Montreal-based women’s clothing chain Jacob wants its customers to know that the face of its new fragrance will be someone just like them. The retailer’s strategy strays away from the aspirational marketing path that has resulted in a plethora of celebrity perfume alliances. Instead, it’s giving unknown young women across the country the opportunity to be in the spotlight by launching its ‘Be the Face’ contest.

‘In a competitive market driven by celebrity endorsements, we have chosen to find a Canadian woman who reflects our customer,’ explains Barbara Epstein, director of marketing for Jacob. ‘We are confident that the Jacob woman will identify with and appreciate seeing someone like herself featured as the face of the fragrance.’

To hype the contest, Jacob’s image and marketing team rolled out a multi-faceted campaign, developed and executed in-house, that includes promotions at jacob.ca; radio promos leading up to casting calls in Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto; live on-location radio broadcasts on the day of the events; promotions in the October issues of Elle Quebec and Elle Canada; and in-store and mall promotions.

The campaign also includes social networking elements, with buzz built in Jacob’s Facebook community as well as a partnership with MySpace Fashion Canada that includes featured video content, pictures and an interview with the ‘new face,’ whose name will be revealed early October.