Vespa Boutiques

Vespa was a popular motor scooter in the United States until it withdrew from the market as a result of its inability to meet federal emission standards. In 2000, it returned. Its introduction included sponsoring the New York Marathon with new Vespas leading the race and the winners receiving a new 2001 Vespa. The Vespa ads appearing during the marathon showed a small red dot on a white screen. The dot moves closer, weaving to the tune "Flight of the Bumblebee". Soon it becomes clear that the dot is a Vespa. The tagline is "Vespa is back".

The opening of the first retail outlet for Vespa was celebrated a few weeks later at Paramount Studio's original Roman Holiday set with a fund raiser for Audrey Hepburn's children's charity. Ms. Hepburn helped make Vespas famous when she zipped around Rome on one in the popular movie Roman Holiday.

After the introductory period, Vespa launched a new tagline - "Vespa, the fun and only" - around a series of black-and white pictures of twentyish models posing on the scooters. The ads ran in upscale magazines in cities where Vespa dealers were located or planned. In addition, teams of 12 models visited cafes and colleges in many of these cities. Their mission was described as "looking cool, sipping coffee, and tacitly pitching the Vespa".

In 2002, both Vespa and local dealer groups began to use sexy, hip advertising with the tagline "Life is better with Vespa". A 30-second spot by the company is;

Set in a backyard on a summer afternoon; a young man appears to heap praise on a woman reading in a nearby lawn chair. "You take me places I've never been before," he says in an Italian accent as he praises "her" curves and sleek figure. "You petite but powerful body will purr with excitement when we are together". When he continues with "I must mount you now," the camera pans out to reveal a new Vespa, which he climbs abroad.

Vespa of Greater New York launched ads that showcase words ending in "issimo", such as "vroomisimo," and "sexissimo," and feature "barely clothed women sprawled over and around Vespas". In San Francisco area, three billboards were developed that featured a woman's hands, arms, or legs grasping a male driver. A spokesman states, " Vespa is a passion brand that has been discovered by style leaders. Vespa is the sexiest way to get from A to B, and its Italian heritage allows us to own that".

In 2005, Vespa launched yet another advertising campaign entitled "Make Your Reality a Dream". The company awarded this campaign to KraftWorks because of "their unique approach that coupled the stylish Vespa heritage with the modernity of urban life. KraftWorks understands the romance that surrounds Vespa, as well as the obsession it engenders