Florence: City of fragrances

La Città delle Fragranze (The City of Fragrances), a calendar of exhibitor-organized events, was new for this edition, and saw the city’s museums, gardens, concept stores and boutiques open their doors to fragrance enthusiasts from all over the world, with the goal of increasing awareness of olfactory culture.

Trends observatory

The calendar of events related to olfactory culture, which is increasingly rich and multi-faceted, turns Pitti Fragranze into an observatory on the most topical trends in the world of essences,” commented Agostino Poletto, General Manager of Pitti Immagine.

One such event was the talk, Olfactory Culture: A Contemporary Overlook through Insiders’ Eyes. Chaired by Premium Beauty News, the talk welcomed speakers Saskia Wilson-Brown (The Institute for Art and Olfaction), Roberto Drago (PerFumum) and Dominique Brunel (Nez - the Olfactory Magazine).

Another highlight was an economic study analysing the market in Italy and Europe. A new initiative, this study was conducted by consulting and economic analysis firm HermesLab, in collaboration with the Centro ModaCult of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Milano.

The first results show that in a context of rapid growth, independent fragrance businesses are called upon to face the difficult challenge of exceeding the boundaries of a niche market.

Borrowed notes: brands look to music, fashion and art

The exhibiting brands on show seemed to share a common desire to explore the relationship between contemporary fragrance, art, music and fashion.

In the Spring space (an area dedicated to newcomers), Polish brand Bohoboco Perfume exhibited at the Pitti Fragranze for the first time. Founded in 2016, Bohoboco Perfume is the fragrance arm of its namesake fashion brand, and both are created by designers and Michael Gilbert Lach and Kamil Owczarek. Bohoboco Perfume currently has eight scents, which are all said to be inspired by culinary art and emotions. The composition process plays with contrasts, purposefully using opposing notes such as sea salt and caramel.

Italian independent brand Meo Fusciuni aims to create fragrances based on memories. The brand’s latest scent, Little Song, blends notes of coffee, Turkish rose and tobacco and is designed to evoke a man’s solitude. According to the brand, fragrances must be “a means to identify an artistic expression.

Pitti Fragranze also showcases some indie brands from the skincare sector. Flying the flag for men’s skin care was the Rotterdam-based brand The Grey Men’s Skincare. Its founder, professional menswear and lifestyle buyer Gregor Jaspers, created the brand having spotted a gap in the market for a compact men’s skincare range with a clean and contemporary aesthetic. It currently has six products which use trendy ingredients such as caffeine and charcoal powder. Day, night and eye care products are combined into one, targeting those who like to travel light.