Chloé Bianca Signature Solid Perfume Necklace’s engraved locket holds the signature solid perfume.

New Twists on Fragrance

Bejeweled fragrances with high-tech designs and componentry are making consumers swoon for scents.

Written by Lisa Samalonis, Associate Editor

The new fragrance from Britney Spears features the spherical combination of two individual but connecting bottles.

Britney Spears’ Fantasy Twist—arriving on counter in late October in the U.S., and internationally this month—combines two of the singer’s best-selling fragrances, Fantasy Britney Spears and its counterpart, Midnight Fantasy Britney Spears, in one sleek spherical bottle design. Reminiscent of the original bottles, Fantasy Twist is designed to allow users to select their favorite Britney scent to enhance their mood.

While the two fragrance formulations are not new, the dazzling package is. Jean Antretter, senior design director, Elizabeth Arden, conceived the idea of the spherical combination of two individual but interlocking bottles and the entire design grew from there. Playing off the classic orb shape of her previous popular fragrance bottles, Fantasy Twist uses patent-pending friction lock technology to create a one-of-a-kind bottle design. The two halves of the bottle come in the singer’s favorite colors—pink and blue—and coincide with their package predecessors. A silver heart charm with a small fuchsia crystal embedded in the corner refers back to the stone-inlaid Fantasy Britney Spears bottle. The charm is attached to the bottle with a clasp, allowing it to be removed from the bottle and added to a bracelet, necklace or zipper pull.

Rocco Bormioli created the glass container and Matiplast developed the collars. In combination, the two vendors and Elizabeth Arden created the patent-pending technology. Trang Nguyen, packaging development engineer at Elizabeth Arden, also helped create the technology.

Charming Value

The design of Fantasy Twist represents many of the latest trends in fragrance packaging today: innovative design concept, added value with charms and jewelry and line extensions. After consistent sales declines in recent years, the total U.S. fragrance market experienced modest growth in 2010 and 2011, according to Mintel. This marks the first two years of consecutive increases in a questionable economic climate, and package design with added perceived value plays a role in the comeback. Mintel notes that economic hard times have driven innovation. For example, the company reports that new fragrance packaging activity swelled by 79.5% in the first eight months of 2011, made up largely of the release of smaller-sized bottles, roller-ball formats, and limited-edition novelty bottles. Reducing the size of the product can allow for a reduction in price, which makes the fragrance more accessible to a wider segment of the population and offers the potential for increased adoption and sales.

Karen Young, CEO, The Young Group, notes that fragrance packaging has turned into jewelry, toys and gadgets to capture consumer interest. “It takes a lot to break through the clutter. It may have started with Gwen Stefani’s Harajuku Lovers Collection… all those adorable creatures that were irresistible,” she says. “More recently, Valentino’s Valentina, Marc Jacobs Daisy and Selena Gomez have sculpted and molded additions to the cap that could pass for jewelry. Clearly, this packaging is not meant to be hidden away, but proudly displayed.”

Bottega Veneta comes in a refillable weighted eau de parfum bottle with a poire atomizer.

With electronic retailers becoming a major driver in the beauty segment, packaging is being asked to work harder than ever to attract today’s consumer. This trend is being repeated in skin care and color cosmetics as more and more money is being put into the package,” Young continues. “As much as 70% of beauty business is being influenced by the internet.That may mean a consumer’s first exposure to a product is on her computer screen or smart phone screen.The packaging is her first contact. With no more than three to four seconds to catch the consumer’s attention and 1,200 fragrance launches last year worldwide, it’s easy to understand why the package has become as important as the fragrance itself. Maybe all this explains Jennifer Lopez’s Glowing, which lights up for 15 seconds when it’s sprayed.”

Sixties icon Twiggy’s recently released fragrance, available through HSN, also picks up on this trend and comes bedecked with a pearl-like necklace and fanciful charms, like a heart and a black cat. One of Coty’s Prestige Holiday 2012 Fragrance launches—the Chloé Bianca Signature Solid Perfume Necklace—is, itself, a piece ofjewelry. A delicately engraved locket holds Chloé’s signature solid perfume. Featuring the top notes of rose, middle notes of lily of the valley, magnolia, and a base of amber and cedarwood, the necklace ($65) presents a novel way to wear perfume.

