Are you in the early stages of designing a new perfume? Or maybe looking to brush up on your perfume design skills ? Our perfume creation guide will cover the main areas of perfume selection, formulation, packaging design, filling and marketing your perfume.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Perfume ingredients
Perfume ingredients can either be synthetic or natural. Natural ingredients can vary from one harvest to another, so fragrances with a very high percentage of natural ingredients may result in small variations for each production batch. Natural essences are derived from plants, spices, barks, grasses, animal products and mosses which are naturally occurring.
Do synthetic ingredients cost less than natural ingredients? Not necessarily, as there are some very sophisticated and expensive synthetic ingredients available. Some very interesting nuances of natural smells using synthetic ingredients can be created. It can be argued that synthetic perfumes are a more sustainable and planet friendly option.
Many people are talking about the negative aspects of some synthetic ingredients, that they are ‘endocrine disruptors’. IFRA – the International Fragrance Association – has strict rules about the ingredients of fragrances and how much of the allergenic ingredients can be safely used in each formulation. It rigorously tests ingredients to ensure safety and sets guidelines about how much of a certain ingredient can be used. All allergens must be mentioned on the outer packaging of perfumes in most regulated countries. An allergen is a chemical which it has been proven to cause an irritation when applied to the skin. It is worth noting that essential oils (natural perfumes) can also cause allergic reactions and that IFRA is currently considering adding some essential oils to the list of known allergens. Your perfume supplier will be able to provide an allergen list for the fragrances you select.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Perfume formulation
What is better – a formulation with or without alcohol? In ancient times perfumes were made without alcohol using waxes or oils to hold the perfume. Nowadays most perfumes are made with a combination of distilled water, ethanol alcohol and perfume oil.
Of course the decision of which formulation to use depends on the market you work in and who you are targeting. In a highly muslim population country a non alcoholic perfume may work better. Alternative carriers such as water, oil, wax or resin can be used to dilute and mix the perfume oils. In a market where alcoholic perfumes have been traditionally used, it could be difficult to change consumer behaviour.
Formulations containing alcohol allow the top notes of a perfume to open up quickly. At the point of sale where consumers trial new perfumes this could pose a challenge for non alcoholic perfumes. Often buying decisions are made based on the first ‘hit’, if the top notes are strong or powerful enough.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Fragrance concentration
How much perfume should I put in my formulation?
The amount of perfume that you put in your formulation will depend on the market where you are selling it, what is the norm. Some markets like Saudi Arabia love a very high concentration of up to 25 or 30% fragrance oil, but the UK market will usually prefer a lower concentration of maximum 15% fragrance. A very high concentration can be irritating for the nose in markets which are not accustomed to heavy fragrances. The price you pay per kilo may also be a consideration of how much to add. For high price fragrances adding one or two percent more fragrance oil will add a lot to the product cost.
Eau fraiche has 3% or less fragrance oil.
Eau de cologne has 2 to 5% fragrance oil.
Eau de toilette contains 10% usually.
Eau de parfum has 8 to 15% fragrance oil.
Soie de parfum has 15 to 18% fragrance oil.
Parfum has between 15 to 30% fragrance oil.
The Ultimate Guide to perfume design – Fragrance notes
A perfume will undergo different phases after being sprayed onto your skin and a perfume consists of different ‘notes’. Each phase will last for different lengths of time.
TOP NOTES are the first notes which give a burst of smell right after spraying the perfume and typically last for 10-15 minutes. These notes are usually more volatile and they are often citrus, fruity or floral.
MIDDLE NOTES are also called heart notes and these take 15 to 30 minutes to fully develop on the skin. They usually contain florals and aromatic plant notes and are the notes by which the fragrance is classified.
BASE NOTES last the longest and help to slow down the evaporation of the more volatile molecules. Typical ingredients for a base note are woody, vanilla, musk, cedar and sandalwood.
A perfume which does not change from initial spray to its final dry down is a linear perfume – it does not contain top, middle or base notes. The most popular linear fragrance at the moment is Baccarat rouge by Francis Kurkidjan.
There is a recognised classification system of perfumes which was developed by Michael Edwards.
The main types are floral/ amber/ Woody and fresh with sub classifications for each type.
Check out the Michael Edwards fragrance wheel online if you wish to know more.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume design – wholesale and retail trade
Understand the dynamics of the wholesale and retail trade for perfumery in your country. A detailed retail survey of the market place would enable you to have an idea of market size and what is selling. It is vitally important to understand the wholesale and retail margins in order to be able to calculate the price at which you need to sell your product in the market and to establish if you can actually make any money out of it.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume – Consumer knowledge
It is important to think about how best to describe your perfume and market it to buyers. But first you need to understand the market and what it needs. There is no point creating a concept which will not suit your market and target group.
It is important to you should study the preferences of your target market and understand their behaviour and ability to purchase, as well as anticipating future trends.
In the words of Peter. F Drucker “The aim of Marketing is to know and understand the consumer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself”.
Try to anticipate future demands which are currently unfulfilled. Or think about developing a product to suit an area of the market where there is growing demand. Which areas of the market are growing or declining? What is the demographic of the population and how is it changing ? What attitudes and lifestyle changes are happening to change the way your product is bought or used? Which gender are you targeting, if any, and which age group or country?
Conducting enough research will give you insights about how to stand apart from your competitors. In order to add value to the market you must offer a product which is easy to differentiate from other products already available.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Lead or Follow?
