Sexy, talented, funny, fashionable, multicultural. If you set out to manufacture the perfect spokeswoman for 2011, you couldn't do much better than Sofia Vergara. She's the "it" girl on so many levels, it's hard to think of a woman who even comes close to the Modern Family actress' broad appeal.
Which is why blue-chip advertisers are flooding to her. She did that Diet Pepsi campaign, the "Got milk?" ad, and has signed with CoverGirl. And now she's introducing a new fashion line at Kmart—a perfect corporate match for her down-to-earth style. It's also perfect that Peterson Milla Hooks, the Minneapolis agency that handled Target's advertising for ages and visually helped to pioneer the cheap chic concept, is now working with Kmart to bring Vergara's line to life in commercials.
Check out the spot below. It takes the idea that Vergara's clothing line is for everyone and makes it literal, as she morphs into a range of other women—of all sizes and colors—and then becomes herself again for the pitch at the end. "Hello. I'm Sofia Vergara, and I'm not afraid to work with what I've got," she says in her heavy Spanish accent. (It's Vergara's voice throughout, mouthed by the other women as they cycle through.) "I say, if you've got this, show this. You're a woman, so dress like a woman. Be proud. Be sexy. My collection is at Kmart. So, go!" At each transition, the women pull their dresses over their heads to reveal the next woman in the sequence. This shows off a handful of garments nicely—and subtly reinforces the notion that while these are fashions for all kinds of women, they also offer a range of looks to shake up any individual woman's wardrobe.
"I want women to be able to buy the Kmart clothes and look [at the clothes in] the magazines and say, 'Aaah, this looks a little bit like the dress that I own for 20 bucks, but of course it's a $3,000 dress,'" she said at the launch last week.
Timing was everything, as the line launched a day after Modern Family conquered the Emmy Awards (once again). Vergara wore a red, one-shoulder gown by Vera Wang that night. But in the end, she might be known more for her $29 denim jeans.
