Fragrances are an invisible part of our images. From the very first notes, they can say a lot about our character and worldview. That is why many seek to find something of their own, unusual, unlike the scents used by friends or colleagues. For such people, brands of niche perfumery work.
Niche perfumery is the complete opposite of the mass perfume industry: niche compositions find fans, as a rule, in a narrow circle of connoisseurs. The reason is in unusual combinations of notes, which often sound bold or even provocative. This does not mean that such fragrances are “not for everyone” and very few people will like them - just most of them bear little resemblance to a typically female or typically male perfume.
Niche fragrances are classified as “art for art's sake”: when creating them, perfumers rarely think about the tastes and preferences of a wide audience - they do not limit themselves to anything.
For the creators of fragrances, a real flight of imagination reigns in the "niche". Generally accepted rules are not followed here. Therefore, many niche fragrances break stereotypes about perfumery. They turn out to be ambiguous: someone falls in love with the result of experiments conducted by famous "noses", while someone, on the contrary, does not understand at all how one can "wear" such compositions and prefers popular perfumes for men.
The first niche brands appeared in the 1970s, but the very concept of "niche perfumery" did not exist at that time. Versions about who exactly was the pioneer differ, especially since today there are niche brands whose history goes back more than one century - for example, the Creed brand, founded back in 1760. Among the representatives of the "niche" that appeared in the 70s of the last century are L'Artisan Parfumeur and Diptyque. And in the 90s, this direction in perfumery became evident - thanks to Serge Luthans, who unexpectedly created a woody fragrance for women and thus marked the beginning of a new era.
Until recently, fragrances were divided into mass and luxury. The former is distinguished by the fact that they are produced in large quantities, they are affordable in terms of price (in particular, because expensive ingredients are not used in them), and their formula is based on trends and is focused on the tastes of a wide audience. Lux is fragrances of a higher rank: rare ingredients and exclusive packaging make them more expensive, but in terms of "content" they are still designed for the majority and are widely available for sale. This is not the case with niche fragrances. They can not be found everywhere, the circulation is limited. Stereotypical fruit and flower compositions for women and colognes for men are not found in the “niche”. These are not for everybody's taste, but they have a lot of fans.
Often people talk about the niche and selective perfumes as if they are one and the same thing. In fact, there are differences.
The creators of niche fragrances go against the preferences of the majority. When developing new compositions, they do not expect that the novelty will appeal to 8 out of 10 people. Most often they don't think about it at all. Otherwise, the experiment simply won't work out. The aromas turn out to be unusual and challenge everything familiar.
Selective fragrances are a subtype of niche perfumery. The name speaks for itself: sélectif in French is "special". These are selected fragrances that perfumers literally collect from notes, striving to create a real masterpiece - unique, sophisticated, multifaceted. A selective scent is designed to surprise not with its strangeness (there are many such examples in niche perfumery), but with its quality, a subtle perception of the world of smells. Selective brands are usually backed by a named perfumer who releases their creations in very small numbers - even less than most niche fragrances.
Thus, not all niche fragrances belong to selective compositions, many of which, without exaggeration, can be called real exclusive.
To get started with niche perfumery, the first step is to explore the features that make the niche perfume stand out from the rest. These features concern both the contents of niche perfume bottles and many other external aspects such as packaging and advertising.
Most of the time, niche fragrances are based on experimentation. Some are built on contrast and are a combination of notes that usually do not appear nearby, for example, rough leather accords in the base and a delicate sound of a rose in the trail. The approach may be different. There are scents that convey the smell of paper in a new book, the smell of baby skin, a breath of fresh wind - familiar but still elusive. These art fragrances also include perfume associations, in which they try to convey emotion: joy, anger, fear.
Another kind of niche fragrance is vintage. In this niche, famous scents of the past are recreated, reviving the legends of houses that were previously titans in the world of perfumery, but have practically sunk into oblivion.
In the artisan niche (artisan translates as “master craftsman”), the emphasis is on natural ingredients and handicraft, including in the manufacture of bottles for niche perfumes.
