IT was a bizarre night—but in an impressively wonderful sort of way.
How else could you describe an event that featured a choir, an orchestra, acrobats, fairies, moving statues, beach balls, models, dogs, cats, actors, fireworks, Charice and Gary Valenciano?
It was a combination of a fashion show, a concert, product launch, and a raffle draw all-in-one—and for one night, Joel Cruz tried to transport an estimated 80,000 people at the Mall of Asia Concert Grounds, into his own dreams and fantasy.
Dubbed the “Lord of the Scents,” Joel Cruz said the 1@11 concert/fashion show was his way of thanking the Filipino people for supporting Aficionado Germany Perfumes and Joel Cruz Signatures.
“What I am now and what my company has become, I owe it all to them,” he said.
Joel Cruz Signatures’ newest apparel collection showcased an entire line that ranged from casual and party wear, to suits and gowns, to an underwear collection that was reminiscent of a leading clothing brand’s annual fashion event. It was evident that Cruz is indeed going head to head with other leading clothing stores in the country.
The concert also served as the venue to launch Aficionado’s two newest endorsers, Valenciano and Charice. According to Cruz, negotiating with such a powerful pair to endorse his products was not an easy process, but one that was definitely worth it. He also stressed the importance of choosing the right celebrity for their products to stress the quality they place in creating specialized scents for the consumers.
“Even if it took me a year to negotiate with Charice, I didn’t mind because I’ve always been a fan of hers,” expressed Cruz. “And who doesn’t know Gary V? Having him as my endorser is such an honor!”
For the “Gary Valenciano for Aficionado” collection, Cruz revealed they created a scent based on his favorite perfume. He said one of the most important aspects of making a signature perfume is to create a scent that his endorsers would actually use.
For Charice on the other hand, Cruz created a mix of floral, fruity and citrus scents, and a floral and powdery scent for the collection. The Charice signature line will have three variants namely “Charice Perfume for Women,” “Charice Unisex Perfume,” and a men’s cologne as well.
Cruz also became a harbinger of hope as he shared his blessings once again during the event. Decked in what resembled like messianic robes, Cruz fulfilled the dreams of several people in the audience as he raffled off 11 franchises of the Aficionado business amounting to P350,000; 450,000; and P888,000.
***
THE 1@11 concert opened a bit slow with almost an hour-long performance from the world champion University of Sto. Tomas (UST) Symphony Orchestra, who serenaded the crowd with a medley of local ballads and the UST Coro Tomasino who played a collection of instrumental favorites. It was then followed by a video montage of Joel Cruz that told the success story behind Aficionado.
An impressive assembly of the country’s top male and female models then sashayed their way through the runway wearing Joel Cruz apparel collection.
Aficionado endorsers Pauleen Luna, Ejay Falcon, Ronnie Liang, Jason Abalos, and Erich Gonzales then graced the stage before the fashion show became a mini-pet show as Aficionado unveiled their new “Pet Scents Collection.”
John Lloyd Cruz then made his grand entrance as he rode a car across the stage to launch his new line of signature scents as well. The show then reverted back to concert mode as Gary Valenciano performed a medley of ‘80s hits and his signature songs before finally introducing international singing sensation Charice.
Kamikazee then rocked the rest of the evening after the main concert and fashion show.
The over-all event direction was headed by Roxanne Lapus while Robby Carmona directed the event’s fashion show segment.
