26+ Hollywood Celebrities Who Have Endorsed Filipino Fashion Brands
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Foreign fashion brands use international celebrities as models all the time, but homegrown brands officially endorsed by popular Hollywood personalities are a bit rarer. It’s one thing for Filipino apparel companies to hire local models to represent the brand, but it’s often seen as an achievement when internationally recognized models, actors, and influencers choose to associate themselves with local brands.
Over the years, a handful of Filipino clothing brands have stepped up their marketing efforts and cast a wider net to entice Hollywood celebrities to wear their gear. In recent years, local fashion brands have increasingly turned to models and social media influencers to help market their products. Of course, they have also started tapping Asian—particularly Korean—musicians, actors and celebrities, but that deserves another story.
These are just some of the Hollywood celebrities that have endorsed Filipino fashion brands:
Boyzone
The Irish boyband is often considered the first Western celebrity group to officially endorse a Filipino clothing brand, when Penshoppe signed the members to a deal all the way back in 1995.
Alicia Silverstone
The star who rocketed to fame via the ‘90s teen movie Clueless wore Kamiseta in 2002. It was the first time a major Hollywood star had endorsed a 100-percent Filipino-owned company. Before her, Kamiseta’s most prominent faces were the Cojuangco sisters Maimai and China. The shoot took over 12 hours but not once did the star complain. “Alicia was very professional,” then-Kamiste president and CEO Gunn Roque said in an interview.
Mandy Moore
The pop-star-turned-serious actress became the face of Penshoppe when Golden ABC (the company that owns the brand) president Bernie Liu said they had been looking for someone to create excitement for the brand. “We didn’t do this because we wanted to brag or show off,” he said in an interview. “But we are confident that we did not make a mistake. We are more convinced now that she was the perfect choice. She’s been very professional and easy to work with.”
Natalie Portman
Kamiseta followed up its Alicia Silverstone coup with another explosive announcement in 2003: they had managed to snag award-winning actress Natalie Portman, who was just coming off of starring in the Star Wars prequel movie The Phantom Menace, as an endorser. The shoot took place in New York and lasted 10 hours but the actress was a breeze to work with, according to Kamiseta’s big boss Gunn Roque. "Natalie Portman is sweet, down-to-earth and smart,” said Gunn. "She has global appeal. She is beautiful, well-educated and well-brought up."
Kate Hudson
In 2006, it was Academy Award-nominated actress Kate Hudson’s turn to wear Kamiseta.
Nicole Scherzinger
Bench had been getting Asian celebrities like Nonie Tao and Jerry Yan to wear its clothes in the early 2000s, but one of its first Hollywood gets is the Pussycat Dolls’ Nicole Scherzinger. The entertainer, who has Filipino blood, wore clothes from the Bench Body line in 2006. Needless to say, her billboards and posters around that time were traffic-stoppers.
Katie Holmes
The ex-Mrs. Tom Cruise wore Kamiseta in 2011 and, unlike her predecessors, her campaign attracted the attention of multiple media platforms, such as Instyle, the UK’s DailyMail, PerezHilton, and many others.
Michael Trevino
Michael Trevino was acting in the TV drama series The Vampire Diaries when he was tapped to be the new face of Bench Body in 2011.
Bruno Mars
Bench also signed R&B and pop sensation Bruno Mars in 2011.
Ed Westwick
Not to be outdone, Penshoppe enlisted the services of Gossip Girl breakout star Ed Westwick for its campaign in 2011.
Zac Efron
One year later, Penshoppe scored another coup when it unveiled its latest brand endorser: Zac Efron. That year he also flew in to the Philippines for a big fan meet held at the Mall of Asia Arena as well as a few shoots around some of the country’s biggest tourist hotspots.
Ian Somerhalder, Nina Dobrev
2012 was a busy year for Penshoppe as it also signed The Vampire Diaries stars Ian Somerhalder and, later, Nina Dobrev to endorsement deals.
Leighton Meester
Also in 2012, Penshoppe unveiled Westwick’s co-star Leighton Meester as the new face of its brand. At this point, it was clear that the race to sign up high-wattage international celebrity endorsers had become a two-way fight between two of the country’s biggest apparel brands.
One Direction
At one point during their career, One Direction was the biggest pop group on the planet, so it was a big win for Penshoppe when it managed to sign the British boyband—yes, all five of them—in 2012.
Adam Levine
Bench’s answer was to premiere a denim campaign starring Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine that same year.
Jessica Sanchez
Bench capitalized on the success of rising singer Jessica Sanchez, who was a runner-up in American Idol, by signing her up as an endorser in 2012.
Lucy Hale and David Archuleta
Also in 2012, Bench surprised audiences with campaigns starring actress Lucy Hale—who was in Pretty Little Liars—and American Idol runner-up David Archuleta.
Joe Jonas
As if 2012 wasn’t already stacked with Hollywood celebrities endorsing Filipino brands, Joe Jonas of the Jonas Brothers threw his hat into the ring when he starred in a campaign for Bench. He also flew in to the country to meet his fans that year.
Liam Hemsworth
Further cementing 2012 as probably the year for celebrity endorsements was the announcement of Liam Hemsworth as the face of Bench. The star of The Hunger Games and brother of fellow actor Chris Hemsworth shot the campaign materials that year but he flew in to the country to meet the press and his fans in 2013.
Josh Bowman
Actor Josh Bowman was gaining notices for starring in drama series Revenge when Penshoppe signed him to an endorsement deal in 2013. He flew to the Philippines a year later to attend a party in his honor thrown by the clothing brand.
Taylor Lautner
Also in 2013, Twilight star Taylor Lautner donned Bench and visited the country for a fan meet and mall visits.
Cara Delevingne
Cara Delevingne was already a superstar in the fashion world when she appeared in a campaign for Penshoppe in 2014. She has since branched out into acting and singing.
Kendall Jenner
The reality TV superstar first appeared in a DenimLab campaign for Penshoppe in 2015 and has since made repeat appearances for the brand over the years, most recently in 2019.
Zayn Malik
In 2018, Zayn Malik made a return as the face of Penshoppe after he split with One Direction and pursued a solo career.
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