Amouage has introduced Reception, a new fragrance in the Essences collection…
Ten times higher
Cash is not the only currency spent on niche fragrances, which often need time to mature. Amouage’s approach to the aging process makes liberal use of both, which chief creative officer Renaud Salmon said is a non-negotiable part of their process...
Since this step ties up working capital by requiring storage space, and results in inventory remaining unsold for months, it pushes up the cost of the perfume, as does Amouage’s propensity to offer higher concentrations of fragrance concentrate than most houses, with some going up to 30 percent or more.
“From my experience creating for other luxury brands, this number is at least ten times higher than what is typically allowed,” Salmon said.
— Read more in How Niche Perfumers Pay to Win at Business of Fashion.
Particular dynamism
On Thursday, Amouage, the luxury perfume line based in Oman, reported a 48 percent increase in sales in its first quarter, reaching $100 million in retail sales. Growth was led by its 17 owned boutiques, which lifted 75 percent, while e-commerce and travel retail increased 52 and 49 percent respectively.
[...] Amouage noted particular dynamism in the US, where sales increased 41 percent, and became a top ten fragrance brand in the department store Neiman Marcus this year, whilst also climbing the rankings in SKP in China and Harvey Nichols in Saudi Arabia.
— Read more in Fine Fragrance Brand Amouage’s Sales Lift 48% at Business of Fashion.
Amouage Decision & Existence ~ new fragrances
Amouage will launch Decision and Existence, the final two fragrances in the Odyssey Collection (originally introduced in 2020 as the Renaissance collection), this week. (See: Meander, Ashore, Crimson Rocks, Enclave, Boundless, Material, Lineage, Search, Guidance and Purpose.) Decision and Existence were both developed by perfumer Quentin Bisch and feature frankincense…
A new trend
The fragrance category is growing globally, as well. L’Oréal’s recent investments indicate the French company’s desire to penetrate two distinct but growing fragrance markets: China and the Middle East.
“Up until recently, the big conglomerates — L’Oréal, Lauder, Puig, LVMH, all those guys — have been relying on acquisitions of Western brands to get in the niche fragrance business. But also, they were relying on those brands to do well in Asia,” said Ohana. “There’s a new trend, which is for those conglomerates to go and also make investments in local brands.”
— Glossy on L’Oréal's investment in Amouage and Borntostandout. Read more in What’s behind L’Oréal’s niche fragrance investments.