Perfume is Pleasure

Perfume is Pleasure: Raymond, you have been the force behind some hugely successful commercial fragrances including Happy by Clinique. Now Happy is one of those scents I will invariably stop a woman to compliment. What are the names of some of the others?

Raymond: The first fine fragrance I ever worked on was White Diamonds. As of lately, I have been designing all the new Abercrombie, Abercrombie and Fitch and Ruehl fragrances. I have designed the IZOD fragrance as well. In my prior position I was responsible for all the Clinique fragrances, Tommy Hilfiger, Origins and Aramis fragrances. Fragrances like Happy, Happy for Men, Happy Heart, Happy to Be, Happy in Bloom are all my designs. I was fortunate to design some of the more creative fragrances for Tommy Hilfiger including True Star for Him and Her. There have been many but a portion of the credit belongs to the greatest perfumers in the world I work with. What we do together is a true collaboration. I enjoy bringing them to where they would not think to go …

Perfume is Pleasure: Would you tell me a bit more about your new theory on fragrance marketing? The other day, you mentioned that you don’t think fragrance families and ingredient marketing are the right answer. These are tools I use as the point of departure in my fragrance matchmaking process. I am seriously provoked! So what can you tell me?

Raymond: Not sure I would refer to it as fragrance marketing… I see it more or less as an evolving way of communicating scent and what we smell. A language, which enables the user to better communicate their needs or desires from a scent. The tools that you use are excellent tools. I would prefer we taking it one step further. I do believe in fragrance families, and it is always important to know why it falls under the classification. However, I blur those lines in my work and therefore need an additional method. I believe that Michael Edwards is a nice modern approach and I too use his books. However, as a person who designs fragrances I need to go further and this is what I will share in seminars and training clinics.

Perfume is Pleasure: Ahhh. So we’ll all have to stay tuned. Of course, Raymond, as a fragrance matchmaker, I consider the mood of the scent and the style of a woman in addition to the families and ingredients, but it is clear that you have some fascinating twists on this. I am impatient to learn more! In the meantime, how do you think the industry will respond to your approach?

Raymond: If there are companies, retail establishments, beauty advisors or merely our consumers who are interested in the world of perfumery and a method that is use to design and explain a fragrance based on the journey used to create… than I feel it will be embraced with open arms. My method has worked at certain Clinique counters and they experienced incremental sales increases. My approach and style is different in this industry, my fragrances represent a modern approach to perfumery. I’m not say it is better, I’m merely looking to offer the consumer another option that doesn’t exist.

Perfume is Pleasure: We’re beginning to see more informed consumers demanding greater transparency about the contents of the juice. How do you feel perfume shoppers will respond to your approach? Will it truly help them find a scent they will love?

Raymond: Interesting question, when one visits a museum I don’t ever recall a key explaining each color that was used from the palette. When I see an ad for an automobile I do not recall ever reading about the components and the production process. When I buy wine, an experience is always parlayed to me that helps me to understand what I will taste. When I buy clothing, I care about fit, style and I how I feel wearing it. Fragrances are liquid emotion, I design fragrance based upon sensations, emotions and experiences we come in touch with every day. So yes, I can and have helped one find what they desire. Plus, my fragrances are enveloping; how could one not fall in love with them…once they understand them. The time has come for the fluff to disappear in this industry! I have to ask those that recite ingredients, does the consumer really care…I have done many in-store events… I’m not convinced!

Perfume is Pleasure: Any other new projects of note?

Raymond: I hope so…We are in tough times…and bringing a new sensorial journey is always on my mind… to caress a woman…touching her through scent is my pleasure in life… allowing men to dream, to move them beyond what their father wore is always a challenge I accept. I also have a strong desire to bring the same creativity to branding a space with scent.

Perfume is Pleasure. Thanks so much for this interview, Raymond! Will you promise to keep me informed?

Raymond: Absolutely, I look forward to chatting with you again… Good luck my friend…It has been a pleasure.

Self indulgence has its limits. So when you’ve reached yours, think of others less fortunate. Those furry and hairy individuals lacking the means to obtain perfume and cosmetics you take for granted.

I remember my amusement over last year’s launch of Juicy Criture. OK, my horror, but tinged with amusement. A friend who promotes Liz Claiborne scents including sister Juicy Couture line said she had just put on a Nordstrom event for cats and dogs. Creativity kudos to whomever first cooked up the notion of “dog nail pawlish.”

