Fragrance Republic is a new annual perfume club. Each month a new perfume is created by a classically trained perfumer. Many of the perfumers already have a few hits on their CV.
There are three levels of membership:
Freepeople – You can purchase the 15 ml bottles of perfume for $45 This is a free membership. With this membership you have the option to purchase only what appeals to you.
Patrician – This is like a subscription program. You pay $350 a year which is about $29 a month for the 15 ml bottle. You also receive discounts on purchases of larger bottles of the featured fragrances.
Senator – This buys you a spot on the advisory board and you can write perfume briefs. It also has all of the benefits of the Patrician membership. It’s $1500 a year.
I’ve tried two of the six perfumes launched by Fragrance Republic.
no. 2 by Julie Massé
Contains notes of rose absolute, tuberose absolute and cocoa resinoide.
Massé’s previous work includes Guerlain Terracotta.
The goal with No.2 was to great an “ethereal” tuberose, a light tuberose without intense headiness.
No. 2 is a sheer, light tuberose. So, I would say that Massé met her goal. This is a clean, veil of a tuberose. It’s the least “heavy” white floral that I’ve ever worn. With time the sheer, dewy rose petals open. The cocoa doesn’t add any sweetness. Instead it adds a green, almost “leafy” bitterness. If No. 2 were a color, it would be a shade of pastel blush pink.
I would say you would like this if you like sheer, feminine florals or perfumes like Lili Bermuda Petals, Penhaligon’s Ellenisia, Costume National So Nude and/or Arquiste Flor y Canto. I think this would be a great spring or summer fragrance. Or even a nice traditional bridal fragrance.
no. 3 by Cécile Matton
Contains notes of gurjum, mojito accord with rhum pure jungle essence, mint and lemon.
Matton’s previous work includes Mugler Womanity, Jacamo Art Collection #02 and #09, and YSL Baby Doll.
No. 3 is inspired by a mojitos. It opens as almost evergreen balsamic with mint and lime. It’s sheer like a Caribbean breeze. It’s a “mojito woods” fragrance. After wearing it, I’ve decided a need a tropical vacation STAT.
I would say you may like this one if you like perfumes like L’Artisan Parfumeur Batucada, Comme de Garçons PLAY Green, Etat Libre d’Orange Fils de Dieu and/or D&G Light Blue for Her. No. 3 is unisex.
Overall, I like both of the perfumes that I’ve tried. The style of both of them are “sheer”, think in the style of Hermès or even Jo Malone London. Projection and longevity are more similar to that of an EDT. Both perfumes I tried are very “day friendly”. But, that may be the featured perfumers style/signature.
Pros:
You won’t smell like “everyone else”. These perfumes are super exclusive.
Get out of a rut. Try something new. For people like me, I find myself only sampling certain things. With a program like this, I’m forced out of my comfort zone. For example, who knew I’d love a mojito perfume so much?
The participating perfumers are excellent perfumers. You’re getting exclusive perfumes from perfumers like Antoine Lie (Tom Ford Violet Blonde, Etat Libre d’Orange Secretions Magnifiques) and Karine Chevallier (Nez à Nez, L’Artisan Parfumeur Oranger en Fleurs).
If you live in NYC, there are tons of scent events like launches, discussions and classes associated with Fragrance Republic.
Cons:
It’s not cheap. It’s $45 or $39 for 1/2 oz. You could save your money and drop $350 on perfumes that you know that you like.
You may not like what you buy since you’re purchasing unsniffed.
All of the events associated with Fragrance Republic are NYC-centric.
Even if you aren’t interested in a perfume “club”, the Fragrance Republic site is worth checking out. There are interviews with the perfumers that are interesting (or at least I find them interesting).
I think this is a really great idea and I can’t wait to see where Fragrance Republic goes in 2014. For people like me, this club is appealing. These are new compositions free of “branding”. I feel like the perfumers get more freedom because of how this is set-up. Sampling programs like Olfactif are excellent but I also find that I’ve tried 90% of the perfumes in those monthly sets. The Fragrance Republic perfumes are new. I know that I’ve never tried them before.
More info at Fragrance Republic.
I got the chance to try all 3 perfumes that Fragrance Republic released so far. All of them were interesting to discover but the mojito one is the best so far
Lucasai recently posted..First poll in a new year – expectations for 2014
I really like the mojito one and I look forward to trying it in the summer. It has an “atmosphere” to it.
I read the descriptions of the upcoming ones and they sound very interesting.
I won bottles of 01 and 02 in a blog drawing and was most excited to try 02 because of the sheer tuberose aspect. Sadly it vanishes on my skin almost instantly – I’ve tried truly soaking myself and it’s gone before I’m in the driveway. It’s another interesting idea but I’d still rather just buy what I want.
It is SUPER sheer. I could see it vanishing very quickly, especially in warm weather.
It is a good idea and I’m sure it will appeal to some people. I think it’s very interesting. But, I get what you mean. I live in a small space and my “real estate” is limited. I have become very picky about what I bring into space from furniture, to clothes, to fragrances, etc.
Instinctively I strongly dislike the idea. I think it comes from my protest against unsniffed purchases in general. But if they can find enough people who’s willing to pay for the “privilege” of smelling “not like everybody else” (Riiight…,With 1,000+ releases per year one can probably manage for the price of the subscription to test enough perfumes to find something unique that he/she likes) – more power to them.
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It will appeal to certain people. I would say we’re rather practical people so it’s a harder sell for us. I don’t buy unsniffed either and I plan all purchases (even with clothes, home stuff, shoes too). I’m a huge advocate of “cost per wear/use” in every aspect of my life.
So, some people like surprises and some of us don’t 😉 Those beauty boxes have been popular but I’m not a member of those anymore because I couldn’t stand getting products that I didn’t want or couldn’t use (kept getting products for curly hair and oily skin!)
My philosophy is that we never really smell like anyone else since most people aren’t familiar with perfume! I think we could walk down the street smelling like Marc Jacobs Daisy and nobody would know! However, I know this is a big one for certain people. I receive emails on the subject frequently. Some people really do not want to smell like anyone else, just like some people don’t want to dress like anyone else…or listen to the same music as everyone else. (This should be probably be a blog post, lots of discussion on this one).
Since this is just business, not worse (and even probably better) than any else AND it’s perfume-related and promotes perfumes I wish them all the possible success. But it’s definitely not for me.
Undina recently posted..Entertaining Statistics: 2013 Year Round-up
Yep.
I do look forward to seeing how this goes. At this stage, I’m happy to see perfume talked about. I could see this, like the sample subscription programs, introducing people to perfume. So many people still think it’s all about celeb scents and celebrity endorsements, etc.
[…] For another review of 01/02, check out Victoria’s take on EauMG. […]