• The New York Times, Wednesday, January 30, 2008 11:45 AM

On Feb 15, Louis Vuitton will launch a travel-themed 90-second spot on cable and satellite television channels that it describes as "the first ever on-screen corporate campaign by a luxury house." The spot will also run in movie theaters around the world, and will show ordinary people rather than the celebrities who are featured in a current print campaign for the label.

High-end fashion brands and luxury goods companies have generally avoided television advertising, sticking mostly to magazines and, in some cases, newspapers. The Louis Vuitton ad aims to promote the brand itself, rather than a specific product. A Louis Vuitton bag makes only a fleeting appearance in the ad, which asks, "Where will life take you?"

Pietro Beccari, Louis Vuitton's head of marketing, says the ad will be particularly useful in reaching new audiences in fast-growing markets like China, where the image of Louis Vuitton may be less established than in Western countries.

Read the whole story at The New York Times »