Until quite recently, I assumed the beauty industry’s interest in four-legged consumers was limited to household pets. But no! Fragrance is coming on strong in the large animal community. Sniffapalooza magazine now features Brandy and its creator Patricia Namm. Patricia’s muse in designing the scent? A palomino horse by the same name. “Horses don’t usually like perfume,” Patricia told a group of fragrance enthusiasts at Sniffapalooza’s New York Fall Ball. But this scent, “with its suggestion of distant fields, rolling aromatic meadows, apple and peach top notes and herbaceous heart notes” appeals to the horsey set, and most importantly, to Brandy himself.

Perfume for pooches. Perfume for ponies. Why didn’t I think of that?

The discerning dog above is reticent about top notes of the L’Artisan Parfumeur scent presented for his approval at New York’s exquisite Aedes de Venustas boutique. Attends le drydown, mon petit chien.

Kymrie and I spent two delicious mornings and an afternoon at the mall to find her perfect scent.

She laughed, swooned, occasionally turned up her nose and finally fell in love… Her recap: “Thanks so much for such a great experience.  It was so great to learn a little more about myself and to have the benefit of your expertise.  Now the broad world of fragrance has been opened up and I can see why you have such a passion for it.  Many thanks.”

The Fragrance Foundation is the non-profit educational arm of the international fragrance industry. Rochelle Bloom has been President of Foundation since 2001. Before that, she had a rich corporate career in beauty and fragrance. In 1979, she launched Prescriptives and served as its Vice President and General Manager for seven years, building it into a major cosmetics brand. In 1986, Rochelle was promoted to Senior Vice President and General Manager of Estée Lauder International, where she tripled sales and quadrupled profit in her 13-year tenure. Under the Lauder umbrella, Rochelle also served as President of Bobbi Brown Professional Cosmetics, Inc., ushered the brand to its position of global prestige.

Perfume is Pleasure: What makes you most proud about the fragrance industry?

Rochelle:  I think the collaborative nature of the industry, which are strong competitors, but always think of themselves as an extended family and reach out to each other very often. It is not cut throat!

Perfume is Pleasure:  How are you seeing the industry innovate to assure that consumers continue to enjoy scent even in today’s challenging economic climate?

Rochelle:  Right now, the industry is in the mode of learning as much as possible about the (new) consumer, their desires and needs, and how they can remain relevant during these times. We realize that sampling takes on new meaning and smaller sizes are also important. It is a new business model that we all have to understand and accept before forging ahead.

Perfume is Pleasure:  What has given you most hope for the industry?

Rochelle:  Companies’ willingness to change. They are more willing to listen and learn from the consumer. In the past, the marketers thought they knew all of the answers. In this environment, the rules are broken and they are willing to start again. What is hopeful is that out of bad times comes good…even brilliant ideas. I am hopeful this will be the case in the Fragrance Industry.

Perfume is Pleasure:  For a long time, we’ve seen consumers behind the scenes with movies and into the kitchen with celebrity chefs. We would never buy a car before consulting Consumer Reports. But perfume has traditionally been clothed in mystique. Now, knowledgeable bloggers, critics like Luca Turin and Chandler Burr and even the perfume-lovers’ group Sniffapalooza are shining bright lights on the inner world of fragrance development and marketing. Have we lost something in the process? Though it is difficult to get the genie back in the bottle, does the industry yearn for days of a little more allure and a little less information?

Rochelle:  No. Informative and knowledgeable consumers are good. I think that is not the problem. The problem is that there are too many fragrances introduced, confused consumers and the aspiration and emotional connection has been lost. It’s not about critics and knowledgeable consumers, it’s about raising fragrance from a commodity as it is today back to being mysterious, sexy, and alluring. I also want to add that there is a lot of bad information out there. Fragrance gets a bad rap…..not good for the environment, can’t wear to work or school, causes allergies, etc. Consumers are asking for natural or organic fragrance without really knowing what that means. An educated customer is our best customer as Syms used to say. It applies to the fragrance industry as well. We need to stop giving incentives to get people to buy, making it a commodity and not a luxury, sample more, offer more affordable sizes and teach people what fragrance does for their psyche. It will do wonders for the business!!!

Perfume is Pleasure:  Wars about synthetics vs. naturals have erupted. The rhetoric gets pretty hot at times. What do we need to keep clear? Should we focus less on ingredients and more on the spirit of a scent?

