They might come in refillable glass bottles and contain higher concentrations of fragrance oils – in some cases up to 40 per cent. Most use high-quality natural ingredients that are too unruly – and costly – for mass production. Their limited quantities, meanwhile, lack economies of scale. In a category growing at one of the fastest rates in the beauty industry – the global perfume market is set to reach $69bn by 2030 – the niche fragrance is the leader, expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 13.2 per cent.
— Read more in Why has perfume become so expensive?: The rise of the £250 scent at Financial Times.
Very interesting article. One of the comments posted below the story said “ surely we are at peak perfume”…..😂. I don’t think so, not even close.
I agree, extremely interesting article, plus the photographs are very fine. THIRTY PERCENT of Liberty’s business income is from fragrances–that’s quite amazing, almost hard to believe. Wow!
I have thought several times over the past 10-15 years that we must be at peak perfume…nope.
I hate to be so cynical (do I? I sort of do) but most of the article is complete nonsense because the fragrance itself makes up one to two per cent of the retail price. Even using expensive materials — which never make up the bulk of the scent — the fragrance is so diluted that its actual cost to the manufacturer is a few dollars. The rest is packaging, marketing, and profit — so much profit. The main reason scents are so expensive is that vendors are greedy and people have proven that they’ll pay whatever’s asked: it definitely isn’t because the raw materials have gotten so costly.
I think it’s more than that people have proven that they’ll pay whatever’s asked…they’ve proven they’re more likely to buy if the item is over a certain price point.
I just did an internet deep-dive into the world of private equity and its systematic dismantling of America, and I am not surprised PE has gotten into the beauty industry (they’re in everything else). That’s really where all that profit is going.
Hard-earned note: don’t read up on the topic unless you enjoy not being able to sleep at nite.