Here are the brands exhibiting at Esxence in
Milan from March 29th to April 1st. I’ll be going there
to participate in a panel on perfume and publishing chaired by Michael Edwards,
author of the industry bible Fragrances of the World, and to present The
Perfume Lover, but I’ll have time to explore.
Which brands would you suggest I look up?
ABATON TOP BUSINESS NICHE - ABSOLUMENT ABSINTHE - ACCA KAPPA - ACQUA REALE
- AEDES DE VENUSTAS – AGONIST
ALTERNA PROFESSIONAL HAIRCARE - AMANDA LEPORE - ANDREA MAACK PARFUMS -
ANDRÉE PUTMAN - ANNEMARIE BÖRLIND
ANTONIO VISCONTI – APOTCARE - APRIL AROMATICS - AQUA DI PONZA - ATELIER
COLOGNE - AUTOUR DU PARFUM – BAHOMA
BEAUTY BY CLINICA IVO PITANGUY – BECCA - BIEHL PARFUMKUNSTWERKE - BLOOD
CONCEPT - BOADICEA THE VICTORIOUS
BOND NO.9 - BONHEUR POUR LA MAISON - BOTTEGA DEL PROFUMO - BOUGIES RENOMA -
BRUNO ACAMPORA PROFUMI – BYREDO
CALÈ FRAGRANZE D'AUTORE - CARLA FRACCI - CARNER BARCELONA - CARTHUSIA, I
PROFUMI DI CAPRI - CASTLE FORBES
CERCHI NELL'ACQUA - CLIVE CHRISTIAN - COSTUME NATIONAL – CREED - CZECH
& SPEAKE – DORIN - DR. GRITTI - EAU DE KIKI
ESCENTRIC MOLECULES - ETAT LIBRE D'ORANGE - FLEUR DE CAFE' – FLORIS –
FRAGONARD – FRAPIN - FY FAUCOGNEY - GAMILA SECRET
GIANNA ROSE ATELIER – HEELEY - HISTORIAE PERFUME OF HISTORY – HOUBIGANT -
HUGH PARSONS - HUMIECKI & GRAEF
ILLUMINUM PERFUME – INEKE - JACOMO PARIS - JANE IREDALE - JARDINS
D'ÉCRIVAINS – JEAN PATOU - JULIETTE HAS A GUN
KEIKO MECHERI - LA COLLINA TOSCANA – LBF - LES ARGANIERS - LES PARFUMS DE
ROSINE - LES VOILES DÉPLIÉES – LINARI
LM PARFUMS - MAÎTRE PARFUMEUR ET GANTIER - MARIELLA MARTINATO -
MEN'S HERITAGE - MEO FUSCIUNI - MILLER HARRIS
MOLINARD PARFUMS - MOLTON BROWN – MONTALE - MONTGOMERY TAYLOR FRAGRANCES –
MTJ - MY INNER ISLAND – NASOMATTO
NEOM LUXURY ORGANICS - NEZ À NEZ - NOBILE 1942 - ODILE LECOIN – ODIN - OFFICINE
DEL PROFUMO - OLFACTIVE STUDIO
OMNIA -ORIGINAL TOILETRIES - PANAMA 1924 - PARFUMS D'ORSAY PARIS - PARFUMS
DE MARLY - PARFUMS DE NICOLAÏ
PARFUMS M. MICALLEF - PARFUMS NICOLAS DANILA - PERRIS MONTE CARLO - PETER
THOMAS ROTH - POPUP PARIS
PRINCESSE MARINA DE BOURBON - PROFUMI DEL FORTE - PROFUMI DI PANTELLERIA -
PRUDENCE PARIS - RANCÉ 1795
RECIPE FOR MEN - ROBERT PIGUET - ROSE & CO. MANCHESTER - ROYAL CROWN –
RUBIS - SEPAI SKINCARE TECHNOLOGY
SIGILLI - SIMONE COSAC – PROFUMI - SIMPSONS SHAVING BRUSHES - SIX SCENTS -
SJÄL SKINCARE – SOOUD – SOSPIRO
STÉPHANIE DE SAINT AIGNAN - TEO CABANEL - TERRE D'OC - TESTA MAURA - THE
HYPE NOSES - THE LAUNDRESS
lost...
RépondreSupprimerToo many brands you don't know? I'm feeling the same way which is why I'm reaching out to you guys...
RépondreSupprimerLucky you. Will your sessions be streaming live? If so we'll be watching. and we'll be watching it. So many choices so little information and so few of these brands are available to smell in Australia. I'd would like to know more about Agonist, Blood Concept, Antonio Visconti (it's the name really), Biehl Parfumkunstwerke (interesting perfumers), Jardins d'ecrivains for the intellectually pretentious but could be good candles, LM Parfums, Odin, Sigilli,Simone Cosac, Six scents. Sospiro. Enough?
RépondreSupprimerScentofChoice, I admit I have no idea... I should imagine so. Biehl I really should look into (not available in Paris either). Jardins d'écrivains and Odin have a Paris distributor so less of a priority. And Blood Concept, now, must I?
RépondreSupprimerGood grief! I envy you yet I don't if that makes any sense. That is some line up (most of which are unfamiliar to me). On a purely selfish basis I'd love to hear your views on the Bruno Acamporas. I am in on a couple of splits of the newly released EDPs and they do sound gorgeous, especially the tuberose one, Blu.
RépondreSupprimerHave fun (alongside the work of course)!
Nicola
Nicola, I'll try and make it to the Bruno Acampora booth... I'll probably have a few hours to spare, as I'll be there two nights. But as there's no physical way of covering all of the brands, I'm making up a short list, and counting on serendipity for the rest!
RépondreSupprimerWell, I like Bruno Acampora oils, the "Blu" tuberose in particular. A rubber-honey tuberose, very creamy and thick. If they didn't change it...Don't bother with the edps...
