Perfume Orgue via Forbes
Have you ever heard of niche perfume? Everybody dreams of having a unique and different perfume. Niche perfumes, which are rare and exclusive by definition, have for a long time been a source of expression for amateurs searching for uniqueness. The word “niche” refers to a small market that targets an insider audience. In recent years, this segment has enjoyed considerable success in the world of perfume. So we wanted to tell you more about its origins, what characterizes it, and how it has transformed the perfume landscape in France and around the world.
Back to the past: from perfume to niche perfumes
For centuries, perfume was reserved for the wealthy elite. It was a true luxury item that perfumers tailor-made for their privileged clients. Rare and exotic essences were blended in heady concentrations and were stored in precious crystal bottles. Furthermore, it was the passion of Louis XIV and the nobles at the court of Versailles that gave the impetus to the powerful French perfume industry.
In the 19th century, industrialization and developments in chemistry led to the democratization of perfumery. At that time, several leading chemists created new revolutionary synthetic molecules. From then on, perfumes could convey more abstract ideas. The limitations of natural ingredients no longer constrained the perfumers.
Chemists were also finding ways to reproduce expensive natural essences at a lower cost. As a result, the manufacturing price of perfumes fell, and production increased, which led to perfumes becoming more accessible.
The industrialization of perfume
But on the flip side, perfumes became “everyday” products. Perfumery’s uniqueness and magic had been lost.
From the 1980s, the term “perfume industry” took on its full meaning with the launch of many new perfumes. Millions of bottles of the most successful fragrances were sold. And gradually, perfumes became less and less daring. The perfume houses regularly used extensive consumer tests to ensure that the fragrance would appeal to as many people as possible before the launch. Perfumes that surprised, or even shocked, were no longer deemed to be commercially safe enough.
Furthermore, to improve the profitability of perfumes that sold in the millions, the entire product was regularly reviewed to lower its manufacturing costs. The use of more medium-quality synthetic raw materials increased, and juices became less concentrated. And for the bottles, the tendency was to use cheaper and less refined materials.
Standard perfumery
So-called “standard” perfumery emerged with the fragrances of fashion designers such as Dior and Chanel. Gabrielle Chanel was the pioneer in creating her famous N°5 perfume.
Originally, the idea didn’t emerge from the perfumer so much as from the designer who wanted to complement his client’s outfits and access a new market. After all, a perfume bottle from a major brand is more accessible than a piece of ready-to-wear apparel.
Perfumes then become mass-market objects, a kind of “everyday luxury”. They were mass-produced and popularized by major advertising campaigns featuring the biggest movie stars.
The money spent on these perfume lines is increasingly channeled into advertising rather than the product. And gradually, these ad campaigns create irresistible fashions that make it possible to meet 3 people in one day who are wearing the same perfume…
Lastly, the retailers (large perfume and beauty stores) are expensive for the brands too! These retailers charge a markup on the real price of the brands’ products. It is the brand that allows them to pay their rent and the salaries of the salespeople. But this is also a problem that niche brands encounter. Their products are not distributed by the major retailers and perfumeries, but they have their own store to maintain. And this represents an additional cost for the end customer (necessary before the advent of online sales).
Niche perfume or the perfumers’ revolt
This mass production approach marked a critical moment in the history of perfumery. It was then that a few perfume-loving creators launched their own houses with the mission of re-enchanting the sublime art of perfumery! Examples include the houses of designers like Annick Goutal and Serge Lutens, who are reviving a more qualitative perception of perfumery, and giving priority to olfactory creativity!
This new perfumery was a real success, and many new independent houses were created in the 2000s. Today, it is the sector in perfumery that is flourishing, as evidenced by the number of new brands exhibiting each year at Pitti Fragranze (international niche trade fair in Florence). Maxime Garcia-Janin, the founder of Sillages Paris, spoke there in 2019 on Perfumery 3.0!
This triumph by the niche sector is gradually attracting the attention of the major brands that are beginning to offer differentiated lines of more exclusive perfumes. These “private” or “exclusive” lines differ from their standard perfumes in terms of looks, price, and distribution. Which brings us to the question: What is the difference between niche and standard perfumes?
The re-enchantment of perfume at the heart of the project
Primarily, niche perfumery is a different approach to perfume that doesn’t try to please everyone (like in standard perfumery). It rather seeks to convey values of the highest quality and authenticity. Perfumers thus aim above all else to offer a unique olfactory experience. So they make compositions using precious, natural, and original ingredients.
Niche brands aim to create perfumes that are considered real luxury items, thus justifying their higher prices. The priority of these houses is to offer unique olfactory signatures in beautifully detailed bottles. In a way, it’s a sort of return to the roots of perfumery.
The place of the perfumer
Niche perfumery showcases (for the first time!) perfumers, also known as “Noses“. A niche perfumer is above all a perfumer who gives free rein to his creativity. Thanks to this open door into their creative process, customers can now embark on a real olfactory journey.
Instead of talking about an ideal that perfume should help you achieve (becoming a free woman, becoming a great seducer, etc.), the discourse goes back to the ingredients and the description of olfactory sensations. Niche perfumery seduces because it stimulates the imagination and awakens emotions and memories in each of us.
Since the juice’s artistic quality is at the root of a niche perfume’s success, perfumers bet everything on the ingredients. These perfumes don’t overemphasize packaging or marketing, but prefer to reserve their budget for the juice. To create niche perfumes, perfumers prefer to use the finest raw materials, whether synthetic or natural. What’s more, the scarcity of ingredients and the generous concentration of the perfume justifies the higher price.
No gender
In this era of “no gender“, niche perfumes are breaking free of conventions. The boundaries between men’s and women’s scents are fading away so that each person’s personality can express itself. The quest for emotional experiences takes precedence over gender. Gendered fragrances are indeed a recent creation (20th century!). The reality is that perfumes can be enjoyed and worn by both men and women; it all depends on individual tastes.
What woman has never been attracted to woody or leathery notes? Early on, niche perfumery proposed a freer and more modern vision of perfume, in opposition to the very gendered marketing approach of standard fragrances.
This is why niche perfume bottles are often neutral and the same for all products: only the names change. And those names describe the juice and its ingredients more than an archetype to be embodied.
Sillages Paris and niche perfume 3.0
Sillages Paris was created by and for perfume fans. The guiding principle was inspired by the quality and originality of niche perfumes. But we believed that it was possible to finally make Haute Parfumerie affordable by making trade-offs on everything but quality. And we achieved our goal thanks to an online model that reduces the middlemen and therefore saves money.
Chez Sillages Paris, nous vous laissons le choix de vos ingrédients favoris plutôt que vous convaincre avec des pubs mettant en avant des stars!
Indeed, brands spend the majority of their budgets on advertising and distribution. But at Sillages Paris, we do not use celebrities to represent us. Our real ambassadors are you! Word of mouth marketing from our clients and the personalities who wear our perfumes are our best publicity.
And our only distribution channels are our website, and our workshops hidden away in a classified courtyard in Paris. This way, we avoid paying for a doorstep on a prestigious avenue!
Perfumers and their creations
At Sillages Paris, our young SuperNose perfumers are given carte blanche to come up with their creations. We don’t impose any creative or budget constraints on them. They let their imaginations run wild to compose ultra-unique formulas for our personalization algorithm.
This way, anyone can compose their own perfume online from a palette of 64 of the finest ingredients. And these highly concentrated eau de parfums contain at least 80% natural ingredients.
In short, at Sillages Paris, we focus on the essentials.
So, are you ready to take the plunge?
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