Building a Powerful Media Brand

Christie Hefner reveals secrets to creating a global brand.

Hefner:    Well, as its essence, the Playboy brand stands for sexy, stylish lifestyle and I think that that's been, you know, sort of its eternal core, and fortunately for us, has given it a really global appeal.  So whether we're extending the brand through multimedia or extending the brand through licensing into lifestyle products, that's really what it stands for.  I think when you're responsible for a brand, a great deal of what you have to decide is both what you do with it and what you don't do with it, because every action you take under that brand, you're in effect either making a deposit or withdrawal from the brand bank account, if you will.  And missteps are, you know, withdrawals and there is a limit to obviously how much you can do that can, you know, be not helpful to a brand and still preserve the brand's inherent equity.

Hefner:    Well, as its essence, the Playboy brand stands for sexy, stylish lifestyle and I think that that's been, you know, sort of its eternal core, and fortunately for us, has given it a really global appeal.  So whether we're extending the brand through multimedia or extending the brand through licensing into lifestyle products, that's really what it stands for.  I think when you're responsible for a brand, a great deal of what you have to decide is both what you do with it and what you don't do with it, because every action you take under that brand, you're in effect either making a deposit or withdrawal from the brand bank account, if you will.  And missteps are, you know, withdrawals and there is a limit to obviously how much you can do that can, you know, be not helpful to a brand and still preserve the brand's inherent equity.