UK shoppers abandon celebrity scents for 'couture' fragrances

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Jan 24, 2017

The UK market for the sale of prestige celebrity fragrances fell last year as consumers opted for high-end, more exclusive ‘couture’ fragrances, according to the NPD Group.

That would have provided a huge boost for a raft of European, US and British fashion labels and their fragrance licensees.

Sales of prestige celebrity fragrances declined by 22% year-on-year, despite the market as a whole being more buoyant. Prestige fragrances overall saw sales up 1.4% on the previous year.

Fragrance makes a substantial contribution to the success of the prestige beauty market where sales were valued at £2.539 billion in 2016, up from £2.446 billion in 2015.

While celebrity fragrance lines have dominated media coverage for a number of years and remain an important element in the prestige sector, their sales fell to £44.2 million in 2016 from £56.5 million a year earlier.

Most notably, the value sale of celebrity fragrance gift sets was 42% down in December 2016 when compared to December 2015. The sale of fragrance juices also fell, by 18.6% in the same period.

Teresa Fisher, senior account manager, NPD UK Beauty said: “The celebrity fragrance market has been an important element for premium beauty retailers. However, the decline in sales demonstrates a shift in consumer preference and purchasing behaviour.

But despite the slowdown in the fragrance market in recent years, it grew by £16.8 million in 2016, and the growth was driven by premium brands in the couture designer and niche sector. This shows what customers are really looking for from fragrances – something special, a bit more exclusive, personalised, “and the luxurious retail experience and journey in store with a story-telling approach,” Fisher said.

Couture fragrances actually saw sales of £411 million in 2016, an increase of 6% on the previous year. Driving growth in the fragrance market, NPD said couture fragrances create brand stories which appeal to an affluent audience.

Fisher added: “Fragrance remains a very important part of the prestige beauty market with new sectors driving growth as others mature and plateau. The growth of Couture fragrances is especially exciting for retailers and brands as it provides multiple options to engage with customers by telling stories through multi-media platforms and social media.”