Lips & Boys: Collection of 50 Shades of Lipstick by Tom Ford Launching Black Friday

CAMPAIGN IMAGE COURTESY OF TOM FORD BEAUTY

“I like the idea of lipsticks named after boys. Why commit to one when you can have several?” says designer Tom Ford of his upcoming Lips & Boys collection. The collection of 50 miniature lipsticks will be available on November 28 (aka Black Friday) on TomFord.com for four days and at other online retailers on December 1 for Cyber Monday only. The collection will make a return to the e-commerce retailers and brick-and-mortar stores on December 26.

image: WWD

The Estée Lauder licensed brand will offer 10 shade ranges of the minaudière-friendly lipsticks, from nude browns, purple plums, bold metallics, girlish pinks and classic red. The highly pigmented shades Tom Ford Beauty is known for will include 36 new colors that will retail for $32 each. As to why Ford named these colors after men, he told WWD, “Obviously I’m not expecting a lot of men to wear the lipsticks, but I liked the concept. I love seeing a woman in a man’s suit. Why not have a lipstick named after a man?”

All the male names represent someone from Ford’s life, past and present. Tomas is his nephew, Rory is his best friend, Addison was his first crush and Alexander is his son (whom he and his husband call Jack — which a violet shade is named after).

What is interesting about this launch is that most of the buys for the collection will be digital. “It’s especially important for a product like this — it will appeal to a generation who does use social media and spends a lot of their time online,” said Ford to WWD. “And buying a lipstick online is less risky than buying a more expensive item that has to fit you. While it’s an investment for some, it’s the entry level to our brand, and so I think people are more willing to say, ‘I’ll take that’ online.”

And don’t think Mr. Ford isn’t taking his beauty brand as seriously as his namesake fashion label. He told WWD, “I’m as serious about the beauty side of my business as I am about women’s wear and men’s wear and every product I do. I think MAC is a $3 billion brand, and I want to take [my brand] there. We want to be one of the top five luxury brands in the world. And I think you get there by doing innovative, original things. Launching 50 shades of lipstick at once is already innovative, as is naming them after boys and making them miniature. People carry teeny-tiny little bags today, and are trying to fit their iPhone, money and a key. I think the idea of a small bag is modern, and you need to be able to fit a lipstick into that small space. It seems that there’s a trend these days to miniaturize things.”

The ad stars Argentine model Sabrina Ioffreda and the brand recently released a teaser video from the campaign.