Over the past five or six years there has been an explosion in the niche perfume market, which is still growing every year by double figures. Figures depend on your classification of niche – whether it is truly niche perfumes in limited distribution. Or whether you mean luxury high priced perfumes which may people sell more widely. Figures of growth range between 10 to 15 percent, depending on which piece of research you choose to read.
What are the prerequisites to be successful as a niche perfume?
1. Strong storytelling and raison d’être. No mediocre products here please.
2. A strong ability to test the boundaries of creativity. A niche perfume should polarise opinion – you either love it or hate it. Perfumers who are able to experiment and try out new creations for the sake of the art of perfumery.
3. The price should match the rarity of the product, the quality of the ingredients and the packaging. However, there should not be an imbalance between the price and the other elements leading to disappointment.
4. High grade materials should be used for packaging and the fragrance itself. Cutting corners leads to loss of credibility.
5. Select distribution is a must. Finding your niche perfume in a discount store is strictly a no no. The distribution strategy is key to maintaining the prestige of the brand.
6. It isn’t absolutely essential, but having a famous ‘nose’ to front your niche brand helps a lot. Perfumers with many years of experience are able to sell perfumes to true perfume lovers easily. For true perfume afficianados, these perfumers are the rock stars of their universe.
Niche -A victim of its own success?
Because of the growth in the niche perfume market, many new companies have entered the market and launched mediocre products. There is no heritage, no storytelling, the packaging and ingredients are not so creative or high quality. In such situations the lines between true niche perfumes and mass market higher priced products becomes blurred. Consumers become confused and forget what niche perfumes once stood for.
Another issue is that many big brands have bought out the original successful niche perfume brands. Big multinationals now own Francis Kurkdjian, Jo Malone, Diptyque and Killian. This means that these brands now have wider distribution with their own stores popping up in major cities across the world. This also signifies that limited distribution is no longer their modus operandi.
Exsence Niche Perfumery exhibition
There is an exhibition called Exsence which takes place in Milano every year, it is the Mecca of Niche perfumery. For the first six or seven editions of the exhibition it took place in a small arena in the centre of Milan. However, the last few editions have operated in the outskirts of Milan in a much bigger arena, as there is such a huge demand to exhibit at Exsence nowadays.
Many of the new perfume brands I saw at the fair were launching collections of perfumes with pretty standard types of fragrance : a floral, an oriental, a spicy, a gourmand, a fougere. The same old types of perfume being replayed again and again, not many new perfumes showing high creativity.
Key Takeaways from the exhibition
One of the takeaways from the exhibition was the level of packaging design for the niche perfumes. Some years ago when we visited the exhibition there were not too many brands investing heavily in packaging. Most were using standard bottles and focusing on the ingredients. But the advent of higher competition has meant that most brands need outstanding perfume packaging design concepts to stand out from the other brands.
Here are some of the photos we took at the exhibition last time. Apologies for the camera work!
Today I read a very interesting article by Roberta Branchini on linkedin who works for LMVH and Puig – two of the largest luxury perfume manufacturers and distributors. She points to global saturation of the niche segment due to oversupply. Roberta states that there are too many brands claiming to be rare and exclusive, so the language no longer has any meaning. Many people predict that many of these smaller brands will disappear and others will be snapped up by the big brands. Roberta also claims that good distribution infrastructure will be key to the success of niche perfumes in the future. She believes that this will ensure better credibility with consumers to enhance trust.
We are not so sure that mass distribution is the key to success with niche perfumery. We believe that the heart and soul of perfumery is lost when it becomes a numbers game. True niche perfumery should always be the experimental arena, the creative headspace of perfumery. Turning this into some soulless luxury mass marketing exercise feels a lost opportunity. Like when we duplicate a beautiful sculpture and mass produce it, the feeling of rarity and luxury evaporates.
Certainly one thing is for sure in niche perfumery – too many entrants will eventually lead to an early exit for some from the market. Those who have not thought through their concept carefully and executed it well will have stiff competition to contend with and may not sustain long term growth in niche perfumery. We look forward to seeing how the market place plays out….
If you enjoyed this blog post, then you may enjoy our article about the most influential Middle Eastern perfume brands.
