Pricier perfumes, with their big names and bigger ad budgets, have fared far better, with premium fragrance sales in the United States climbing 16 percent since 2000 to a record-high $5.2 billion last year. But for mainstream scents, a less-smelly America, and the rival products that have allowed it, has undermined their entire industry.

— US sales of mass market fragrances have dropped by half since 2000. Read more at Modern life smells so good it’s killing the cheap perfume industry at The Washington Post.

Nearly 80% of men who make fragrance purchases plan to do so ahead of time, and two-thirds of them also know what brand they plan to purchase according to the 2014 Men’s Fragrance Track Report issued by The NPD Group, Inc.

— From the latest NPD Group report on fragrance usage by men; read more at A Man and His Cologne at Happi.

In the U.S., P&G [Procter & Gamble] is the No. 5 player with nearly $600 million in sales and 10 percent of the market. But industry data show P&G is not that far behind fragrance leaders: The company’s market share is less than 1 percentage point behind No. 3 Elizabeth Arden and No. 4 Estee Lauder. No. 1 L’Oreal holds less than 17 percent of U.S. fragrance sales with $975 million, according to industry tracker Euromonitor. Coty is No. 2 with $740 million in sales, or almost 13 percent of the market.

— So, in order, that's L'Oreal, Coty, Elizabeth Arden, Estee Lauder, P&G. Read more at P&G smells success in high-end fragrances at Cincinnati.com. P&G is responsible for the new Dolce by Dolce & Gabbana; other brands in their stable include Gucci and Hugo Boss. Hat tip to Tiara!