The creators of niche perfume do not keep in mind the "picture" of the audience for which they are creating. When composing a new composition, the perfumer thinks only about its creation: he is hardly interested in how he will sell this fragrance, whether it is promising from the point of view of commercial success, whether the buyers of perfume shops will like it.
In the first place is the perfume itself, and not the one to whom it is intended. However, the result can appeal to very different people with different tastes and lifestyles.
Niche representatives do not tend to use only expensive and hard-to-find components. The cost of raw materials is less important than its ability to create a particular scent. What matters is what the ingredient can contribute to the perfume. The high price of niche fragrances is often associated not so much with the addition of rare components, but with the amount of work that the perfumer does to create another masterpiece.
Niche perfumes have small circulation. This logically follows from the fact that such perfumes are not designed for a large audience. Selective perfumes can be produced in an extremely limited batch, which makes them exclusive. And desirable: their owners are pleased to know that they and a couple of hundred or even dozens of people in the world have such a perfume.
In niche perfumery, the content is more important than the form. Therefore, many fragrances from this segment are sold in very easy-to-design bottles without unnecessary details. However, not all perfumers who create fragrances for a "niche" adhere to this philosophy. Someone, on the contrary, pays a lot of attention to the bottles and seeks to turn them into a work of art too. Fragrances in such packaging are commonly found in selective perfumery.
You are unlikely to see advertisements for a niche scent on TV screens. Such perfumes do not need to be "promoted" so that as many people as possible know about them. Fans of unusual fragrances, as a rule, find rare novelties themselves. That doesn't mean niche brands aren't promoting at all, though, but they do realize that their fans won't be impressed by a standard stellar ad campaign. They prefer spending on a famous person for a new perfume investment in the quality of the product.
Determining by price whether a niche perfume is in front of you or not is not so easy. Some of them are really expensive (for example, in selective perfumery, there are super-luxury fragrances that are available to only a few), and some receive a price tag comparable to the cost of mass-market fragrances. It is a stereotype that very few people can afford niche fragrances - there are also budget options in this category.
If you're just starting out with niche perfumery or looking for a new hero to add to your collection, check out these fragrances. According to the editorial team, they will definitely impress you.
The niche collection Le Vestiaire des Parfums is inspired by the heritage of Yves Saint Laurent. It includes a classic line of fragrances dedicated to iconic items from the history of Yves Saint Laurent.
This, for example, Trench Le Vestiaire des Parfums with notes of citrus, dry cedar, and white musk. Another fragrance, Blouse Le Vestiaire des Parfums, with the same white musk, cashmeran, notes of rose, angelica, galbanum, and pink pepper, is a reference to Saint Laurent's couture blouses. Le Vestiaire des Parfums contains notes of bergamot, magnolia, peony, jasmine, peach and sandalwood.
Another line of niche perfumes within the Les Vestiaire des Parfums collection is oriental: this is a memory of Saint Laurent's love for Morocco and his African-style creations from the 60s. This is how the fragrances Splendid Wood, Magnificent Gold, Supreme Bouquet, Atlas Garden, and others appeared - with notes of spices and woody accords.
Lancôme has collected several exquisite bouquets in its collection of selective fragrances. Jasmins Marzipane combines notes of jasmine, almond, vanilla, and wood in an unusual way.
Rôses Berberanza is an original combination of damask rose, saffron accord, and mandarin essence. And Oranges Bigarades is a duet of bitter orange and Ceylon tea.
The niche collection Les Eaux is lightness and transparency in its purest form: these are exactly what the Armani / Privé perfumers wanted to embody in new fragrances. The result is a wide range of perfumes, in each bottle - an image in which they managed to capture the elusive: Orangerie Venice with notes of bitter orange, bergamot, neroli, and white cedar is the luxury of Venetian greenhouses.
Rose Alexandrie with accords of mimosa, rose, vanilla, and Italian mandarin is the splendor of the flowering gardens of Alexandria. And Thé Yulong is an invitation to stroll through tea plantations surrounded by the Yulong Mountains, with notes of citrus, black and green tea, and woody accords.
Have you tried niche perfumery? Tell us about your impressions!
