We spoke to beauty guru, Jane Daly, about her love of fragrance and starting her own fragrance line.
What was the first perfume, that made you 'get into' perfume?
I recall getting a bottle of Evening in Paris for a birthday gift when I was around 8 years old - a friend had taken one of her mothers perfumes and regifted it to me. I must have given off a vibe even then. But by the first year of high school I was firmly into fragrance and had the entire bath and body line of YSL Opium, a big bottle of Halston, Chloe, and L’air du Temps. I remember getting Andron for Christmas that year - the pheromone perfume everyone was obsessed with. I can still smell it in my mind! What a lovely musk scent it was.
I first 'met' you as a member on Basenotes, though not as Jane Daly - but 3xasif - can you briefly describe what you were doing in life, around that time and your progression to having your own fragrance brand and beauty blog
At that time I was working for a large fragrance distributor in Canada. I briefly worked for Michel Germain (his real name is Steve) who created the Sexual perfume line as well. I knew I wanted to create a perfume of my own one day but that was in the back of my mind. In the meantime I was launching new releases, doing education & making sure stores had enough free samples. Yes - that was when we used to give them away. The good old days!
What was the impetus behind making your own fragrance?
I had been smelling my way through life - my first scent memory was perfume. I can still smell the scent of my mother’s Miss Dior on her silk scarves. The bracing green of the 60s & 70s perfumes, that elegant galbanum vibe, was a scent I missed and something I felt was missing from the perfume landscape. I wanted a perfume with a story behind it versus another weak thin copy of the perfume that came before it. Endless flankers or sad attempts to make money were making me sad.
You previously collaborated with Randi Shinder, did what you learn from that experience help you with your perfume launch.
I had actually started creating Eau de Jane before Randi asked me to partner with her. Eau de Jane was put on the back burner for that time.
I learned that the consumer has a limited interest in superficial sales pitches and they truly want to connect with a fragrance in order to buy it. Just making a bottle of pretty smelling water isn't going to work if you don't have brand recognition. And more than anything, you have to have a genuine story to tell. The consumer isn't stupid and they aren't going to part with their money if you can't entertain them with a full song and dance. Tell a story, catch the imagination of the consumer, and don't talk down to them. Perfume is about our brains. We need to make a real connection.
What issues and challenges did you face launching your own perfume brand?
Well, there were some tricky legal issues that arose after leaving my partnership that made producing my perfume difficult. By the time I was able to get that done, the pandemic was looming. So I launched 2019 and then had to try to find retail outlets as the world closed down. I've been overwhelmed & thrilled at the response however and online sales have been great. Offering samples for sale was a game changer. Being a forum member meant I got that we love to sample! And I remember the days of free samples. While I cannot afford to offer free samples, I decided to offer the cost of a sample as a credit towards to purchase of a bottle. The main issue for sales now is international shipping. I'd love to find a stockist overseas who can provide for the EU, AU and UK customers who contact me and want to purchase.
What plans do you have in 2022 for Eau de Jane that you can share with us?
Well I'm bad at making plans that's for sure. I've been toying around with the idea of an elixir of some kind, something that can be added to hair, skin or the bath. And the original formula for Eau de Jane is all natural - it smells a little different from the final one and would be very costly but I think there could be a customer for that version as well. We shall see….
You can find out about Eau de Jane at eaudejane.com, and Jane's blog is at dalybeauty.ca
What was the first perfume, that made you 'get into' perfume?
I recall getting a bottle of Evening in Paris for a birthday gift when I was around 8 years old - a friend had taken one of her mothers perfumes and regifted it to me. I must have given off a vibe even then. But by the first year of high school I was firmly into fragrance and had the entire bath and body line of YSL Opium, a big bottle of Halston, Chloe, and L’air du Temps. I remember getting Andron for Christmas that year - the pheromone perfume everyone was obsessed with. I can still smell it in my mind! What a lovely musk scent it was.
I first 'met' you as a member on Basenotes, though not as Jane Daly - but 3xasif - can you briefly describe what you were doing in life, around that time and your progression to having your own fragrance brand and beauty blog
At that time I was working for a large fragrance distributor in Canada. I briefly worked for Michel Germain (his real name is Steve) who created the Sexual perfume line as well. I knew I wanted to create a perfume of my own one day but that was in the back of my mind. In the meantime I was launching new releases, doing education & making sure stores had enough free samples. Yes - that was when we used to give them away. The good old days!
I had been smelling my way through life - my first scent memory was perfume. I can still smell the scent of my mother’s Miss Dior on her silk scarves. The bracing green of the 60s & 70s perfumes, that elegant galbanum vibe, was a scent I missed and something I felt was missing from the perfume landscape. I wanted a perfume with a story behind it versus another weak thin copy of the perfume that came before it. Endless flankers or sad attempts to make money were making me sad.
You previously collaborated with Randi Shinder, did what you learn from that experience help you with your perfume launch.
I had actually started creating Eau de Jane before Randi asked me to partner with her. Eau de Jane was put on the back burner for that time.
I learned that the consumer has a limited interest in superficial sales pitches and they truly want to connect with a fragrance in order to buy it. Just making a bottle of pretty smelling water isn't going to work if you don't have brand recognition. And more than anything, you have to have a genuine story to tell. The consumer isn't stupid and they aren't going to part with their money if you can't entertain them with a full song and dance. Tell a story, catch the imagination of the consumer, and don't talk down to them. Perfume is about our brains. We need to make a real connection.
What issues and challenges did you face launching your own perfume brand?
Well, there were some tricky legal issues that arose after leaving my partnership that made producing my perfume difficult. By the time I was able to get that done, the pandemic was looming. So I launched 2019 and then had to try to find retail outlets as the world closed down. I've been overwhelmed & thrilled at the response however and online sales have been great. Offering samples for sale was a game changer. Being a forum member meant I got that we love to sample! And I remember the days of free samples. While I cannot afford to offer free samples, I decided to offer the cost of a sample as a credit towards to purchase of a bottle. The main issue for sales now is international shipping. I'd love to find a stockist overseas who can provide for the EU, AU and UK customers who contact me and want to purchase.
What plans do you have in 2022 for Eau de Jane that you can share with us?
Well I'm bad at making plans that's for sure. I've been toying around with the idea of an elixir of some kind, something that can be added to hair, skin or the bath. And the original formula for Eau de Jane is all natural - it smells a little different from the final one and would be very costly but I think there could be a customer for that version as well. We shall see….
You can find out about Eau de Jane at eaudejane.com, and Jane's blog is at dalybeauty.ca