Rochelle: It’s all about education. There are very practical reasons why you need both. In some cases, you cannot capture a scent in its natural form. Natural fragrances don’t last long which is a negative to some, etc. Synthetics are not good or bad and the same for naturals. It is just that the words ” natural” or “organic” seem to be the buzzwords for the consumer without knowing why. So I say, we need to educate and not focus less!!!!!

Perfume is Pleasure:  What tips do you have for consumers to get the most pleasure from their perfume?

Rochelle: Apply it correctly. You can go to our website to get all types of tips on how to wear fragrance. Also, find a certified fragrance expert at your local store and work with them on finding fragrance that will complement your current taste in fragrance or try a different form to add to your wardrobe such as a body lotion or shower gel. Also fragrant candles enhance your home life and relax you after a tough day.

Perfume is Pleasure:  Some of us enjoy scent on ourselves and on those around us, while individuals and even lobbying groups who stand for the right for a scent-free environment are increasingly vocal. How did we get to this point? How do we strike the balance?

Rochelle:  It’s about educating the consumer…..and the environmentalists on the facts. There is no reason why people cannot wear fragrance, if they wear it properly and it will not disturb anyone or anything. We have all been assaulted by people who wear too much fragrance, fragrance on their clothes and hair. There is the correct way to wear fragrance in the daytime and in the evening and, again, the better educated the consumer, the less flack the industry will get.

Perfume is Pleasure:  I have done work with youth education on scent and believe this is tremendously important. The Foundation has also taken action in this area. What can you share about your goals and progress?

Rochelle:  I think our efforts working with Weekly Reader to bring the appreciation of scent to our school children. We are just completing a project which will go out to over 5,000 public school teachers as a class lesson about scent which encompasses spelling, reading and writing. There are scratch and sniff elements to the program as well as games etc. This is in addition to our annual career day which is for high school students to learn about the opportunities in our industry.

Perfume is Pleasure: How are you seeing the industry innovate to assure that consumers continue to enjoy scent even in today’s challenging economic climate?

Rochelle:  Right now, the industry is in the mode of learning as much as possible about the new consumer, their desires and needs, and how they can remain relevant during these times. We realize that sampling takes on new meaning and smaller sizes are also important. It is a new business model that we all have to understand and accept before forging ahead.

Perfume is Pleasure: What has personally been most satisfying to you as President of the Fragrance Foundation?

Rochelle:  Bringing The Fragrance Foundation into the 21st Century.

Perfume is Pleasure:  Thank you, Rochelle, for sharing your passion for perfume with us. And thank you for your work to promote the health of this great industry.

The only thing I love better than smelling perfume is talking about perfume!

As a professional fragrance educator and coach in a world that says: “You’re a what?!” I must infuse cyberspace with my presence. The mission: Paint my solution to the big problem - Consumers Lack The Language of Scent - on the canvas of the Internet. Normally, I would contain myself to perfume, home fragrance, scent marketing and the like.

Social networking (code for online marketing, but in a friendly, personal way) is new to me, but my future depends on it, I am told. In a prior corporate incarnation, I looked with disdain on “reply to all” and other mass broadcasts of information that could and should have been delivered discreetly from one individual to another.

Now, compelled by the advice of people who know, as well as by the gut sense that I can no more successfully resist this than I did voicemail, I am nominally “on” Linked-in and Facebook, but not yet “up” on either.

For the record, I’ll twitter over my own dead body. Maybe I take myself too seriously. “What are you doing now?” they ask me. A fabulous woman and new Facebook friend reports that she just had oatmeal for breakfast and I cheer. High fiber. Filling. Great protein in a carbohydrate. Astounding cholesterol-lowering properties. I write a private e-mail to commend her and offer my exhortations to carry on in her pursuit of a healthy diet. Would no sooner post this on her Facebook wall than report my plans to head for the bathroom. That was a week ago. Today another new Facebook friend and respected real friend announced to the world that she was off to make a batch of granola. What a coincidence. I, too, made granola today! But is it news? Two oatmeal posts in a week? This seem to be a thing.

I am having a change of heart. Oatmeal is important.

But Oatmeal’s importance is as a grain of sand on the beach when compared to that of coffee. Perfume is pleasure and coffee is the best smell in the world. Some of you have heard me profess oakmoss to be my very favorite smell, maybe even on TV.  Either I’m lying or I have more than one very favorite smell. Please comment on your very favorite smell(s).

