FIGS' Emmy Winning Marketing Strategy

The health care community made an unexpected appearance at the 2025 Emmys! This week's BL Business Branding newsletter takes a pulse on how actor Noah Wyle and medical apparel brand FIGS transformed a red-carpet moment into a clever prescription for brand growth through partnerships and licensing.

At this year's Emmy Awards, The Pitt star and Best Actor winner Noah Wyle walked the carpet in a custom tuxedo designed by FIGS, the company known for reinventing medical scrubs. Months earlier, after joking at the Gotham TV Awards about how the scrubs FIGS provides as sponsor for Wyle's medical drama were more comfortable than the standard tuxedo he was wearing, Wyle playfully challenged FIGS to create formalwear that could rival their famously comfortable scrubs. FIGS answered the call with its first-ever "black-tie scrub." Inside the collar they included embroidery reading "Awesome Human," part of FIGS' brand slogan, Awesome Humans Wear FIGS, offering a quiet tribute to healthcare workers and gave the look its deeper meaning.

The tuxedo was a one-of-a-kind design created exclusively for the 77th Emmy Awards and will not be sold commercially, making the collaboration even more special. FIGS' CEO and Co-Founder, Trina Spear, shared that the piece was designed to honor the healthcare community and highlight their stories beyond the screen.

This project also built on Wyle's relationship with FIGS, which began earlier in the year when he joined healthcare professionals to advocate for worker-focused legislation. Their partnership showed how a playful idea, can evolve into a meaningful moment when both sides share a clear mission. Together, the actor and the brand turned a lighthearted challenge into a thoughtful celebration of the people FIGS serves every day.

What Can Businesses Learn From This?

The Wyle–FIGS collaboration wasn't just a fashion stunt, it was a way of staying true to your brand's identity while expanding its reach. By protecting and amplifying what makes them unique, FIGS could confidently evolved beyond their original partnership with The Pitt in a way that still looked (and felt) authentic to their audience. The company's trademarks, from its name and logo to its slogan, gave it a strong backbone for experimenting with something as unexpected as red-carpet formalwear.

Intellectual property is a cornerstone of successful branding. Protecting trademarks, logos, and taglines, and structuring clear licensing agreements, allows companies to explore new creative avenues without losing control of their reputation or message. FIGS' ability to protect its identity gave the team freedom to innovate, while ensuring its slogan and design elements stayed aligned with its purpose.

When businesses secure their intellectual property and pair it with authentic and creative partnerships, they create opportunities that fit perfectly — whether they're on a red carpet, in a showroom, or building their next big collaboration.