Perfume is Pleasure

Most people don’t know that much about perfume and cologne. Combine basic ignorance with any of the following:

• A scent that once thrilled, but now annoys
• A discontinued favorite
• Confusion morphing to outrage as we accept the reality that manufacturers tamper with the formula and eau de wonderful is now eau de just ok
• Discomfort with the department store scene
• The search for one’s very first fragrance — a potentially joyful but intimidating rite of passage at any age

Goodness knows Adonis and Aphrodite in the glossy perfume advertisement (you know, the three pager with no scent strip) are not spilling the juice in the bottle. Her face says, “You bore me to tears, but I can’t live without Brand X perfume.” His face says: “It’s the body, stupid, and Brand Y cologne.” A picture is worth one thousand words and precisely zero smells.

Actually, the words don’t help much either. Perfume Advertising Bingo (scroll down the page, you won’t miss it) spoofs the futility of seeking guidance from industry promotions. At any moment in time, a fragrance manufacturer, advertiser or retailer may not be motivated to promote the scent that is Perfect for You. You suspect that it exists. But how to find it…

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.

Oh, you want to know the notes? In her address to Fragrance Business, 2008, Sue Phillips, President of Scenterprises, Ltd. reported that hotels, casinos and retailers are using these notes and blends to delight their patrons and brand the experience: linden, green tea, geranium and cedar, ginger and white tea, bergamot and jasmine, lavender and sage, and hyacinth.

Sue suggests that businesses consider building materials, archictecture, colors and geography when considering a scent theme. Most importantly, she adds, the target customer mood must drive fragrance development.

I recently heard François Duquesne of L’Artisan Parfumeur speak on the urgent need for aromatic reforms of all sorts. He urged a revival of authenticity, artistry and genuine personal engagement with fragrance consumers. What is the best way to develop and market scent? Kill the focus group, he commanded, and live with a few flops to staunch the flow of scents that are “too perfect to make a difference.” Down with newness for its own sake. Stop training sales clerks and asking them to recall and recite marketing literature. Instead, forget the party line and take them to the fields where ingredients are grown, have them meet the perfumers and tell their own personal stories. Some distinctions that we make today may not be helpful. What is “niche?” In his native France, François explained: “niche is where the dog sleeps.”