Bois de Jasmin, great perfume blog, lists Givenchy Very Irresistible for Men as a fragrance with a coffee note, well, mocha, actually, but don’t hold a little chocolate against them.

What bride does not want to smell wonderful on her wedding day? Artfully selected fragrance is a great way to start a new life and to share something personal with bridesmaids and wedding guests. Brides at the Grace Ormonde Grand Bridal Show loved the choice of fragrance matchmaking services for ready to wear scents, perfume parties and exquisite custom scents designed note by note, just for them. All-natural options, of course! Environmental scenting is another way to personalize a festive event - I scented the Grand Bridal Show with green tea and lemongrass.  See lauradonna.com on Grace Ormonde’s site for 2009 Platinum Vendors.

Official Grace Ormonde Grand Bridal Show photographer, the talented Matthew J. Wagner,  shared this photo with me.

Turns out, perfume is not all fashion and glamor. Research shows that our preferences are biological. Remember Lou Reed’s song from the original motion picture soundtrack of White Nights?

When I see the way you paint your lips and I smell your perfume
When I see the brand new color that you’ve dyed your hair to
I know, you know, it’s more than physical
My love, my love, my love, love is chemical

White Nights featured not only the endearing and iconoclastic tunester Lou Reed, but also the fancy feet of Mikhail Baryshnikov and tap prodigy Gregory Hines. I do not, as you may fear, digress from perfume. Once upon a time, our Russian ballet prodigy launched his own celebrity juice. Now discontinued, Misha Perfume for Women featured topnotes of peach, bergamot and lemon, a heart of jasmine, rose, raspberry, carnation and cinnamon as well as basenotes of vetiver, patchouli and amber.

Other than the simple explanation of chemical attraction, why do we prefer the scents we do? For ourselves? For others? In its December 18, 2008 article, “The scent of a man,” The Economist reported that women in an experimental setting prefer the sweaty t-shirts of men whose major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is most unlike their own. Dr. Manfred Millinski and Dr. Claus Wedekind researched this phenomenon at the University of Bern in 2001.

I am no more interested in science than you, so hang tough with the lingo for a minute. For fellow liberal-artsy types, MHC is good to mix between sex partners, as the children of unions between diverse MHC carriers will have relatively strong immune systems. In cattle terms, women like men who smell like they come from different stock.

Now what do women want from their own perfume? Millinski and Wedekind asked “Would you like to smell like that yourself?” and “Would you like your partner to smell like that?” to tease out the distinctions. Perfume preferences women express for themselves are directly correlated with their own personal flavor of the human leukocyte antigen, or human MHC (last big words I’ll use, promise!). A woman chooses perfume to amplify and broadcast her own genetic composition. But the partner, you recall, should smell of something “other,” not of “self.”

The punchline for perfume shoppers: Buy your own. According to The Economist, we are best equipped to select scent for ourselves and for close blood relatives.

Take a tour of the fragrance families. This is an excellent first step toward identification of the scents you are most likely to enjoy. Michael Edwards, creator of the wheel below and the world’s foremost expert on fragrance classification, generously invited me to share his work with you.

Click — it’s hot!

Hideous shoes on feet attached to otherwise fabulously turned-out people are sometimes perfect. We imagine that disgusting colors seem right, even those producing eerie flashbacks of refrigerators, Twiggy and Peter Max posters. Given repeated exposure to the latest look, ugly becomes beautiful. We succumb to groupthink and the Emperor is oh-so-chic, new duds or no.

Arguably, in the case of clothes, the mandate is visible, the standards, clear. We must have those perky, flouncy, unnaturally tight, loose, short, long, bright or dull items in the magazine. We all go along, victims and perpetrators of style. I get it.

What I don’t get is this: Why do so many fragrance shoppers ask for the latest thing? Hand-held computing devices get better. Medical technology gets better, notwithstanding the social and personal dilemmas that result. Admittedly, new aroma chemicals have created perfume possibilities that never existed before. But should we conclude that new, not-yet-improved and highly promoted fragrances are automatically superior to the rest? No.

Pause to consider the subset of folks noticing your scent who will enjoy it more or think better of you if this scent launched in 2009 instead of 2003 or 1956. Do they know or care?