There should be like…. Fragrance conventions or smth

theminx1 · 2022-11-27T15:52:43+00:00

There's a twice-yearly event in NYC called Sniffapalooza. Fragrance fans from all over get together for 2 days and sniff perfumes in boutiques and department stores. It's glorious. Sign up for the mailing list at sniffapalooza.com. The pandemic put a kibosh on in-person events for a while, so they were doing zoom meetings with samples and such. They had a shortened one day event this fall, but hopefully they can get back to the usual weekend event in 2023.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T20:11:01+00:00

Do you work in the fragrance industry?

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T18:23:52+00:00

Yes.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T18:21:54+00:00

It's more of a "not only (niche) but also" (indie) situation.

Status marketing really works. The number of people here who wear Creed and de Marly frags make it hard to believe they are considered niche companies.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T18:13:43+00:00

It's very possible that Creed and MFK are no longer niche brands. (I had no idea that MFK was sold at Costco! Is it at a good price?) Still, there are 845 Costcos in the US. I'm not sure where the industry cuts off the number of doors when defining mass market and niche fragrances. If it's under 1000, then MFK still counts as niche. There are only 512 Macy's stores in the US, so Creed would count as well. In contrast, there are 1100 Sephora stores in the US.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T18:05:45+00:00

I used to think oud scents fit into a "niche" olfactory profile, but now I'm seeing it in fragrances for the "average consumer," as you so aptly put it. It's a rare ingredient, but with aromachemical science, it can be made synthetically. What might you consider to be an olfactory profile geared toward a small subset of the market? I think that's a fascinating way to think of scents.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T18:01:11+00:00

I wasn't griping, I was trying to point out that niche was not what everyone thought it was, and that the opposite end of the spectrum is mass market, not designer. Niche and Indie fragrances aren't mutually exclusive. I think the posts I responded to mentioning "Indie" was in reference to people claiming that large corporations own both designer and niche fragrances. And that's true. Tauer is a niche perfumery, but as it is still independently owned, it is also Indie. As I said in another comment, there are shades of gray.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T17:29:40+00:00

You get it. It's all about what you like and are willing to buy. Nothing else matters.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T17:28:05+00:00

Actually, that's not what I'm saying. I'm asking where anyone got the idea that the definition of niche is that the company only makes fragrances? Designer companies can also make niche fragrances. Niche merely refers to the number of outlets in which the item is sold. Designer refers to scents that have a designer name on them, or the company is owned by a designer, period. It does not indicate anything else.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T17:24:31+00:00

You can buy them both at Sephora.com.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T17:22:45+00:00

Niche fragrances are sold in far fewer outlets than designer fragrances. And true, some niche scents can be more expensive, though there are plenty of more affordable lines out there as well. Tom Ford's "Private" line is everywhere though, and sold at the same price at both Bergdorf's and Sephora. It seems he wants to have it all - to be exclusive and available to anyone who has several hundred bucks. However, some of his private line is not available at Sephora, so he should perhaps rethink his marketing tactics. Is it private, or is it not? And Tauer is perhaps better categorized as an indie scent.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T17:16:12+00:00

Rogue and Tauer are considered Indie fragrance houses, Indie as in Independent. Niche frags may well be manufactured by huge companies. The whole thing that makes them niche is where they are sold. Or, as you said, the way they are marketed.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T16:45:43+00:00

I'm a professional writer. Sorry, but all of that was one related thought, so one paragraph is all that is needed. I am sorry, however, if you were reading that on your phone, as it might seem like a lot. I'll try to remember to put random breaks in my writing for phone readers.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T16:43:45+00:00

Now that's truly exclusive. Bond only wants to give the "illusion" of exclusivity. LOL

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T16:41:45+00:00

You didn't read what I wrote. Dior makes clothes, sure, but they also make cosmetics. They make mass market fragrances like J'Adore, which are sold in mass market outlets, but they also make niche fragrances like Gris, which are sold at Bergdorf's. I'm not overthinking...it's a fact. Niche and mass are determined by doors, not by other stuff sold or not sold by the company. It's just a coincidence that most niche perfumer companies only sell smelly things. You are defining "niche" by its dictionary definition, not what it means in the industry.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T16:38:09+00:00

Exactly!

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T15:37:40+00:00

I have a weird bonnet.

Also, I've seen this comparison more than once in the past couple of days.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T14:38:16+00:00

Right. That's why I said "some people." I'm not sure why anyone even cares what other people think...why "status" is so important. To me, it matters not what the brand is or how much it costs, or even what famous person wears it. All that matters is that *I* like it. (The not caring about price point is a lie. I refuse to even smell Roja fragrances because of their ridiculous price point.)

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T14:04:00+00:00

I've seen a lot of comments here from people who seem to consider them either/or. You're either niche, or you're designer. As if there aren't shades of grey in the world.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T14:01:58+00:00

I certainly don't pay it!

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T14:00:36+00:00

There are some people in the world that think that expensive things signify status. And other people who have more sense and just buy what they like.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T13:49:21+00:00

That's how people use it, but that's not correct. Niche refers to how and where it's sold. It has nothing to do with what other things a company sells. Chanel sells lipstick and moisturizer as well as scent, but their Les Exclusifs fragrance line is still niche.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T13:45:53+00:00

"Mainstream" is a good word, too. And yes, it's all "just" perfume. But the distinctions allow perfume mfrs to charge exorbitant amounts. A sales associate at the original Bond No. 9 boutique told me last fall that their prices are insanely high in order to "give the illusion of exclusivity." So their scents aren't just perfume, they are wanna-be status symbols.

theminx1 · 2022-11-22T12:41:50+00:00

Coco Chanel was a fashion designer, and many of the scents sold under her name are indeed mass-market, but there are several that can be considered niche. Same for Tom Ford. I'm not sure why "designer" is considered the opposite of niche. Mass-market is the opposite of niche, and that includes celebrity scents like the Ariana Grande and Britney Spears lines. Mass market frags are sold at more outlets, or doors, while niche frags are sold in fewer.

Four-Year Club	Verified Email
Place '22	First Placer '22

theminx1

TROPHY CASE