New High Glass Inc. meets the retro trend with its textured glass bottles.

Glamorous Glass

Vintage Hollywood style is also making a return. “Retro is a trend we have been seeing lately,” says Len Loffler, marketing director, New High Glass Inc., a company that has been in business for more than 30 years. “The retro look uses bottles that have a lot of texture, like ridges or flower patterns within the glass itself.”

Recently a well-known beauty company selected one of New High Glass’ vintage-looking bottles and added a bulb atomizer for use with a new fragrance.Coty’s Bottega Veneta Deluxe Collection also conveys the old-world feel. Its signature scent will be available at high-end department stores in late October in a refillable luxuriously weighted eau de parfum bottle with an elegant poire atomizer. Fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi’s first scent, Fabulous, debuts this month on QVC and in Bloomingdales stores nationwide. Fabulous features an old Hollywood glamorous packaging design with its art-deco inspired, round glass bottle and a pink bulb atomizer.

In recent years, Pavisa also has seen a rise in many different developments focused on thick bottom minimalistic and geometrical shapes, explains David Ades, marketing, Pavisa.

Advanced Deco

“We are also finding a variety of decorations and color sprays, label and decals, and even other components integrated to the package, which makes the secondary applications very noticeable,” says Ades. “The shapes are more complex and less usual, and companies are trying to have some details that can catch the consumer’s attention.” He points out that the decoration of the bottle is becoming more regular on projects and adds that Pavisa is prepared with the technology to support this trend.

Marc Jacob’s Dot fragrance features a playful red and black bottle with gold collar and a cap that resembles a butterfly or lady bug.

Companies are constantly pushing their developments on a short time frame, and are expecting quick turnarounds from the glass vendors. “This places us in a position to become a partner with the companies and deliver their developments on a speed to market basis,” Ades says. “Pavisa has the ability to react and become a strategic partner, offering design and creativity, technology on our manufacturing processes and a vast range of secondary applications, including our latest ceramic and organic decal facility, which also offers all kinds of component and decoration services.”

Loffler also notes New High Glass is providing spray colorization or coating for many of its customers. “Translucent colors and opaque colors, such as white and black, and gradations—two different translucent colors blended together—are very popular,” he says.

“The industry has changed tremendously even in the last five years. Everyone is expected to do a little bit more and have a little bit more added value for the packaging. The techniques of decoration are changing very fast,” he adds.

Pacificglas recently added digital printing as one of its new decoration services. “We have studied digital printing techniques for more than two years. This technology was successfully deployed on a commercial scale in 2011, and we now can apply it on new items,” explains Daniel Park, overseas sales department, Pacificglas. “With the digital printing technology, Pacificglas can print actual images on a 3D surface at one time. Furthermore, we recently installed another metallization coating line in house,” he explains.

End-to-End Development

Dave Desai, national sales manager, Coverpla, has seen several trends in the fragrance industry since opening the U.S. office for Coverpla in March 2012.“There is resurgence in the boutique perfume market.Over the last two decades the big houses have purchased every small brand as soon as they have shown the slightest sign of market penetration. Most of these brands were consolidated or disappeared altogether.However small independents continue to emerge against all odds,” he says.

As a turnkey supplier of stock fragrance packaging, he adds that he is contacted by start-ups on a weekly basis.“I find this amazing as getting retail distribution is harder than ever, even large companies can’t get space at the fragrance counters of the major department stores.Sephora, once a haven for new independent perfumers, has all but completely phased them out.The home shopping networks, though still a showcase for independents, have created a framework with a level of risk that few start-ups can endure. Undaunted, these companies are pressing, finding outlets with small internet retailers and brick-and-mortar boutiques,” Desai says.

More and more luxury home fragrance companies are branching into personal fragrance. He says: “If clothing designers can do it, why not a company that has extensive experience in working with essential oils.To a lesser extent, at least so far, hair and skin care companies are also getting into the mix.It seems the rationale is, once a luxury brand finds success in the market, a personal fragrance is a viable line extension.”

