Quebec-based women’s apparel brand Lolë took over Paris’ Grand Palais this weekend to host a massive community yoga session, drawing 4,000 white-clad enthusiasts of all ages.
The event, which featured Opera de Paris string musicians and “First Lady of Yoga” Colleen Saidman Yee, is the first project from experiential agency Sid Lee Entertainment, a newly formed joint venture between Sid Lee and Cirque du Soleil.
The Grand Palais event was the finale of Lolë’s White Yoga Tour, a series of emotional mass-audience yoga sessions in Canada, the U.S. and France. Since it launched in 2011, the tour has been a major success for the brand – a session at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium last year was so popular that it overbooked a 2,200-person venue by 1,800 people, without running a single advertisement.
Former Cirque creative director Joanne Fillion was executive producer for the event, and Jacques Séguéla, the legendary french marketer who founded Havas-predecessor RSCG in 1969, was also involved with planning through Lolë AOR Havas.
Lolë’s chief brand officer Bernard Mariette said the White Yoga sessions, which make up the bulk of Lolë’s brand marketing, are intended to create a deep emotional connection that will last throughout customers’ lives, fostering loyalty and brand advocacy. Lolë devotes about 80% of its marketing budget, or 8% of its net sales, to its annual events.
