Niche perfumery: what is it?

Recently, in perfume blogs, as well as in glossy magazines, one can increasingly read about such a phenomenon as niche or selective perfumery. And, if some fifteen years ago, niche perfumery was the lot of exceptionally rare perfume gourmets, now it has become quite common and, let’s not be afraid of this word, fashionable. What kind of animal is this – niche perfumery, what are its features, advantages and disadvantages?

Niche perfumery: what is it?

The French word “niche", as a rule, means the word “cell”, niche perfumery, in turn, is a category of perfumery with a very clearly defined target audience. As a rule, it is very gourmet and solvent. Niche perfumes are not very common, they sound quite unusual are made by perfumers from the heart and “for their own.” And if commercial fragrances, both luxury and from the mass market category, are aimed at large sales volumes, then things are completely different with a niche.

The main advantages of niche perfumery: what are they?

1. Unusual aromas. Niche perfumes often use very unusual raw materials in the production of their fragrances. The ingredients, in turn, are also as unusual as possible, smells can be so unexpected that it becomes incomprehensible: how is this even possible? Aromas can surprise, fall in love with, confuse, shock, immerse in memories; one thing is for sure – they will not leave you indifferent. The notes are different, unusual, rare: and, as a rule, this is only a plus for perfumes .. If you can’t stand the moments when someone at an event dressed exactly like you, or when you realize that half of the city wears the same perfume as yours, then a selective perfume will be the perfect solution for you. You will be, if not the only owner of it, then still quite rare.
2. Natural raw materials. A rather unpleasant moment is often found in mass fragrances: the fragrance itself can be good, but the sensations from it are still somehow not the same. Too "chemical" ingredients turn even a successful pyramid into a fragrance with a strange performance. In niche perfumery, such disgrace does not happen. In the work on niche perfumes, the leading "noses" try to use only natural raw materials of the highest quality. A significant role is played by the year of harvest of a particular raw material and the place of its growth. If, for example, they try to buy an orange tree flower in the Maghreb countries, then for the essence of the gayak tree, the perfumer will most likely go to Indonesia. As for naturalness and selectivity in the selection of raw materials, perfumery is similar to winemaking.
3. Production volumes. Selective perfumery is much rarer than mass perfumery, and it is quite rare. production is limited by the amount of raw materials that can be obtained in a year. And in general, in some cases, a niche fragrance is released at the expense of the perfumer who created it: like those cases when a writer independently published a novel for himself, without entering into contracts with a publisher. So it is here: perfumers also sometimes do work “for the soul”, which can turn out to be many times more successful than in collaboration with major brands. Some fragrances are produced in such a circulation that they enter perfume boutiques one or two pieces a year. Often in boutiques, customers sign up for a particular fragrance. And for the rarest perfume masterpieces, an auction is prepared.
4. Packaging and bottle. Niche perfume bottles are a real happiness for an aesthete. In general, niche perfumery is not distinguished by expensive, designer bottles typical of luxury brands. The bottle, as a rule, has a strict, classical form. And, this minimalism, of course, looks extremely aesthetically pleasing and often times more attractive than luxury designer bottles, which can easily be clumsy and strange.

In general, buying a niche fragrance is a great solution for anyone who wants to get a truly exclusive, high-quality, beautiful fragrance that will delight with depth, that will be right for you, and you, in turn, will be sure that there are no will be your fragrant “clones”.