• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, July 6, 2009

After achieving a sort of ubiquity with its involvement in Bravo's "Project Runway," Elle is planning yet another brand extension through a partnership between Elle.com and Rue La La, a boutique-style "private sale" Web site owned by Retail Convergence, giving visitors to Elle.com access to invitation-only online sales of top designer brands.

The co-branded online boutiques -- Rue La La's first partnership with a media company -- had a soft launch on June 10. On the Elle Web site, each Rue La La private sale boutique is available for two days, with merchandise and services at discounted prices.

Elle visitors can also see "Editors' Picks" boutiques, chosen by editor-in-chief Roberta Myers, featuring especially hot items or special offers.

Anna Pezik, executive editor of Elle.com, explained that "Elle.com users love to shop online. Through our editor-selected Rue La La private sales, we are connecting our audience with the designers she loves."

The Rue La La deal is just the latest in a series of online initiatives from Elle publisher Hachette Filipacchi, many of which have also included a big e-commerce component.

Since its acquisition in April 2007 of Jumpstart Automotive Media, an online ad network for auto enthusiast sites, Hachette has moved to consolidate ad sales for its auto enthusiast titles with Jumpstart. In June, Hachette announced that ads for Car and Driver, Road & Track, and Jumpstart would all be sold by one sales force, which would be rewarded based on its total cross-platform revenues.