½ûÂþÌìÌà designer Roberto Cavalli has been recruited to ''dress'' bottles of Coca-Cola that will go on sale this autumn, the fashion house said Wednesday.
Some 300,000 limited edition bottles bearing three different Cavalli designs will be available in Italy between September and December.
''I really enjoyed creating three different 'outfits' for the mythical silhouette of the Coca-Cola Light countour that are seductive and feminine in perfect Cavalli style,'' the flamboyant Tuscan designer said.
''I created them for young people, who have always been one of my important sources of inspiration,'' he added.
Two of Cavalli's 'outfits' are in zebra strips that coil around the bottle like a label - one in the form of a heart.
The third design is a leopard-skin pattern that covers the bottle entirely.
Coca-Cola Italy's marketing director, Cristina Santucci, said the bottles were aimed predominantly at its female customers.
''We teamed up with Roberto Cavalli to offer a collectible version of the Coca-Cola Light bottle which speaks to strong, extrovert, modern women who love beauty, design, art and culture,'' she said.
Florence-born Cavalli, 67, is known for using wild animal prints and sexy cuts in his design, leading to comparisons with designer Gianni Versace, who died in 1997.
He has designed outfits for Shakira's Oral Fixation Tour as well as kitting out Christina Aguilera, the Spice Girls and Michael Jackson for concerts in the last few years.
Cavalli is scoffed at by some commentators as a 'guru of glitz' with a talent for appealing to footballers' wives and jewel-laden superstars, but his popularity shows no signs of waning.
