Mackenzie Connolly is on the Talent Ventures team at Endeavor, a global sports and entertainment company. Connolly connects talent & brands in "non-traditional" partnerships. Endeavor's Talent Ventures team is responsible for the Bella Hadid x Kin Europhics, Gal Gadot x Goodles, Maude x Dakota Johnson, and more.
Mackenzie says the key to successful partnerships is authenticity and alignment. When Connolly is exploring a celebrity x brand partnership there are three key forms of alignment that have to be there:
No.1 Mission Alignment - Are the brand founder and celebrity aligned on the mission and vision of the brand?
No.2 Personality Alignment - Do these people enjoy working together as true partners?
No.3 Economic Alignment - Are economic incentives aligned? Is there skin in the game for both the brand founder and celebrity for the long-term?
And most importantly, plopping a celebrity into a brand won't guarantee success for the brand. The brand should be able to stand on its own two feet without the celebrity being there!
Want to find out what else Mackenzie has to say? Listen to her on Driving Performance
https://drivingperformance.transistor.fm/episodes/episode-7-mid-day-squares-x-endeavor