MANILA, Philippines -- Licensing, at least in the US, is an old trick in the hat. Celebrities and personalities who have achieved a certain prominence regularly bestow their faces and names on consumer products. It is different from endorsement in that licensing entails the collaboration of the celebrity, weaving the latter's inputs to the creation of a line separate from the extant products. This is when the celebrity is able to flex her creative muscle since she has a say with regard to the design, the marketing, even the pricing of her own line. Martha Stewart, Rachel Ray, and Nigella Lawson easily come to mind.
In the Philippines, licensing arrangements are picking up, with Sharon Cuneta as the foremost name. There's no denying her bankability in pushing products. As an endorser, she can easily propel any brand to stratospheric attention. But what makes her apt as licensing celebrity is her being a homemaker who regularly engages with products and appliances in the kitchen. "All her life, what people know about her is that she is a celebrity, singer, dramatic actress," says Karen Coloma, head of ABS-CBN Licensing Department. "Itong side na magaling siyang mag-luto...that's the side that she can share to her audience (by way of her licensing deals)."
Recently, Cuneta conducted a whole-day affair at the Atrium of SM Megamall where she introduced the latest products under "Celebrations" by Sharon line by way of cooking demonstrations. For American Standard, long known for its high-quality and affordable kitchen essentials, Sharon has given her thumbs up for blenders, juicers, panini makers, ovens, turbo boilers, electric health grillers and other cooking gadgets. A sinuous letter S is the mark of distinction of every piece in the "Celebrations by Sharon" line.
Rishi Mirani, general manager of Bhagi's International Trading Corp. (distributor of American Heritage), immediately warmed to the idea of doing the collaboration with the Megastar because they are aware that she is busybody in the kitchen. "She certainly embodies the ideal contemporary homemaker-passionate and effortless-which represents the core image of the brand," Mirani says.
On her part, Sharon is hands-on right from conceptualization to design to trial, meticulously inspecting every product sample before she gives her golden yes. "Lahat 'yan, iniisa-isa ko, sinisipat kong mabuti 'yong mga samples. Hindi lang 'yong basta dinikit 'yong pangalan ko," she says. "Every piece of cookware has been tried and tested by me. And I must say this collection is especially best for beginning cooks and new homemakers."
Coloma says that deal between American Standard and ABS-CBN Licensing Department (which handles all the licensing deals for Cuneta), is "a long term arrangement but we made it renewable annually so it allows Sharon to review all the products (on a regular basis)." This will assure not only the quality but the loyalty of consumers who expect a certain premium from these appliances. American Heritage and Celebrations by Sharon, it seems, have a marriage made in licensing heaven.
The American Heritage-Celebrations by Sharon kitchenware line is available in all major appliance centers.
