Quality at perfume price points? Difference of $20, $200 and $500 perfume?

[ultravisitor]

interesting. elaborate in the most subjective way possible please.

All of your questions here seem to be centered around figuring out what is "the best" when just about everything in this hobby is entirely subjective. It's as though you're trying to figure out the shortcuts to impressing people with what you have. You need to learn that when it comes to luxury goods, NONE of the products are "worth it."

Just accept the fact that when you're buying luxury--whether it's clothing or bags or perfume--you're mostly paying to soothe your own ego.

If you want to impress people, then become someone who appreciates his own taste.

 

[kreteknose]

haha, that’s one answer!

 

[WarmJewel]

Just accept the fact that when you're buying luxury--whether it's clothing or bags or perfume--you're mostly paying to soothe your own ego.

If you want to impress people, then become someone who appreciates his own taste.

Yes, well said, all of it.

When buying premium luxury brands you're mostly paying for the brand name, marketing, advertising, 'lifestyle image' and of course the profits and bonuses of the owners/shareholders/directors.

There's an extremely good reason for why Bernard Arnault has recently become the worlds richest man and his company LVMH owns a lot of the luxury/premium brands.

 

[WarmJewel]

interesting. elaborate in the most subjective way possible please.

Whilst on the one hand I accept you're new to the fragrance world, are inquisitive and want to learn and understand and that is comendable. On the other I'm beginning to find many of your questions somewhat tedious and repetitive for the simple reason you pay no attention to the answers you receive.

Here's a few thoughts that might help you -

1/ There's no fast track method to understanding fragrances beyond that of experience, experimentation and simply trying them for yourself..

2/ There's only one judge and arbiter of a fragrance—you and your nose. If you like it, buy it and wear it, if you don't move on to something else.

3/ If you want to understand the different price points in fragrances and what they represent read this book - Deluxe: How Luxury Lost It's Luster by Dana Thomas. It will tell you all you need to know about the luxury fragrance industry.

If you can't be bothered to read it I'll give you a precis. Luxury brands charge high prices because they can. If you want to buy into that 'brands image and lifestyle' you'll have to pay a high price premium for it. That does not mean the fragrances they make and produce are hundreds or thousands of dollars better than the ten buck bottle you can buy in your local drugstore.

If you want to tell your mates or whoever you're wearing Dior, Creed, Tom Ford, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Frederic Malle, Parfums Marly or whatever—you have to pay a price premium for it.

 

[kreteknose]

you pay no attention to the answers you receive.

or I might be waiting for the next time I pass by that particular store to try the scent mentioned

 

[ultravisitor]

Here's a few thoughts that might help you -

1/ There's no fast track method to understanding fragrances beyond that of experience, experimentation and simply trying them for yourself..

2/ There's only one judge and arbiter of a fragrance—you and your nose. If you like it, buy it and wear it, if you don't move on to something else.

This. Right here. It's really that easy.

I'll reemphasize this, though: time. It takes time to gain experience, knowledge, and understanding. There are no shortcuts.

 

[Monsieur Montana]

I just want to answer this acid test:

Would you be justified in spending $500 to buy a bottle of Roja assuming you really like it and you've developed your taste enough that you know you really like it (and probably your partner too)? Or is the price point so unlikely to be justified that you better really, really like it and are sure there is nothing comparable elsewhere that you also like?

Or, because a $500 bottle will last you a long time, should you just buy it if you really like it because even if the markup is insane, the extra time dwelling on it won't be worth the $200-300? (This thinking doesn't apply if you're going to be collecting.)

I personally wouldn't spend 500$ on a Roja. I wouldn't even spend 50$ for a bottle because i don't like his products (with a single exception, his discontinued Vetiver Extrait which has cost me about that much a few years ago).
If you like it and can afford it then i don't see any good reason for not buying it.

 

[lair77]

I agree with the topic author's post. Fragrances has subjectivity to it. It's not like computer processors where the $300 i7 is always better than the $200 i5. Having a higher budget gives you more options, but past a certain point, it doesn't necessarily always give you better options.

There's a wide range of options between $20 and $200. The $50-125 range has a lot of options.

 

[WarmJewel]

or I might be waiting for the next time I pass by that particular store to try the scent mentioned

I wasn't talking about specific fragrance recommendations I was talking about trusting your own nose, judgement and instincts.

No-one can tell you what fragrance is good or bad, only you can judge that and only you can evaluate whether they're worth the money or not.

 

[ultravisitor]

I wasn't talking about specific fragrance recommendations I was talking about trusting your own nose, judgement and instincts.

No-one can tell you what fragrance is good or bad, only you can judge that and only you can evaluate whether they're worth the money or not.

