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Perfume-making success calls for a nose for business

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Raluca Vasile, Luxury Artisan Perfumer, Wellbeing & Intl. Sensory Branding Consultant, shares her experience in the art of perfume making.
What does it mean to be a perfumer in Romania?
Many people see it as an act of courage, of craziness, something exotic, bizarre and hard to understand. But for me it’s also been a real business necessity, because the market offered no natural fragrances that I could recommend to my customers for in-store aroma branding or multi-sensory branding, and there were no such products for domestic use either. Also, it would have been too expensive for Romanian consumers and businesses to have these products made abroad. Personalized, natural or niche perfume-making involves a lot of creativity, talent for business and hard work. Raw materials and packaging require large investments, and growing such a business, even on a small scale, generates sizeable costs, because the expectations are high. Consumers lack experience in assessing perfume quality and costs, and, unfortunately, in terms of suppliers, the Romanian market is totally unprepared, it is practically non-existent.          
 Please outline the stages involved in creating a perfume.
I do constant research and it sometimes takes me up to three years to finalize a concept (eg. Your Personal Aroma). I also go to international trade shows, I study trends and I have access to specialized studies. I use the Grasse traditional perfume-making method and I combine oriental (burning), Asian (smoking) and African (maceration) techniques. Most of the time, there is a story behind the fragrance, I usually get inspiration from my travels and personal experiences, and, in fact, there are many other aspects to be taken into account when I create a concept that is designed to induce a state of reverie and wellbeing, sometimes even to heal hurt souls, deep pain or the absence of love (natural fragrances do a splendid job in such sensitive, emotional situations, giving us confidence and extra seductive power). All perfumes are in fact a journey through life, to places and times that make an impression on us and serve as milestones in our memory. The sense of smell is the most intimately connected with our memory and when we use a perfume we feel a sensation of teleportation to an ephemeral time and space. That happens because behind every fragrance there is a life story and a concept. Those who say that they’ve simply created a perfume that smells good are not creators. They just mix substances with no creative inspiration.
 
Where are your perfumes sold?
They are on sale at our own workshop in Bucharest, at Romanian designers’ concept store, Molecule F, on the first floor of the Promenada Mall, and online at www.yourpersonalaroma.com/shop/.

What price range is available for the products?
Prices are high on average, but good quality/price investments are influenced by essence concentration, personalization and rarity. Prices range between 60 Euro for eau de cologne or eau de toilette and 300 Euro for 50 ml of custom-made perfume essence, with a 7-20 per cent concentration, which is quite a high concentration for a fair price. For comparison, a mainstream perfume brand has a maximum of one per cent essence concentration and may cost, due to high packaging and marketing costs, quite as much as a natural one.”

What is your source of raw materials?
Our raw materials come from certified organic producers, approved by the Perfumery Art School in London, where I studied for two years. On the odd occasion, and only when I need extremely rare essences, I buy macerated products from well-known organic perfumers in key regions for the essences in question. I haven’t ventured into creating macerates for sale yet. I only create them for personal use, but I may start selling them when the market develops and Romanian consumers are ready to pay the extra cost of bottle customization or to buy exotic perfume by the milliliter from a dispenser, as I’ve seen in other countries with a richer cultural exposure to perfumery.     
 
What is your favorite aroma?
What is your favorite perfume?

Magnolia Champacca of southern and southeastern Asia has dominated my personality since childhood. I created my favorite perfume, No5 Palais du Bengale by Your Personal Aroma, for my type of sophisticated olfactory personality. All my perfumes are inspired by people, by my customers, and I see them as if they were made for my soul. I put a lot of passion and devotion in every little bottle.
 
