“Hi, welcome to our house. Enjoy your stay.”
This is what you hear from Viktor and Rolf themselves (or actually their virtual versions) when you enter the website called House of Viktor and Rolf (www.viktor-rolf.com). They are dressed in black-tie and walk down a beautiful stairway covered with snowflakes. In the background, music that suggests you are entering into a magical world.
In my post from 23 February (How is the Internet changing the fashion shows role?) I had already mentioned the leading duo of fashion designers as an example of how the internet was being actively used by the majors in the industry – they have replaced real catwalk shows by internet versions to showcase their collections.
Their website reinforced the idea that they are taking the internet very seriously as their main marketing effort. The website design is amazing. You really feel you are wandering around a luxurious mansion, in a world of dream. And as you walk around the house, you can enter in different rooms to discover some “treasures”. In the Library, you have loads of archives with information about the designers. In the Grand Salon, you can watch their previous shows. In the Perfumery, you will find a modern sculpture made from their fragrances bottles. The fragrance Flowerbomb has a poem dedicated to it. Unfortunately, at the time we did the research you are still not able to smell the fragrances online…
And if you are really passionate about this fantasy world, you can sign up to be a member of the Secret Service, to discover “Viktor and Rolf’s best kept secret and enjoy the privileges”. We haven’t gone so far, but nevertheless we strongly believe Viktor & Rolf are very efficient in using the internet to bond with their customers and to increase their image within the fashion world – both virtual and real ones.
