By David Jenkins, Digital Director
The recent Audemars Piguet x Swatch Royal Pop release proves one thing: When brands with seemingly disjointed price points team up, people pay attention. These collaborations generate buzz, cultural relevance, and reach in ways traditional advertising rarely can. And while these examples live at the luxury level, the strategy behind them is highly applicable to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Let’s explore some influential brand collaborations and how SMBs can take advantage of the same strategy.
In 2017, when Louis Vuitton partnered with Supreme, it bridged the worlds of high-end heritage luxury and bold youth street culture. Critics questioned why LV would connect itself with the skate and streetwear brand, particularly in the shadow of a cease-and-desist letter the lavish brand sent to Supreme over strongly LV-inspired products back in the year 2000.
However, the result was a cultural moment that expanded both brands’ audiences. Hoodies, jackets, jeans, duffel bags, backpacks, wallets, and more featured the classic LV emblem alongside Supreme’s red box logo. Lines stretched from pop-up stores, young audiences connected with the luxury brand, creating a future consumer base, and affluent buyers began to take streetwear more seriously.
SMB Marketing Takeaway: As a small or medium-sized business, you don’t need a globally sized partner to replicate this. A local builder could partner with a renowned regional designer, or a restaurant could collaborate with a popular local brewery. The goal is to share credibility and audience without diluting your identity. Seek a full-service marketing agency that excels at storytelling, social media campaigns, and PR outreach to ensure your partnership is received as intentional and reaches the right audience across channels.
When it was launched, the Apple Watch was seen as cool but utilitarian. To expand its audience beyond workout warriors and compulsive texters, Apple turned to Hermès to elevate the watch as a luxury lifestyle product. Hermès brought craftsmanship and prestige, while Apple brought innovation and scale.
Adorning the Apple Watch with an Hermès premium leather strap and exclusive digital watch faces helped position the tech as a personalized fashion statement. And, as with Louis Vuitton in the above example, younger audiences now aspired to own an Hermès accessory and enjoy its associated prestige.
SMB Marketing Takeaway: Aligning with a premium partner, even locally, can shift how your business is perceived overnight. While you might not be selling smartwatches, creating exclusivity or a premium experience through partnership can be the catalyst for increasing your brand’s relevance. Likewise, if you’re a small luxury brand, giving a wider audience a glimpse of how it feels to belong among those who regularly enjoy your product lays the groundwork for future sales.
In the late 2010s, Crocs went from plastic punch line to fashion statement by leaning into an unexpected partnership with French fashion institution Balenciaga. By embracing what was considered ugly and unconventional, the luxury brand captured the attention of irony-loving young adults (after the influencers who guide them) and thus started a conversation about what was good, bad, silly, and serious.
Oversized platform Crocs with massive soles, bright colors, exaggerated proportions, and decorative charms launched the collaboration, with knee-high rain boots, heeled Crocs, slides, and other experimental designs following. Each iteration blurred the line between fashion statement, meme, and luxury product.
The result was bigger than the products themselves. It helped normalize the idea that fashion no longer needed to be traditionally attractive to become culturally valuable. Crocs benefited from the elevated association, moving their rubbery clogs from knock-around house shoes to red-carpet relevance. It proved the buzz was the point.
SMB Marketing Takeaway: Sometimes growth comes from doing something unexpected. A bold collaboration can reposition your brand, spark conversation, and attract new attention. Guidance from an experienced marketing strategist will help your brand become more than its product and break into new territories with new audiences.
These collaborations worked because they didn’t just advertise; they became part of culture. They created something worth talking about. Your business can do the same. When you partner strategically, tell a big story, and show up consistently (and even unexpectedly) across channels, audiences sit up and notice. The Audemars Piguet x Swatch partnership may be jarring at face value, but it’s driving conversation, shaping pop culture, and growing both brands.
To boldly move your brand beyond just visibility and into market relevance, contact us at Alpha Dog Advertising. We’ll identify and execute strategies to help your business drive the dialogue in your industry and among your customers.
