Astepro, a nasal allergy spray, is taking a new approach to its spring campaign: It borrows more from beauty marketing — specifically, fragrance marketing — than health care. The tagline for the campaign is “Feel Sexy, Fast,” and Astepro tapped actor and “it” girl Meghann Fahy, to convey the message in a new ad spot. Fahy is best known for starring roles in the most recent season of “The White Lotus” and, previously, “The Bold Type.” Fahy is also promoting the campaign on her Instagram, where she has 936,000 followers.
“In developing the campaign, we dug into allergy sufferers’ experiences to uncover a unique way to position a new allergy product,” said Dan West, creative director at Twelvenote, the agency Astepro hired to develop the campaign. “No one feels sexy with allergies. From a creative perspective, Astepro is a nasal spray that helps you feel great fast. A perfume is also a spray that helps you feel great fast. So riffing off of that was unexpected and felt totally natural at the same time. Pairing the two to create the ultimate get-ready essentials for allergy sufferers was an idea we couldn’t resist.”
To promote the campaign, Astepro created an actual perfume, a unisex eau de toilette cheekily named La Spontanéité. In a press release, Astepro states that the fragrance is made for “life’s spontaneously sexy moments … so you’re ready for anything, anywhere.” There is currently a sweepstakes underway, allowing entrants to win the limited edition scent, which is not available for purchase.
“About every seven in 10 allergy sufferers say allergies make them feel less attractive or admit it’s affected their love life,” said Catherine Vennat, head of U.S. marketing for allergy, cough and cold at Astepro parent company Bayer. “The health, wellness and beauty spaces are intersecting as people spend more time fully taking care of themselves — not only in the way they look, but also how they feel. It goes hand in hand that if you’re feeling good — like after combatting allergy symptoms — you’ll be more inclined to go out on that date or get dressed up for a night out with friends,” Vennat said.
Glossy spoke to Fahy about her choice to team with an allergy company, her favorite scents and her not-so-woo-woo wellness routines.
You’ve done work with brands like Armani Beauty. What was compelling to you about partnering with an allergy company?
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“I was excited about it because I thought [the ad] was such a fresh take on the whole idea [of allergies]. I loved the way [Astepro] wanted to incorporate humor, which is something that comes naturally to me. And then there was the fact that I’ve suffered from allergies for as long as I can remember.”
Were there any particular perfume ads you drew on for inspiration?
“When you’re marketing perfume — and we kind of poke fun at it — you’ve seen all the shots before. Someone’s running in a dress through the forest [for example]. But you’ve never seen an allergy commercial that does that, and I thought that was so funny. There wasn’t specifically a brand that we pulled from; it was just the cliché perfume vibe that we kind of … stole.”
Do you have a signature scent — prior to Astepro’s La Spontanéité?
“Prior to this, I am a huge Henry Rose fan. I mix a bunch of them. But the brand’s Windows Down, Jake’s House and Torn scents are all favorites.”
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Were you involved in the creation of La Spontanéité?
“I was not. But it’s very nostalgic. And I’m very attracted to scents that feel unisex or a bit masculine — they could be [either] a cologne or a perfume — and this is that.”
In addition to caring for your allergies, what is your wellness routine?
“It can be difficult to maintain a real regimen when you’re bopping around. This is kind of lame, but it’s actually just water. That’s the No. 1 go-to because it helps everything.”
You haven’t gotten into anything more woo-woo, now that you’re working in Hollywood?
“I haven’t, but maybe I should. Though I do love a sauna moment. And I like a warm lemon water first thing in the morning, if I can.”
So the Astepro campaign is all about feeling sexy, in spite of allergies. When do you feel sexy?
“Honestly, when I’m wearing something that I feel comfortable in — I’m not into like heels; I have this weird thing where I just like having my feet on the ground. I like wearing boots. That, to me, is like a really grounding, safe, comfy space that I like to be in.”
