Susie Willis is no stranger to success. She sold her first company, Plum Baby, in 2010 for £10m but she still had a desire to further investigate the natural ingredient market. So, in 2016 she launched the skincare range Romilly Wilde and their first fragrance, Idle, was listed in two categories in the 2017 Fragrance Foundation Awards. With nominations for Best New Fragrance In Limited Distribution and Best New Independent Fragrance, I wanted to find out Susie's own perfume memories during "Stephan's Six".
I don't think that any visit to the Côte d'Azur is complete without a trip to Grasse, the spiritual home of perfumery, and to one of the three factories that are based there. Fragonard, Galimard and Molinard are referred to as "tourist" perfumers but their output really deserves to be looked at a little more closely by perfume fans. Last year, as part of their ninetieth birthday celebrations, Fragonard released a new male fragrance called L'Aventurier which features vetiver. The company has played with this ingredient before but could this new release appease fans that are still mourning the loss of their original Vetyver?
It’s blossom time again for Jo Malone London! A now regular tradition for the company, the limited edition Spring/Summer floral immediately follows their Brit Collection every year. This time it’s the turn of Star Magnolia, which promises to be “flirtatious, pristine and gleaming”. The company has once again turned to Anne Flipo of IFF to create this “tantalising” bloom in the hope that it will mirror the success of last year’s Nashi Blossom by Fabrice Pellegrin. Having already created their 2016 Herb Garden collection, as well as Basil & Neroli, Anne understands the style but how would she fare with this Shanghai floral?
It is strange that at a time when many “niche” perfume companies are experimenting with animalic fragrances one of France’s most respected, Guerlain, chose to discontinue one of theirs. Oriental Brûlant was part of the Elixir Charnel range and arrived on the scene in 2008. It made no excuses for its overtly provocative nature and labdanum lovers were in their element with large doses of this highly sexual ingredient. Designed around women’s actual and desired sexual styles, the Elixir Charnel range was a difficult one to market but, out of the original three, where did the inspiration for Oriental Brûlant actually come from?
Emmanuelle Moeglin trained at ISIPCA in Versailles from 2006-2008 before going on to found The Experimental Perfume Club in London. Alongside holding regular classes in perfumery for novices right through to experienced perfumers she now also has her own consultation and creation business. With a career that includes PUIG, L’Oreal and Symrise, what would we learn about Emmanuelle during “Stephan’s Six”?
The Fragrance Foundation was formed in 1946 by six of the largest perfume companies of the period. Chanel, Elizabeth Arden, Helena Rubinstein, Coty, Guerlain and Parfums Weil agreed that the time had come to recognise the many achievements in the fragrance industry and later on also provide training for consultants, journalists and marketing departments. This greater understanding allowed the industry to develop and grow into the huge machine that it is today. As part of their commitment they also introduced #ScentMemories which runs alongside National Fragrance Day. It brings together peoples memories on the subject of fragrance and I’ve happily contributed for the last two years, although the recolections were very different.
When a fragrance company launches a new perfume it is always met with interest from the press and the public, but when it's the first new release for eleven years then the expectations are even higher. To coincide with the smash hit film Beauty and the Beast, Parfums Worth have released BELLE, a fresh floral which they describe as "effortlessly feminine, romantic, playful and chic". Could this be the company's chance to re-establish itself in the minds of a new generation of customers and add a new fragrance to the stable of Dans La Nuit and Je Reviens? Let's see if this fairytale has a happy ending.
Mother's Day is almost upon us and the usual quandary of what present to buy rears its head again. Ultimately most Mums are happy with whatever they are given, although from personal experience I always find that the card is the most important part. If you haven't bought anything yet then the chances are that it will be a mad dash to the high street on Saturday with a slight "rabbit in the headlights" look. So, with this in mind, I thought it would be useful to suggest some fragrances that make the perfect present. There are three to choose from with very different price tags, but each is guaranteed to make your mum feel special.
When Sylvaine Delacourte announced in October 2016 that she would be launching her own perfume company the fragrance industry let out an audible gasp. Since 2006 she had been Director of Fragrance Evaluation and Development for Guerlain and had steered the company from an historical house to a commercial perfumer. Some of her directions and choices met with mixed responses but Guerlain was again becoming known to regular perfume customers. Her first collection of fragrances, LA COLLECTION MUSCS, offers five interpretations of this main ingredient, but is it enough to sustain a whole range?
