Shelves in clothing brand shops filled with perfumes illustrate, that the marriage of fashion industry with perfume industry is becoming the more and more invisible trend. Perfumes are certain kind of link between the worlds of fashion and cosmetics. What inspires the designers and brand managers to expand their offer with fragrant assortment?

If we walk down the alleys in popular malls, it will turn out that the most of them offer clothes. No wonder – fashion industry is an important part of the market and original creations attract the customers and encourage to buy them. Clothes are being sold by brands signed by names of world famous designers, brands that offer classic men’s fashion or brands that offer fast fashion. Niche brands also emerge and – in times of individualisation and willingness to stand out – they keep on gaining popularity.

Natural development of the brand

Even if the company develops in its core business (key activity, the major competence of a given firm) – it often expands its assortment by additional items. In case of fashion brands they can be accessories, watches, wallets, jewellery or cosmetics (i.e. lipsticks).

It can be also perfumes under private label.

The value of brand pass to the product – perfumes

Each brand has its own values, characteristics. One will be associated to customers with luxury and prestige, other with individualism and with search of their own way. Brand Managers and marketing specialists constantly work to make the brand immediately arouse the right associations.

In business the brand assortment often expands – not necessarily for a specific product group.

An example of sport cars

In case of sport cars brand – predatory, uncompromising, yet luxurious, the brand can also sign motorcycles. With the right design, the motorcycles of this brand will be automatically associated to consumers with the image worked out for cars. However, the brand go further and put its logo on the watches, which can also take over the existing brand associations.

One product takes the brand’s image better, the other worse. And how is it with the assortment of fashion brands?

In my view, perfumes are to ideal product for the expansion of clothing brands offer.

It seems that this view is shared by many brand managers – many known brands can be pointed out easily – both polish and foreign ones – which have a shelf with the latest branded fragrances set up right beside us.

Effects of assortment expansion can be surprising.

Capabilities in private label perfumes are enormous

Importantly, a fashion firm does not necessarily have to have its own perfume factory.

One of good solutions is outsourcing – ordering the production to perfume private label manufacturer.

When production will be ordered to an external company, it does not mean lack of product individualisation.

I would not like to speak for other private labels producers, so I will explain how it looks like in AromaPartners (I will reduce the whole process to three steps):

• Customer defines his idea, plan
• We present possibilities that will meet the Customer’s vision
• Together we work on final conception

Client chooses the components and defines the project

Among others he chooses:

• bottle
• bottle decoration
• cap
• additional elements
• box (including the printing techniques)
• graphic pattern (it can be delivered to the Client)
• fragrance and its durability

Finally perfumes under Client private label are designed by him.

It gives the opportunity to create a product that matches the fashion assortment of the brand.

In my view, every single clothing brand should at least try to include private label perfumes to their assortment – to test if customers are interested in it.

Success is not guaranteed in all cases, but lets’ remember that by testing the company is constantly developing.

And in case of fashion brands, perfumes seem to be a natural way of things.