why you’re sending something and what you hope to have happen. Don’t make the note too long or too personal. You’re not only a fan, but a fashion professional, so your letter should exude a professional tone and not star-struck stalker.

How do you get in touch with the celebs?

• There are several celebrity databases available, but you can start simply by going to your favorite celebrity’s official web page on the Internet. There is typically contact information for their management or publicity team. You can check the IMDB (Internet Movie Database) page online for contact info on the management team. Another option is the Screen Actors Guild, which may assist you with contact info for celebrity’s agents and management teams.