Well, if someone's primary goal and interest is impressing others, that person isn't going to care to form his own opinions. That person is just going to follow what others do and say...which is not impressive at all.

 

[thescentguru]

Overthinking it completely. There's little correlation between price and quality until you get into naturals and even then there's a bit of branding.

 

[PStoller]

One of the main reasons naturals are more costly is economies of scale. These are produced by small companies, often one-person operations. The materials may be relatively expensive to begin with, and more so when purchased in smaller amounts, but the real cost is in all the work one person has to do and what it’s worth for them to keep doing it.

Even there, some prices strike me as astronomical, set just as with luxury brands: because they can; and because price alone creates the appearance of value, and is thus integral to branding.

I have a large and still-growing collection that includes everything from dirt-cheap Avons to costly artisanals. I have also tested and rejected scents across the same price range. Price ≠ value. Only you can decide what your tastes, budget, and priorities are.

As a practical matter, I would not start at the top of the market, unless you have money to burn. Train your nose on more affordable fragrances, and then work your way up (preferably with samples/decants) to determine whether you’re getting more or just spending more. Using Roja as an example, I think some of his stuff is quite good. But, not good enough to justify his prices when I’ve already got the vintage fragrances he’s emulating for a fraction of the cost.

Your mileage may vary.

 

[kreteknose]

not good enough to justify his prices when I’ve already got the vintage fragrances he’s emulating for a fraction of the cost.

Any way for someone absolutely new to get the vintage fragrances, or at some point you have to decide how far down the rabbit hole you want to go and get something you liked from what's available?

 

[PStoller]

Any way for someone absolutely new to get the vintage fragrances, or at some point you have to decide how far down the rabbit hole you want to go and get something you liked from what's available?

I started buying them as a beginner, so it’s certainly possible. But a lot depends on what sort of fragrance journey you’re mapping out. If what you want is a signature fragrance or two, vintage isn’t the best route, because the supply will be unreliable. (That can happen with current frags, too, but at least you’re not handicapped at the outset.) If you’re building a deeper wardrobe, then vintage is great: you can get years of use from a single bottle if it’s only for occasional use.

I don’t recommend going as far as I have: I’d have to live a few extra lifetimes to use up my collection. But as long as your wardrobe is in double digits, you can certainly fit vintage in.

 

[orestes13]

In most cases, a $500 fragrance will be exactly identical in terms of quality to a $50 fragrance. Why? Simply because there are no raw materials that cost that much. In a bottle of fragrance, 80% of what you get is alcohol. The remaining 18% are aroma chemicals that are dirt cheap (probably less than $2 per bottle). In the remaining 2% you MIGHT find materials that are more costly but they will usually be in trace amounts and definitely won't cost more than $50.

So, while it is possible to find a few fragrances that use more expensive raw materials in the higher price brackets, that would also be possible in the lower price brackets. You just need to know which brands are cheaping out and which aren't (hint: most of them are).

 

[kreteknose]

In most cases, a $500 fragrance will be exactly identical in terms of quality to a $50 fragrance. Why? Simply because there are no raw materials that cost that much. In a bottle of fragrance, 80% of what you get is alcohol. The remaining 18% are aroma chemicals that are dirt cheap (probably less than $2 per bottle). In the remaining 2% you MIGHT find materials that are more costly but they will usually be in trace amounts and definitely won't cost more than $50.

So, while it is possible to find a few fragrances that use more expensive raw materials in the higher price brackets, that would also be possible in the lower price brackets. You just need to know which brands are cheaping out and which aren't (hint: most of them are).

Thanks, this is what I was looking for.

I'm looking for "Deluxe: How Luxury Lost It's Luster" and am going to read it, too.

 

[PStoller]

In most cases, a $500 fragrance will be exactly identical in terms of quality to a $50 fragrance. Why? Simply because there are no raw materials that cost that much. In a bottle of fragrance, 80% of what you get is alcohol. The remaining 18% are aroma chemicals that are dirt cheap (probably less than $2 per bottle). In the remaining 2% you MIGHT find materials that are more costly but they will usually be in trace amounts and definitely won't cost more than $50.

The problem with this analysis is that it equates both quality and cost with the price of raw materials. Raw materials certainly play a part, but the quality of a fragrance is a matter of blending more than shopping. The quality of a fragrance is based on a combination of the materials, the perfumer’s expertise, and the creative director’s brief.

Price, meanwhile, is largely a matter of market positioning, but also the cost of the materials, the perfumer, and the marketing (advertising, packaging, distribution, etc.).