Today, companies such as Coverpla, which supplies complete, pre-engineered packaging, and contract fillers such as Delbia Do, provide end-to-end fragrance development and filling. As such, the barriers to entry are very low. “Together, companies can bring high-end fragrances to market with no prior experience and start-up costs under $10,000,” he says.

High Fashion Whimsy

Well-established fashion players like Marc Jacobs and Affliction are using fragrance as a way to continue to extend their brand. For example, Jacobs recently added Dot to his “fragrance family.” Dot—inspired by the designer’s love of polka dots—joins “sisters” Daisy and Lola. The scent features top notes of red berries, dragon fruit and honeysuckle, a heart of jasmine, coconut water and orange blossom with a dry down of vanilla, driftwood and musk.

Decoration of the bottle is becoming more regular on Pavisa projects.

Sinful’s signature wings closure in a metallized finish dominates the perfume bottle.

Sayuri Shoji designed the packaging under the direction of Marc Jacobs.The playful and energetic red and black bottle and gold collar support the cap, which resembles a butterfly or lady bug landing on the top of the bottle. Crafted in transparent red tinted glass, the design channels the spirit of Marc Jacobs’ trademark logo. Round shaped butterflies of different sizes adorn the bottle. A pearl, at the center of the butterfly, adds contrasting color and a polished detail. The polka dot pattern on the outer carton features a palette of red and black for a balance of modern and classic. The bottle—composed of round shapes spotted in a polka dot motif—and cap were supplied by Jackel, while Rexam provided the pump/actuator.The sleeve came from Cultech (US)/Landerer (EU). The collection includes three sizes, a body lotion and a shower gel.

Signature Style

When custom fragrance development company Tru Fragrance launched the edgy Sinful for Her eau de parfum, a women’s fine fragrance available at Buckle stores in the U.S. and online, it had to stay true to the Affliction brand and its fans. As the first female fragrance, the perfume is an extension of the popular Sinful women’s apparel line. Sinful opens with mandarin, grapefruit and darkened raspberry notes. At its heart, the fragrance softens to a classic floral scent of velvet red rose, gardenia and mimosa. The drydown includes sandalwood, patchouli and tonkabean. The closure depicts Sinful’s signature wings in a metallized finish, while the Sinful medallion is encrusted with jewels across the front of the pink bottle.

“Buckle has become a destination for the Sinful girl, so it seemed natural to expand her experience into fragrance. As the exclusive retailer of the Sinful perfume, we can give her something she can’t find anywhere else,” explains Melissa Franzen, divisional merchandising manager, women’s merchandising, Buckle. “Like the apparel, the perfume evokes a fierce, edgy energy that resonates well with our customer.”

While the fragrance counter might be a bit crowded, packaging innovation and a wide range of high-tech decorations are sure to keep customers returning.

Technology-inspired It’s Me by Jacomo—with its bottle shaped like a smartphone—won the title of 2012 Best Fragrance Packaging at ICMAD CITY Awards. Gadget-Inspired Scent Snags ICMAD Award Crafting Beauty took top honors in the Fragrance Package Design Innovation category in this year’s ICMAD “2012 CITY AWARDS” event for It’s Me by Jacomo. The scent captured the 2012 Best Fragrance Packaging award. With its top notes of pineapple and mandarin, It’s Me for Women, is a fruity fragrance that blends jasmine, iris powder and lily of the valley. It’s Me for Men has top notes of lemon and grapefruit. It blends patchouli, vanilla and musk for a masculine aspect of the perfume. The It’s Me package was created by the French perfume house Jacomo in an iPhone shape. Some of the aspects of the package design made it stand out, says François Damide, founder and president, of Crafting Beauty. “The packaging is unique in the fragrance packaging field and very much in tune with today’s love for electronics. It has done well at retail with stores such as Henri Bendel, Kuhl-Linscomb, www.b-glowing.com/jacomo, Fred Segal, Stanley Korshak, C.O. Bigelow, New London, to name a few,” he adds. The “bottle” is made out of plastic and aluminum, with an incorporated pump and doesn’t require a cap or closure.The juices were created by Expression Parfumee in Grasse, while the product is made at the Jacomo factory in Deauville.The product ($45/1.7 oz.) is a hit with tech savvy 15 to 25 year olds.