Jenn-Air lands exclusive ad sponsorship with Architectural Digest

Jenn-Air is pairing with Architectural Digest

NEW YORK – Luxury home-appliances manufacturer Jenn-Air inaugurated its exclusive partnership with Condé Nast’s Architectural Digest in the magazine’s new iPad application, AD Amazing Kitchens, at the Architectural Digest Home Design show March 17.

Jenn-Air has an exclusive one-year advertising deal within the application. Consumers can look at a kitchen comprised entirely of the brand’s appliances, take individual features from it to create their own dream kitchen and watch videos detailing the specific appliance attributes.

“Jenn-Air is looking for opportunities to engage beyond the page with our consumers,” said Steve Brown, general manager at Jenn-Air, Benton Harbor, MI. “We certainly like to do traditional print media, but we want to find innovative and new ways to reach beyond that and react with the consumer in more meaningful ways.

“So specifically, we look for media properties that can give us a great print experience and can also translate into a digital experience and even eventually into a marketing experience like the Arch Digest show where we can talk to consumers one-on-one,” he said.

“It’s really that three-part component that makes Arch Digest such a great partner.”

Architectural Digest covers homes and design with advertisements from many luxury brands such as Jenn-Air, David Yurman, Cartier, St. Regis, Tiffany & Co., Ralph Lauren, Chanel and Range Rover. It focuses on home design, architecture, appliances and furniture.

Under new editor in chief Margaret Russell, Architectural Digest celebrated a redesign in March, where its advertisements, editorial content and Web site changed dramatically.

Formerly known as “The International Magazine of Design,” it now tags itself as “The International Design Authority.”

The magazine’s rate-base circulation is 800,000.

Not thin air
As an exclusive sponsor, Jenn-Air gets quite a bit of screen time within the application.

When users go into the application, they can see an entire kitchen made exclusively with Jenn-Air appliances such as ovens, stovetops, grills and dishwashers.

Jenn-Air kitchen

Consumers can watch videos to learn about specific Jenn-Air products and look at detailed textual information.

“We have a number of things that we know about Jenn-Air consumers,” Mr. Brown said. “We know that these are affluent consumers and that they take a lot of pride in their homes and in their kitchens and are looking to entertain a little bit.

“There are also some other surprising facts that weren’t well-known in the past, like that technology is a huge part of their lives,” he said.

Steve Brown, general manager of Jenn-Air, Benton Harbor, MI, discusses strategy

Jenn-Air products are very technologically advanced and the combination of tech-savvy and affluence makes the brand a good choice for a luxury consumer, according to Mr. Brown.

Users can also opt to “like” Jenn-Air on Facebook with a link that brings them to the brand’s page on the social network.

Once on Facebook, consumers can see events, information and videos about Jenn-Air products on the Facebook page. There is a link to the brand’s Web site.

Jenn-Air also has a two-page spread in the April issue of Architectural Digest, as well as  ads on its Web site.

Jenn-Air’s ad in Architectural Digest

The ultimate cooking machine
The Architectural Digest application serves as a mobile lookbook for affluent consumers looking to remodel or put finishing touches on their kitchens.

Users first go into the app and see images of kitchen “themes.”

Kitchen themes in the app

When users click on a thumbnail, it takes them to a full-screen version. They can click on different appliances, fixtures, flooring and tabletops to save into a lookbook.

“Most of the users will have an architect or a designer working with them, and this is a good way for them to keep all of their ideas in one place rather than carrying around tear sheets,” said Jen Catto, integrated development director at Architectural Digest, New York.

Consumers can also choose to add the entire kitchen’s design to their lookbooks.

My lookbook

In addition, users can also look through individual appliances, share lookbooks on Facebook, see tips from designers and look at a source list for cabinetry, cookware, flooring and paint experts that are found in the application.

Users can sort through the different types of appliances or search just for Jenn-Air products

Jenn-Air is currently the only sponsor of the application, but Architectural Digest is looking for more partners as the app progresses.

There are many marketing opportunities for different kinds of luxury brands, according to Erica Boeke, executive director of strategic branding and development at Architectural Digest, New York. Architectural Digest is planning to update the content of the app quarterly.

“We are pushing an update with new content around June, and we are certainly looking to bring more partners in around then if we and Jenn-Air think that they are appropriate,” Ms. Boeke said. “I will say that the building time for the next update is short, so we’re looking at the following update in September as another time that we can bring in other non-appliance products to bring into the app.

“That’s the beauty of the app, we can do anything,” she said. “We’re open to talking to different folks to see how we can enhance this consumer experience certainly as we’re adding new editorial content and new editorial tips.

“We’ve got cabinetry, furnishings, fixtures, and tiles and flooring and lighting, so there’s certainly a lot of other brands that can participate in a meaningful way.”

Final Take
Jen Catto, integrated development director at Architectural Digest, New York

Rachel Lamb, editorial assistant at Luxury Daily, New York

Here are some pictures from the event:

Rachel Lamb is an editorial assistant at Luxury Daily. Reach her at rachel@napean.com.

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Tags: AD Amazing Kitchens, Advertising, Architectural Digest, Erica Boeke, Jen Catto, Jenn-Air, mobile app, Steve Brown