A $500 and $50 perfume might be of the same quality—however one determines that—but they might also differ drastically, for reasons that have little to do with the cost of the ingredients. A Bentley Continental GT is made of pretty much the same raw materials as a Hyundai Elantra; that doesn’t mean they’re of the same quality.

 

[Renato]

I think your analysis leaves a few pertinent factors out.

When you talk of $20 or more scents, there are two types -
a. those made cheap to be sold cheap, and experience has taught me that usually it's a waste of time trying to test them, and
b. Those initially sold at a much higher price - say $80 to $120, but now disounted to around $20.

Other than that the latter are now dirt cheap, why are they intrinsically less worthy scent-wise than the more expensive ones? I don't think the perfumer was trying to create a dud, rather those scents either lacked some public appeal or a big marketing budget.

Then one has the phenomenon of scents sold initially expensively, which then dropped to bargain prices, which now cost $300 to buy if pone can find them. I paid A$30 each for two bottles of Versace Black Jeans 20 years ago, because it was such a dud, the Department store just wanted to get rid of them. When I looked a few months back, an Amazon seller wanted US$300 a bottle. How does that factor into the price quality evaluation (personally, I think that Black Jeans is better than most of my niche scents - but it makes my wife sneeze).

By way of contrast, the formerly expensive Versace Dreamer - one of the most unique scents I've ever smelled - is still being sold dirt cheap.,

As for $500+ scents - I've only got cheap Creeds. Yes, the expensive ones typically smell very good - but are they unambiguously the best smelling scents ever? Not to my nose.
Regards,
Renato

 

[ultravisitor]

In most cases, a $500 fragrance will be exactly identical in terms of quality to a $50 fragrance. Why? Simply because there are no raw materials that cost that much. In a bottle of fragrance, 80% of what you get is alcohol. The remaining 18% are aroma chemicals that are dirt cheap (probably less than $2 per bottle). In the remaining 2% you MIGHT find materials that are more costly but they will usually be in trace amounts and definitely won't cost more than $50.

So, while it is possible to find a few fragrances that use more expensive raw materials in the higher price brackets, that would also be possible in the lower price brackets. You just need to know which brands are cheaping out and which aren't (hint: most of them are).

The problem with this analysis is that it equates both quality and cost with the price of raw materials. Raw materials certainly play a part, but the quality of a fragrance is a matter of blending more than shopping. The quality of a fragrance is based on a combination of the materials, the perfumer’s expertise, and the creative director’s brief.

Price, meanwhile, is largely a matter of market positioning, but also the cost of the materials, the perfumer, and the marketing (advertising, packaging, distribution, etc.).

A $500 and $50 perfume might be of the same quality—however one determines that—but they might also differ drastically, for reasons that have little to do with the cost of the ingredients. A Bentley Continental GT is made of pretty much the same raw materials as a Hyundai Elantra; that doesn’t mean they’re of the same quality.

I think your analysis leaves a few pertinent factors out.

When you talk of $20 or more scents, there are two types -
a. those made cheap to be sold cheap, and experience has taught me that usually it's a waste of time trying to test them, and
b. Those initially sold at a much higher price - say $80 to $120, but now disounted to around $20.

Other than that the latter are now dirt cheap, why are they intrinsically less worthy scent-wise than the more expensive ones? I don't think the perfumer was trying to create a dud, rather those scents either lacked some public appeal or a big marketing budget.

Then one has the phenomenon of scents sold initially expensively, which then dropped to bargain prices, which now cost $300 to buy if pone can find them. I paid A$30 each for two bottles of Versace Black Jeans 20 years ago, because it was such a dud, the Department store just wanted to get rid of them. When I looked a few months back, an Amazon seller wanted US$300 a bottle. How does that factor into the price quality evaluation (personally, I think that Black Jeans is better than most of my niche scents - but it makes my wife sneeze).

By way of contrast, the formerly expensive Versace Dreamer - one of the most unique scents I've ever smelled - is still being sold dirt cheap.,

As for $500+ scents - I've only got cheap Creeds. Yes, the expensive ones typically smell very good - but are they unambiguously the best smelling scents ever? Not to my nose.
Regards,
Renato

So...what does all of this mean for @kreteknose ?

He should stop worrying about how much it costs.

He should stop worrying about its reputation and how it compares to other things in the market.

He should stop worrying about what other people think and say about what he should be wearing.

He should just figure out what HE actually likes based on the way it smells TO HIM--and he should take some time to wear it and learn it.

 

[SPACEDOUT]

$500 fragrance - the hottest of the girls compliment you, they line up just to sleep with you
$200 fragrance - some girls compliment you sometimes, but you have to have some charisma to get them
$20 fragrance - no one compliments you, people run away from you. Be careful here