Being in a relationship is no longer something that exists behind closed doors, and people no longer want it to. Instead, it has become another opportunity to expand and monetize a personal brand, and one of the biggest places we see this play out is through fashion.
The Hollywood “It-couple” is becoming a marketing machine of its own.
For luxury fashion houses or brands, dressing a couple – or signing both members as ambassadors – offers the potential to double their revenue. It merges distinct fan bases and transforms advertising into something that doesn’t seem to be just that; instead, fans are interested in following a public narrative or conversation. Perhaps this is why celebrity couple appearances, like red carpet looks, have become so highly anticipated.
Think Rihanna and A$AP Rocky, Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet, or Dua Lipa and Callum Turner. Alone, their fashion is photographed and discussed; they have their own deals and brands they work for. But when they’re coordinating looks, their appearances become part of a larger conversation about their relationship.
The conversations surrounding Chalamet and Jenner’s courtside appearances during the Knicks’ playoff run this summer are a perfect example. The pair weren’t just enjoying games featuring a team Chalamet is notoriously passionate about; they were also generating another wave of conversation around their relationship. Audiences are prompted to analyze their clothing, speculate about the designers’ intentions, and engage with the brands behind the looks – or be inspired to buy the looks themselves – often without even realizing they’re participating in a marketing campaign.
And this phenomenon isn’t limited to A-list celebrities. Influencers and micro-celebrities are increasingly turning their relationships into extensions of their personal brands. Fashion has become a way to establish a recognizable identity as a couple.
Kristian Stark, son of Chrome Hearts founders Richard and Laurie Lynn Stark, and Mollie Mae, a French-British vintage store owner and curator of Mollie Mae Vintage, have built visibility around their fashion-forward public image as a couple. They’re “cool,” they’re an “it-couple,” and more than anything, they’re low-key. What we get from them are outfit pictures, mirror selfies, and not much else. Their appeal lies partly in that limited glimpse into their lives. And while their posts aren’t necessarily advertising other brands, they are advertising themselves. They’re building their own identities as public figures.
Even seemingly “candid” photos from days off or low-key outings offer discrete opportunities for brand exposure. High-profile couples can use these moments to subtly advertise new products or showcase a collaboration. And do you know why this works? Because we buy it. Is the paparazzi still the paparazzi if people call it on themselves?
When did following a couple become as much about shopping as their relationship itself? As humans, we love to judge. It’s almost instinctual, and when it comes to celebrities, that judgment feels especially permissible. They are public figures, and so they can be discussed and judged with less guilt than one would probably feel dissing their old neighbor’s nightgown.
But how a couple dresses doesn’t actually tell us much about who they are behind closed doors. Although everything seems public nowadays, of course, it isn’t. We know their brands, but that doesn’t mean we know the people behind them. Their fashion choices might not even be entirely their own.
What’s meant to look like spontaneity is becoming an increasingly good marketing strategy; it’s particularly effective because it’s one we don’t know we’re engaging with.
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