What makes a custom-made perfume stand out when compared to a mass-produced one?
 Custom-made perfumes provide a noble scent and unique wellbeing, growing and gradually reacting with the skin all day. It will also last longer, for up to three days. A truly natural fragrance contains up to 20 per cent essence/ perfume oil concentration, compared to a maximum of one per cent in mass-produced and even niche fragrances. So a layer of oil is visible on top, due to the high perfume concentration. Even the alcohol is natural, non-allergenic and friendly with the skin, as it is made from flowers. In addition, the concept that I have developed allows fragrance customization based on the type of customer personality. Thus, in the end we have a 100 per cent natural, unique perfume, which will accentuate your personality, will bring you confidence and wellbeing. 
 
Based on your experience, what are Romanian women’s favorite perfumes?
There is a tendency towards exoticism and mainly oriental influences, due to our Balkan cultural traits. They prefer strong, sometimes excessively strong and sweet (perhaps too sweet for an educated nose) fragrances. The list of favorite notes includes Arabian oud, musk, vanilla, sandalwood, exotic flowers as well as fresh, fruity and sweet aromas. As for men, they prefer notes of amber, tobacco, leather and mirth, which means that we still have a lot of work to do on educating consumers on choosing the right fragrance for their lifestyle, personality and type of skin. At the same time, the natural perfume business has good prospects, as consumers become increasingly interested in leading a healthy lifestyle, which entails natural foods and quality organic cosmetic products. There is no need for sophisticated packaging, a minimalist approach will do, so the products can be affordable to as many people as possible.   

What are the necessary steps to become a perfumer?  
Perfume making is considered the eighth art, so there are specialized schools like the one I went to in London, the Perfumery Art School, where I studied with Isabelle Gelle, one of the most highly regarded perfumers in the world, a perfumer with the House of Gelle-Freres, which, throughout the years, has created perfumes for leading royal families and personalities such as Marie Antoinette.    
The study of the art of perfume involves applied organic chemistry knowledge, a very good olfactory memory and native smell and creativity skills. The eligibility criterion is strictly vocational, so in about a month you know if you have the necessary vocational skills to become a perfume creator. There is only one natural perfumery school in London, and there are several other famous ones in Grasse, Paris, Milan and New York, but they mostly train fragrance evaluators, because few have the courage and business skills to launch their own brand.
Creating a personal brand is a little more complicated, because solid business and branding knowledge is required. In my case, things worked out very well, as I am a trained brand and design consultant.

Raluca Vasile, MBA, MSc Brand Consultant, Perfumer, Designer

Managing partner at Smartbrand, branding, communication and design agency that brings a new concept to the market, the multi-sensory branding. The new concept entails approaching brands, personal or corporate, as living beings with the five basic senses, exploring brand identity beyond the realm of sight, creating subtle associations related to truly memorable aromas, surroundings and unique tastes, mood sounds or textures derived from the visual style. The concept connects brands and consumers through at least three senses to generate unicity, memorability and a strong impact in commercial area design. 
Experience: More than 15 years as a branding, communication and design consultant. She has been involved in major projects, awarded nationally and internationally at Rebrand100 Global Awards, USA, and A’ Design Awards, Milan: re/branding, in-store brand activation programs and internal communication, store, window and branded presentation stand decoration, sensory anniversary brand events, office and space branding.
Raluca is passionate about strategic brand communication, rare fragrances, aromas and essences, she is a perfumer and a London-certified international consultant in the art of perfume as well as an interior design consultant who has received specialized training in Seattle, London, Grasse and Milan to qualify for creating integrated multi-sensory branding concepts.   With a complex personality and passion for tastes and aromas, Raluca has created two internationally recognized own brands:
-  “Your Personal Aroma (YPA)” (organic, niche hand-made perfumes), project awarded at A’ Design Awards, Milan
-  “Nutrition School and Healthy Life” - an educational project conducted in her position as a Jamie Oliver Food Revolution ambassador in Romania and a member of Slow Food Romania, promoting taste and aroma education among children and adults. Her 2016 multi-sensory educational project anosugarchallenge will be a case study at Terra Madre Salone del Gusto in Turin, the most famous international event dedicated to food and gastronomic art, culture and history in Europe.

To read the full version, see the print edition of Business Arena.

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