A great deal of snobbery surrounds perfumes and they are often only considered worthwhile initially if expensive and very exclusive. But the consumer is not stupid however much the hype. If a scent smells unattractive on the individual the consumer will not buy it. The selection of perfumes that do smell wonderful is so great that no one has to wear the latest designer perfume if they hate the smell. Whilst many perfumes do succeed, just as many do not. The perfume has to be good and marketed properly to recoup initial development costs. Launching a new perfume costs between a half and a million pounds, so the scent has to match the mood of the era.
The $10 billion market place is so overcrowded that to keep up with the consumer's desire for new scents and still keep mystique and a measure of exclusivity, design houses such as Dior, Guerlain and Lancôme are now producing limited edition perfumes for a few months only with bottles destined to become designer items. In 2001 Dior's limited edition perfume was called Remember Me, a lily fragrance.
There is already a bottle collectors Internet trade for scent bottles with or without perfume.
A great many individuals are now seeking out classic perfumes or specially blended oils. A classic is a perfume that has lasted a minimum of ten years and grown to be much loved.
Some people also find that they sneeze quite violently when they wear modern perfumes. We include ourselves in this category and we've found that wearing the older perfumes designed more than 50 years ago seems to reduce the sneezing. It's also wonderful to rediscover some of the older perfumes and sense their depth, special individual quality and difference from the scents of today. If only manufacturers would stop tinkering with old favourites.
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