Actor. Philanthropist. Professional hunk. Michael B. Jordan is many things, and now, as of today, he’s also the first global face of Coach‘s menswear line.
The 31-year-old star — who’s already riding on an incredible high, having starred in the box office record-breaking hit “Black Panther” — joins Selena Gomez as brand ambassador of the American heritage label. In doing so, his duties will include starring in global advertising campaigns for menswear, accessories and fragrance beginning with the spring ’19 season, along with collaborating on “special design projects” with creative director Stuart Vevers and participating in the Coach Foundation’s philanthropic initiatives.
“I’m honored to be joining the Coach family and have so much respect for Stuart Vevers’ vision,” Jordan said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to jumping into the creative process and exploring fashion through a different lens.”
Watch on FN
In an exclusive interview with WWD, Jordan, who has been a regular Coach show-goer for several seasons now, said he’s especially eager to design a capsule collection, in which “I’ll have creative input. I’ve had ideas of how to be involved and put my fingerprints on it. I don’t just put my name on something.”
And from a revenue standpoint, it looks as though Coach is betting on Jordan’s star power to boost business, in much the same way as its successful partnership with Gomez. In an earnings report last month, Joshua Schulman, Coach chief executive officer and brand president, said Coach’s menswear is valued at $850 million and is on track to reach $1 billion in the next three years. Tapestry Inc., the parent company of Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman, has continued to report earnings that exceed Wall Street’s expectations with earnings per diluted share of $0.60, versus the $0.57 estimate.
“As a dual gender brand, so much of our communication is focused on our women’s business. Working with Michael will allow us to amplify and focus our men’s message across product categories and geographies,” Schulman said to WWD.
But at the end of the day, it’s all about the right fit. It helps, too, that Jordan looks really, really good in just about anything.
“Michael is cool and authentic, and he really embodies the Coach guy,” Vevers said in a statement. “I’ve had the chance to get to know Michael over the last couple of years. He always looks great in Coach, so it felt really natural to build our relationship.”
