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brands launching EdPs than EdTs, for example. Women’s fragrances saw a slight uptick, while the price of men’s scents was stable,” Ringwald remarks. When it comes to promotions, there are divergent trends. In Europe, given the morose economy, consumers generally are hunting for bargains. “In-store promotions are becoming more complex today—we are seeing deeper discounts for all products, be they gift sets or single fragrances. Few consumers today

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While we are not facing the catastrophic situation that some had feared, we are in a market that is slower than the past few years in terms of sales and billing from retailers, so there is a certain amount of caution

Clarins Fragrance Group president Joël Palix

purchase without a discount,” says NPD’s Ringwald. In the US, conversely, the proportion of sales from sets over the past year has shrunk compared to previous years, while some of the strongest growth is coming from the fragrance itself—“a compelling development in terms of where the consumer is going,” says NPD’s Grant. Eric Jacquemet, president and ceo of Sarbec Cosmetics, owner of fragrance brand Jacomo says: “It’s difficult to change a price on a product, but retailers are working harder to breed loyalty through promotions and gifts and this will continue through the holidays.” Retail revs up A number of retailers are looking to highlight the fragrance category in a new way. “Retailers are making investments to get some benefits from the category. Two or three years ago fragrance [in the US] was not showcased well and it was more about skincare, but they rea-

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lized that the fine fragrance business has to be sustained,” explains IFF vp fine fragrance and beauty care worldwide Christophe de Villeplée. Sephora US, for example, is said to be investing heavily in the category. It is rolling out its Fragrance Jewel Box display to stores in the US and Canada, which presents scents stripped of their packaging and marketing support so that the consumer can more objectively find a fragrance. Marionnaud in France meanwhile, is rolling out its ScentLAB interactive tool that allows the shopper to choose a scent according to their personality (see p. 48). Printemps’ La Belle Parfumerie concept, inaugurated in October 2011, is to roll out the concept to its smaller stores in towns across France. Printemps’ Tasset hopes that this will encourage the industry to provide consumers with a more qualitative selling environment for fragrance. In Australia, prestige retailer David Jones is set to unveil a new fragrance hall in its Sydney flagship before the end of the year. The approach to the category in US department stores is also said to be seeing changes. “The atmosphere used to be very oppressive, but more retailers have had the BAs stay at their counters, which gives consumers more liberty to discover the fragrances. They have recognized that fragrance isn’t a category to walk away from—it’s a high engagement category,” explains NPD’s Grant. These efforts are applauded by industry watchers, but more remains to be done. Clarins’ Palix notes that communication could be improved between brand and retailer when it comes to merchandising. “I would like to see a more precise dialogue as merchandising agreements aren’t always honored. In addition, we don’t always optimize the quality of presentation for our fragrances as there are retailers that want glorifiers, those than don’t and those that no longer want them,” he comments. Given the ongoing economic woes, brands and retailers are hesitant to provide forecasts for the holiday season. However, NPD’s Grant expects that growth will be less robust than last year. “This year we are up against higher comps—sales were up by double digits last year. However, it will still be positive as there is a lot of opportunity in fragrance, so reclaiming some of the volume from prior years could mean a lot of increase.” Watch this space. n

Global fragrance sales* 2011 $bn Category Sales $bn 7.53 0.94 23.66 11.42 8.45 0.36 20.24 43.89 % change ‘11/’10 +11.2 +10.5 +9.4 +10.9 +9.0 +12.2 +7.4 +10.3 +10.6

Premium women’s fragrances 15.18 Premium men’s fragrances Premium unisex fragrances Total premium fragrances Mass women’s fragrances Mass men’s fragrances Mass unisex fragrances Total mass fragrances Total fragrances (premium + mass)

Source: Euromonitor *retail sales price

Fragrance trends
• Fashion-inspired. More brands are looking to fashion to inspire new fragrances. “These couture-inspired collections are positioned at a very exclusive level both in terms of price and availability through limited quantities distributed in selective stores,” explains Mane vice president marketing and communication Alessandra Melzi. Such initiatives include Guerlain’s La Petite Robe Noire and Giorgio Armani’s La Femme Bleue, part of the brand’s Privé collection. • Collections. The launch of collections is still going strong with recent introductions from Ermenegildo Zegna (a five-sku offer with each fragrance retailing for $195) and Oscar de la Renta, which just launched a six-scent offer retailing for $150 each. • Sport. Sport-themed fragrances continue to roll out in the men’s segment. The latest include L’Eau d’Issey pour Homme Sport, The One Sport (Dolce & Gabbana) and Allure Homme Sport (Chanel). • Noir. “Noir” branded scents are popular. Recent launches include Coco Noir from Chanel and Tom Ford Noir in upper prestige. Industry watchers say this trend is set to trickle down.
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November-December 2012 - N°12 - BW Confidential

BW Confidential - Issue #12 - November/December 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BW Confidential - Issue #12 - November/December 2012