Celebrities have been selling fragrances for as long as most of us can remember. It makes one wonder what the fuss is all about. The likes of Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Diddy, Usher, and Prince among others have used their personalities to launch new fragrances, and whatever the scent they all smell like big money. For them having a fragrance is a status symbol and creating a successful one can make a celebrity be pursued by designers and consumers worldwide. Mariah Carey’s women’s scent ‘M’ by Elizabeth Arden drew from marshmallows (it reminds her of being in the kitchen with her dad), ‘Sea Breeze’ represents her love for the Mediterranean and Moroccan incense which she favors. ‘For Diddy it was the sweet aroma of women at the beach that gave rise to his ‘Unforgivable woman’ for Estee Launder’, says Diana Espino-Gitlin of Sean John Fragrances. According to a market research firm NPD Group, Diddy, in 2006 had the No.1 New fragrance launch with his men’s scent ‘Unforgivable’ which brought in $ 150million globally. In the case of Beyonce, the Emporio Armani Diamonds was her chance to re-interpret an old standard recording ‘Diamonds are a girl’s best friend’. “Everything about Mr. Armani’s brand is classic and Perfection,” says Beyonce, “so I was honored that he asked me to be part of it.” Getting the look just right, in these image-conscious times, picture-perfect packaging is important. This is where stars like Usher really shine. His love for Vintage cars inspires the bottles and caps for Liz Claiborne’s ‘Usher for men’ and ‘Usher for women’. But the spinning cap is a copy of one of his signature rings. For some celebrities the scent reflects their values. In Prince’s case, it was the artists giving spirit. 7 percent of the sales made on the scent’s website at launch is donated to seven charities. It is the celebrities’ ability to connect to consumers that ultimately helps their fragrances to thrive. As told celebrity scents represent 7 percent of the prestige fragrance market which has sales of $2.8 billion in the U.S last year according to NPD Group. Ends
