NEW YORK — Retailers here are finding that exclusive fragrance launches are distinguishing stores not only in terms of prestige but also in terms of volume.
“When an exclusive fragrance is supported nationally by the vendor, such as Casmir, we have a tremendous success,” said Steve Bock, divisional merchandise manager of cosmetics and fragrance at Saks Fifth Avenue.
“Casmir has broken almost every record at Saks,” Bock said of the Chopard women’s scent from Lancaster. “It went over $1 million in a matter of five or six weeks.”
Henri Bendel also has been benefiting from a strategy of stocking the fragrance department with scents unique to the specialty store. “You come here because you think you’ll find something different,” said Ed Burstell, cosmetics and fragrance buyer at Bendel’s.
Bock said he expects to make another splash with the exclusive launch this month of Yves Saint Laurent’s Champagne from Sanofi Beaute.
“When we have the ability to launch a fragrance exclusively — now we’re doing the same thing with Champagne — with a full vendor and Saks effort, everybody in every store is involved, from the manager to the sales people,” he said.
Sales of women’s fragrances at Saks have been “outstanding” year-to-date, Bock said, noting the chain has had double-digit increases every month except February (a major launch, Donna Karan New York, was undertaken in February, 1993). The fragrance category’s increases are ahead of both color cosmetics and treatment, he said.
“We came off Mother’s Day week with close to a 25 percent increase,” Bock said.
The top five fragrances for Mother’s Day, in no particular order, were Casmir, L’Eau d’Issey, Must de Cartier, Annick Goutal and Donna Karan New York, Bock said.
“We’re more than doubling our business with Annick Goutal,” he said, noting that the line, which Saks ranks as a whole and not as individual scents, clocked in at number two for the week. “On a daily basis, it had a huge Mother’s Day week.”
Year-to-date, Saks’s top five are Casmir, L’Eau d’Issey, Cartier, Annick Goutal and Tiffany.
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Bock said Cartier and Tiffany, as well as Boucheron and Chanel No. 5, continue to grow despite their ages. Cartier is 13 years old, Tiffany seven, Boucheron six, and Chanel No. 5 is 73.
“It really counters the philosophy or the trend that a fragrance is very successful the first year and somewhat less so the following years,” Bock said. “In most cases, distribution is a big issue and a key issue.”
The two summer-only fragrances, O de Lancome and Escada’s Summer in Provence, also have been doing well. “I think the whole business is getting closer to fashion,” he said, adding that he expects to see more limited-edition scents.
Price points are not a major factor at Saks, Bock said, but added, “There certainly is an issue of value. Look at Champagne — $220 for an ounce [of perfume] is perfect for Saks.”
And while Bock acknowledged that fragrances with lighter juices “seem to have a better reception” these days, he noted that “any fragrance marketed correctly can be tremendously successful.”
Nevertheless, Burstell said that three fragrance trends are coming out on top at Bendel’s: Citrus, such as Eau d’Hadrien from Annick Goutal or La Coupe d’Or de Rosine; floral, including William Owen’s Celias Ultimate Gardenia and Herbe’s Magnolia and Lily of the Valley, and edibles, led by Comptoir Sud Pacifique’s Vanille.
“It’s really single notes and naturals,” Burstell said. “It’s almost a backlash to the synthetics of the Eighties.”
The natural and single-note scents have helped give Bendel’s high-single-digit sales gains year-to-date, Burstell said. Those increases, though, are smaller than the gains in makeup and skin care.
Still, Mother’s Day week produced double-digit gains, he noted, fueled by the launches of La Coupe and the Herbe line.
The top five sellers at Bendel’s are Annick Goutal, L’Artisan Parfumeur, Chanel, La Rose de Rosine and Henri Bendel’s signature fragrance.
“The customer zeroed in on those classics,” Burstell said, noting that Chanel has been a standout. “They’ve come back and really reworked all the marketing on it. Whoever’s doing the marketing and advertising is doing a great job.”
Price is not a big issue at Bendel’s, where the best-selling scents tend to be 3.4-oz. sprays in the $60 to $80 range, Burstell said.
“If the customer decides it’s right for them, there is no price resistance,” he said.
Although Burstell acknowledged that spring was a great time to launch La Coupe because it is a light fragrance, he said he finds summer-only scents “almost a disservice” to the customer.
“I have a little bit of a problem saying this is spring, this is summer, this is day, this is night,” he said.
While Burstell is not keen on limited-edition fragrances, he said the time is right for aromatherapy, which he said is “not confined anymore to health food stores or holistic medicine,” but is “tied into the whole wellness thing.”
“The one that’s out there that already does that is Calyx,” Burstell said of the Prescriptives scent. “If you’re a little tired, get a blast of Calyx around 4 in the afternoon.”