We’re faithful to our classic and cult perfumes, but it’s exciting to break out of our comfort zones and wear something fresh and new, too. What better time to do this when roaming through world duty free with time to spare.
Of course, confidence comes from within — but spritzing on a fragrance that leaves you standing a little taller never hurts. There are times when you need a boost of confidence – from your wedding day to a speaking event, or a black-tie evening, and you can curate a perfect capsule collection that complements a particular occasion. Fragrance has the power to transport us back in time – ‘The ‘power of the invisible’ is a feat achieved solely by our olfactory system. It has been said that fragrance is the greatest invisible accessory, and often the deciding influence of how one wants to feel or how one wants to be received.
From intense creations by designer houses to niche brands hitting all the right notes, the fragrance world is a sensorial delight of sweet florals, to sultry vanillas, sharp citrus and earthy aquatics.
Notes and ingredients
One of the most popular notes in fragrance is vanilla – it helps you to feel enveloped and cared-for, comforted, and less anxious. Vanilla tends to be at the heart of many fragrances, it can be sexy, sugary; sophisticated, and at time too sweet dependent upon the composition. But now vanilla is back taking centre-stage with a whole host of perfume houses and Gen Z celebs are leading the change to re-instate vanilla as a leader in the world of perfumery – everyone from Ellis Brooklyn Vanilla Milk, Yves Saint Laurent Libre to Eilish by Billie Eilish, which give vanilla a modern, sensual update.
Exotic Fruits – Fresh and citrus scents are always a go-to when temperatures rise. The calling for sun, sand, sea, or even forest woods and herbaceous greens brings about a spring or summer return to favourites. These charming combinations burst with an invigorating aroma that’s bright with a dark edge and fruity underpinned by hints of musk.
Spice – Spices have been used in perfume for thousands of years – the ancient Egyptians were the first on record to incorporate spices into fragrances. Rich notes will continue to be explored as we seek out the warmth, comfort, and feeling cozy.
Genderless Products
In the Middle Ages, fragrances were drawn from natural sources—flowers, wood—to mask natural odours in men and women, until marketing in the late 20th century began to emphasise the distinctions between genders. But in the mid-1990s, Calvin Klein’s CK One, a now-iconic unisex scent, entered the fragrance cosmos: it heralded a bold new era, where a clean, striking scent profile could be worn by anyone and signature scents had to be neither inherently masculine nor feminine. There are no gender-specific rules when it comes to fragrance.
Any fragrance can work for any person who wants it. At some point along the way, scents began to be labelled for men or women, but now fragrances are too nuanced to be assigned to one group of people.
Celebrity Brands
In recent years, celebrity fragrances were shelved in favour of beauty and skincare lines. There seemed to be fewer and fewer celebrity names making an appearance in the perfume isles. But after make-up and skincare took centre stage, there seemed to be a resurgence of celebrity fragrances during and following Covid. Rihanna launched own fragrance Fenty Eau De Perfum back in 2021. Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, Kim Kardashian and Elon Musk are amongst many to join the stage.
Clean Ingredients
The best perfumes are made with high-quality ingredients. There is a wave of clean perfume companies leading in sustainable and natural ingredients as well as ingredient transparency. Terms like “clean” and “natural” are used interchangeably there is a slight difference in them all. “Clean” refers to fragrances made without harmful ingredients, whilst “natural” is often found in products made from ingredients extracted from raw materials.
If you are looking for support in developing a brand in the fragrance market or you have an existing brand and you are looking for support with repositioning this or expanding your brand across the market, get in touch, we would love to hear from you. As a beauty brand management company, we work with our clients to develop their brands from ‘concept to shelf’.
As a beauty and wellness consultancy, we develop a comprehensive strategy for your business by understanding your vision (and the marketplace) and then delving into the details to create order and structure neatly packaged up to deliver you commercial results. We design brand identities and visual elements, manage your product development, build your go-to-market strategies to help you to engage with your ideal customers.
We are proud to support our clients from different regions of the world – from Saudi Arabia, to Dubai, Sri Lanka, Africa, Australia, the US, Canada, Europe and the UK – from entrepreneurs, to multi-award-winning beauty and wellness brands, retailers, investors, distributors, embassies and trade bodies. And we work with you across the retail sector, and the professional sector, including the hair care market, professional nail care market, spas, salons, hotels and the aesthetics market – here’s a snapshot.
If you would like to discuss your ideas with us, get in touch, we would love to hear from you.
As an international beauty and wellness consultancy, we are proud to work alongside clients from different regions of the world – Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Sri Lanka, Africa, Australia, Canada, US, Europe and the UK . We love collaborating with entrepreneurs, multi-award-winning beauty and wellness brands, retailers, investors, distributors, embassies and trade bodies across the retail sector, and the professional sector, including those selling into the hair care market, hotels, spas, professional nail care market and aesthetics market.
If you need support with devising a new strategy, developing a new product range, designing your packaging or rebranding your current product range, managing your PR, or with planning your market-entry into international markets, get in touch, we would love to hear from you.
Bespoke is a brand management expert with deep industry knowledge, extensive experience and a comprehensive understanding of the beauty and personal industry in the UK and Europe, complemented by an extensive network of contacts in the relevant market segments. Bespoke’s expertise, experience and contacts significantly contributed the success of the UK/Europe project with the companies that Bespoke assisted successfully entering or well on track to enter the UK and European markets. The Bespoke team was very professional, responsive and obliging and always delivered within timeframes. It was a pleasure to work with them.
Working with Janet over the past year has been a real pleasure, she has fantastic industry experience and knowledge of the UK beauty market. She has delivered a number of webinars for my clients looking at how to enter the UK market, providing an overview of the market and how to build a strategy. She took the briefs we provided and added real value to them, included key insights and information that my clients have found incredibly useful. Feedback on these sessions has been very positive. Janet is a clear communicator and has always delivered as agreed and on time. We are continuing to work together on other projects and I very much value the conversations we share.
‘Janet has a wealth of experience across retail, buying and marketing. She conducted a full strategic review of our cross functional business and the travel retail market to develop a comprehensive buying and quality control strategy that was signed off at board level. I highly recommend her as an asset to any business.’
‘As a Queensland-based company, we were determined to tap into the European market and establish a strong presence. From the very beginning, Bespoke Advantage demonstrated a deep understanding of our export goals and objectives. Their comprehensive knowledge of the European market, coupled with their extensive network of contacts, enabled them to connect us with key decision-makers and influential stakeholders in our target countries. Their strategic guidance and insights were invaluable in shaping our export strategy and positioning us for long-term success.’
‘Through Janet’s management skills, expertise and proven track record on the job she successfully managed the purchasing of our retail operations and ensured the integrity of our brands in-stores. Her enthusiasm and total dedication, delivered results in any project she was involved in.’
‘Janet has excellent beauty market knowledge. Level headed with clear vision, direction and the ability to drive business forward, Janet led the teams through a complete product design change advising on what the key marketing messages should be, incorporating her technical knowledge and beauty expertise.’
‘Absolutely fantastic course. Condensed learning from Janet, an expert in developing beauty brands. Also, valuable introductions to expert professionals, in the Masterclass sessions. In 12 weeks, you will learn from Janet, what would take years to learn by yourself. A very worthwhile investment’