Bawang saga: Celebrities and brands can prove a bad mix

According to an article published in the Chinese magazine Next, various Bawang brand shampoos - which use Chinese herbal medicine and have an aggressive marketing campaign using Chan, among others - were found to contain a potentially cancer-causing chemical. Next claimed that tests in Hong Kong found the compound dioxane, which is classified as a carcinogen in the US. Bawang, China's leading domestic herbal shampoo brand, denied the claim, saying the levels were too low to cause harm and that dioxane is found in many brands of shampoo. Still, the report was bad news for the company and its stock fell dramatically in the aftermath.

The Bawang incident has affected the credibility of Jackie Chan and, in particular, his reputation as a serial endorser. Unfortunately for Chan, Bawang is not the first brand that he has endorsed that has ran into trouble. The movie star has put his face to a number of brands that enjoyed a short spurt of fame before losing their way through company mismanagement or corruption.

A popular onlime meme in China has gone as far as labelling Chan an 'ad killer'. The meme points out the sad end of some of Chan's past marketing tie-ups. Subor Electronics went out of business, the CEO for VCD manufacturer Aiduo was sent to prison, Fenhuang Cola is no longer sold and Caddy Cars shifted just 900 models.

Of course, it could be that because Chan endorses such a huge amount of products, the law of averages suggests some will be duds. And Chan himself seems unhurt by talk of the 'Jackie Chan curse' - this year he was named China's leading celebrity by Forbes. Even so, Pepsi, Canon and the countless other brands that Chan endorses may need to start worrying.

Brand health diagnosis

Saurabh Sharma, planning director at Ogilvy & Mather Beijing:

"I find it difficult to imagine a career spread over three decades, which has not had its share of controversy. I believe that Jackie Chan is to China, what Amitabh Bachchan is to India - an enduring icon who has traversed various stages of career and public image, has had his share of highs and lows and is evolving continuously.

With big success comes big controversy. When one stands for something, one automatically does not stand for other things. I believe that today's Jackie Chan stands for the maturing of self-made persistence that has culminated in fame and glory. Like any long-standing brand, Jackie Chan is maturing into a brand that is more credible than cool. He is more of an elder brother than a funny kung fu guy. This is exactly how more and more brands on the mainland want to leverage him.

People in the media business, tend to glorify the new, the sexy and the cool. But for a developing market like China, where people are looking for ways to understand and trust many new categories, the importance of a long-standing credible voice like Jackie Chan's can never be over-estimated."

Dan Parr, senior account director for Asia-Pacific at BrandRapport HK:

"With Tiger Woods' recent fall from grace we've seen how easy it is for brands to be tarnished by the behaviour of ambassadors. Jackie Chan's Bawang shampoo endorsement has shown that this can work both ways and celebrity endorsees can also have their brand damaged by aligning themselves with the wrong products.

Despite several PR gaffes which have effected Chan's popularity in Hong Kong and China, his international profile remains strong. Incidents which receive extensive coverage and comment in the Hong Kong and mainland media, barely raise a murmur internationally. For many Western brands and companies, Chan still has an iconic status among their consumers enabling them to leverage his popularity in their domestic markets.

However, if these brands want to use Chan within the Hong Kong and China markets, they may find his popularity on the wane.

Chan has carefully constructed a good-guy image for many years. He was Asia's first Hollywood A-lister and, as yet, no other Asian actor has managed to match his profile across both Eastern and Western markets."

This article was originally published in the 12 August 2010 issue of Media.