Will you lead or follow? Are you designing a perfume to stand out and create something new and different? Or do you want to ‘test the water’ and follow the market, to create something with less risk?
Creating something new and different can involve more risk, but it also can provide a much higher reward. Following trends which have already been set by other brands will mean that your brand will not stand out clearly against others and you will have to work a lot harder to achieve any brand awareness. You may have to accept the ‘going rate’ for your product. You cannot sell a product for a higher price than the current products already selling in the market which are similar to yours.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Packaging design
Packaging materials are available in standard and custom made formats. Standard items are where somebody else has already paid to make a mould and may keep stocks available or will supply smaller production runs of that item.
If you are launching a new product for the first time it may be difficult to commit to making custom made perfume bottles and caps. The minimum order quantities required for custom items and the extra mould costs may be too high for your initial budget. It is best to discuss your total budget available with your packaging design team. They can advise you on the options. Our team at Anisha will look at your design goals and the market you want to operate in. Email us directly at info@anisha.agency if you need advice on your project. Our team will find creative and cost effective ways to achieve your goals. We have a wide selection of trusted suppliers who we have worked with on many projects. We will first determine the quality and price you need and then select the supplier who will be able to achieve this for you.
If you decide to use standard packaging materials, you can make them look special using clever packaging design techniques. However, it is much easier for people to copy you when your products start to sell if you use standard packaging materials.
If you prefer to customise your packaging, then you need to contact a specialist packaging design partner who can take you from conceptualisation to finished production.
The process for new packaging development at Anisha is the following:
- Conceptualisation or sketching
- Modelling in engineering software
- Creating visualisations and presentations of the packaging elements
- 3D printing
- Making iterations or revisions to small elements which may need to change
- Obtaining costs for the various packaging items from the right level of suppliers
- Obtaining mould costs from the suppliers and discussing any potential difficulties for manufacture
- Arranging to make the new moulds
- Checking the first samples from the moulds, asking for small revisions if required
- Final production
This process can take several months. Probably you should factor in 6 months from start to finish to allow for changes or revisions which may be required. Often the process requires trial and error to ensure perfection.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Testing the materials
Ensure the suitability of your packaging materials before going into production. Make mock ups of your boxes and paper liners. Get samples of your bottles, caps, pumps etc and see how everything fits together.
Small changes to materials will affect the way a cap or bottle fits together so it is important to study the drawings of all the materials and to get samples of everything before going into final production.
Ask your suppliers what tolerance or variances their materials have and how the items are tested. See if they can provide certification and testing of the materials in house or via external agencies. Some suppliers have their own laboratories and highly qualified quality control engineers.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume – Manufacture lead times
Packaging materials, especially custom made materials, can take a lot longer to manufacture than other items such as fragrance oil. Paper box manufacture is always a much shorter lead time than glass bottles for manufacture. So it is best to plan in advance when to place the order for different materials so that you can get them at a similar time.
You can save a lot of money by organising to ship your fragrance oil by sea instead of by air freight. Having a partner like Anisha who knows how to coordinate and consolidate the goods as well as which documentation to arrange can be very helpful.
Ensure that your goods are palletised on fumigated pallets and shrink wrapped if you are planning to fill goods in Europe or USA.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Filling your perfume
Choose the right filling partner to ensure that you achieve the correct manufacturing quality. Visit their site to see their machinery, hygiene and organisation. Ensure that they have the right machinery and quality control and inspection to ensure a consistent quality.
The perfume oils you supply must be stored in cool, dry conditions and sufficient time must be given for filtering and maturation before filling. Often it isn’t a good idea to push your filling partner for a very low price on filling. This may result in corners being cut. After devoting so much time and money to the fragrance and packaging materials, does it make sense to spoil the quality by paying a few cents less per piece? Whilst we all want a fair deal, it does not make sense to bargain too hard.
Anisha can help you to find the right contract filling partner in China, the Middle East, Europe or USA. We do not earn money on assisting our clients with contract filling, but we still hold your hand and try to make things easier.
The Ultimate Guide to Perfume Design – Marketing your perfume
Every year thousands of new perfumes are being launched and it is getting more and more difficult to get noticed. Any new brand must ideally have a good presence on social media as well as using traditional advertising methods. This is because it is easier to get close to your consumer on a regular basis and to engage with them. It is important to make it clear to your consumer what your brand stands for.
Channels such as perfume Tik Tok and instagram (in some countries) are responsible for more and more sales year on year. Influencers on social media hold a lot of sway over certain groups of consumers. Younger consumers no longer trust traditional media, they are highly cynical. If you ‘talk the talk’ then you must also ‘walk the walk’. Empty words are not enough.
Younger consumers prefer to spend money on experiences or on brands which are transparent and accountable. They are increasingly asking for sustainable and ethical products as well as increased options for personalisation. They want to feel like the brand is talking to them personally, not to a wide section of society, which is where social media plays an important role. Think about introducing any of these points into your marketing strategy, if possible.
We hope that you have found this Ultimate Guide to Perfume design a useful resource to help you to develop your own perfume. If you need further in depth advice, please get in touch with our team at : info@anisha.agency. We handle perfume design every day and have a wealth of useful contacts and experience to make the process run smoothly.
If you enjoyed this article please take a look at our article – same same but different. Here we explore what are the pros and cons of creating new products versus following the market. Or maybe you would like to learn more about the different design approaches you can apply to niche perfumery?
