Beauty / news
Kenneth Cole Enlists Joe Jonas to Front New Inspire Men's Fragrance
Kenneth Cole has launched Inspire, its first new men's scent in three years, with Joe Jonas as ambassador. The fragrance is now sold at Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack.
The New York-based brand positioned Inspire as a new pillar in its men's fragrance lineup, arriving three years after its previous men's launch. Jonas, a New Jersey native, fronts the campaign as the face of the scent.
Inspire was developed with licensor Parlux and Givaudan perfumer Christine Hassan. Its composition blends bergamot, black pepper and grapefruit with cedarwood and amber. A 30-ml. eau de toilette retails for $35, while the 100-ml. size is priced at $75.
The launch leans on humor. Jonas co-wrote a playful anthem about the fragrance and its attraction-boosting properties, which he performs in a 90-second spot directed by music video and film director Anthony Mandler. In the video, he sings the original ballad, layers in his own background vocals, climbs atop a jumbo-sized Inspire factice and reveals a lower-back tattoo reading the name of the scent.
"I wanted [the campaign] to be something fun and a little bit of a head-scratcher, where it's like, 'Is this real?' And then you quickly realize, 'OK — this makes sense,'" Jonas said.
Jonas is also preparing to hit the road, kicking off a 45-city "Burning Up" North American tour alongside his Jonas Brothers bandmates Kevin and Nick.