Is fragrant detergent the next big thing?
With consumers willing to pay upwards of £30 a bottle, an increasing number of players are launching scented laundry products: from fine fragrance houses (e.g. Francis Kurkdjian), to cosmetics companies (e.g. Barbara Sturm), to new fabric care brands (e.g. The Lab Co), to retailers such as M&S, who recently launched a viral home care range allegedly smelling similar to Le Labo perfumes.
When fashion meets fragrance
This month, Coty signed licensing deals extending beyond 2040 with Marni and Etro, taking control of the brands’ beauty and fragrance product development, production, and distribution. First products are expected to launch in 2026.
Kering bets on in-house product development - and fragrance
The French luxury group is showing an increasing focus on high-end fragrance, apparent via the activities of their recently-launched beauty division Kering Beauté, run by former Estée Lauder and L’Oréal exec Raffaella Cornaggia. In addition to its recent acquisition of Creed for $3.5bn, the entity has also brought Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen beauty businesses entirely in-house, with plans to launch fragrances for the brands this year.
Shiseido’s 2023 annual earnings down 40%
The Japanese cosmetics company’s decline in profit is being attributed to a slowing demand from China, Shiseido’s largest market, accounting for c.25% of sales. This slowdown is said to be driven by the Chinese consumer’s drop in demand for Shiseido products following Japan’s release of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean in August 2023, as well as low activity in Chinese travel retail, and growing interest in domestic brands.
Scentalytics launches AI-based fragrance creation tool
As the first product of its wider AI platform, Scentalytics’ Perfume Creator enables users to input notes of choice, and leverages AI to deliver calculated or predicted properties of the resulting composition, such as:
Accords - calculates the proportions of different types of scents
Weather - recommends if the fragrance is more wintery or summery
Time of day - suggests if a creation is more suited to day or night wear
Users are equally able to see existing perfumes similar to their creation.
Upcoming fragrance events:
Industry events:
12th March 2024: The 2024 CEW Beauty Awards
18-24th March 2024: UK National Fragrance Week
21-24th March 2024: Nez’s first fragrance Paris Perfume Week
18th May 2024: Barnes Fragrance Fair 2024
Workshops (London):
18-22nd March 2024: 4160Tuesday’s 2024 Spring Perfume-Making Week
March and April 2024: Maya Njie’s Bespoke Perfume Workshops
Recent investments in fragrance:
Manzanita Capital acquires majority stake in fragrance brand D.S. & DURGA
L’Oréal closes minority investment in Chinese fragrance brand To Summer
L’Oréal signs licensing agreement with Miu Miu
My fragrance of the day: Liquid Amber by Maya Njie - a velvety hay meadow
dsm-firmenich’s Scentmate launches the world’s first edible fragrance
A taste of Spring - Portobello Road, London, 2021
- Flo
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Hi! 😊 Don't know if you might be interested but I love to write about sustainability (fashion, travel and our relationship with clothes). I'm a thrift shopping and vintage clothing lover who likes to explore the impact textile industry and consumistic culture have on the environment and also what people can do to shift the tendency.
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