RépondreSupprimerI think @ esxence it's just fun to browse around, and chat with some of the perfumers (like Nasomatto's Gualtieri). The list of brands used to be more selective and more interesting...still, I can't wait!
Are you going to present your book also in the days assigned to the general public (sat and sun)? I hope so!
I'd vote for Heeley and Jacomo. I never read anything about them, but they've both put out some wonderful things. Have a great time!
RépondreSupprimer-Marla
I recently had a chance to sample a few from Antonio Visconti (not available in the U.S. as far as I know), and I found them very interesting but would love to hear your take on them.
RépondreSupprimerWhatever you end up exploring, have fun!
Janice
Zazie, I hadn't realised Friday 30th wasn't open to the public... I'm leaving in late in the afternoon on the 31st but I'll certainly be there part of the day. The Aedes booth has kindly offered to host me -- no commercial relationship, just the owner of the company renting out the booth who offered to manage the logistics. So that's where I'll be.
RépondreSupprimerHow wonderful! Best wishes to you as you present your book. You have the most grand adventures.
RépondreSupprimerI'd second the recommendation to check out Bruno Acampora. I intend to try that line, but it is not available locally, and expensive to sample. That list of vendors is amazing--whatever you try, have fun, and let us know about your experiences. Be well.
--HemlockSillage
(sheepishly confessing to a recent post on wishing for a perfume/art history text, and forgetting to sign it :D)
Just to echo Zazie's words- I'm no professional, so I won't be there on Friday 30th(though I believe it would be possible to follow the conference streaming on extrait.it website- no chance to smell Seville, anyway!). Too bad! As for Saturday, how late are you staying in the afternoon? I'm working, in the morning...
RépondreSupprimerAs for the brands: this kind of event never fails to get on my nerves, there's too much of everything and many things really not worthy, but it's just fun if you can relax and not attempt a scientific approach!
The Blood Concept are not bad, although sounding quite frightening. The idea behind is interesting, tracing a history of humanity through the evolution of blood groups... I gave a quick sniff last year and found them amusing.
Marla, Heeley is in fact based in Paris but hard to track down even here. Ditto Jacomo. Probably a good opportunity for some face time!
RépondreSupprimerJanice, I never even suspected the existence of this house, but am taking note!
RépondreSupprimerHemlock Sillage, so Acampora is definitely voted in! And thanks for identifying yourself, I was wondering... Mind you, it happens pretty often!
RépondreSupprimerIodine, my plane leaves at 6 PM on Saturday so I'll definitely be there early afternoon -- with a Séville à l'aube decant, naturally! Email closer to the time so we don't miss each other!
RépondreSupprimerI'm not sure which are not available in Paris, which should be your priority. I would second Heeley, Jacomo and Biehl, also Sospiro (if that's the new Xerfjoff series), pretty much in that order. Many of these I don't recognize, but that's way to many already, isn't it?
RépondreSupprimerIneke is not my favorite American brand; I do enjoy her Field Notes from Paris in cold weather, but it would be entirely wrong for spring in Italy. Enjoy! ~~nozknoz
Nozknoz, at least I'm not a niche shop owner trying to find new brands to sell... My nose would fall off! I'm kind of attracted by the more avant-garde stuff (Escentric Molecules, Biehl, Nasomatto, Humiecki & Graef) because they'd be fun to talk with!
RépondreSupprimerI'd suggest checking out Six Scents. They should be coming out with the 4th series this spring, and I'd imagine that they'll have it out in Esxence. I'm gritting my teeth at the "visionary artist collaborations + charity" drivel they preach (with just bit too much volume), and the 2nd and 3rd series' had hits and misses for me (didn't really care for the 1st) but they were still interesting, and made by good Givaudan noses, especially Yann Vasnier. I hope he's done something for them again.
RépondreSupprimerI'd also check out Etat Libre d'Orange and Olfactive Studio in case they have something new lined up. Have fun!
-Mikael
Mikael, I haven't even caught up with the previous Six Scents series! I just felt daunted by so many things at once. I've already got decants of the two new ELOs and I know Olfactive Studio has something in the works, but it was still in progress in late January. Both are Paris-based though, so not necessarily a priority target.
RépondreSupprimerI was there last year for the first time and completely lost because there were so many new things. At least for me.
RépondreSupprimerNot necessary on the market;-). It is hard to get any impression of the scents at the end of the day due to concentration of different scents on a quite limited space. And your nose is not capable of smelling all that. I went outside as many times as possible to somehow clear my senses. If you cannot get a sample to take home you can't really evaluate a perfume. If you have bags to zip the test blotters is the way to go, but the result is never the same like on your skin. Since you are limited with your place on a skin, you should try on only ones at the top of your favorite list.
At the end I decided to try some novelties and some old ones I always wanted to try, and some which are not possible to get here in Europe or man can't order samples.
I hope I will be able to attend it this year to and will be happy to see you there.
Civava, I agree, it's not worth transforming yourself into a human blotter: you'd need to wear a bikini, and be as limber as a yogi!
RépondreSupprimerIf you come, I'll be happy to see you there on Saturday 31st.
I was there last year, and might go again, it's an overwhelming experience though. Even on the day open for the interested public most exihibitors had retailers as priority (and no samples for visitors). My trick was collecting blotters, having a break and then testing 6 winners on the skin, found some interesting stuff. I also focussed on badly distributed brands.
RépondreSupprimerBee, well it seems everyone agrees there's too much to take in over one visit... I wish someone would invent a blotter transportation system that wouldn't involve slipping the little critters in a notebook. Mine smells like such a mishmash already!
RépondreSupprimerI'm curious about the new Piguets. And I love Profumi del Forte.
RépondreSupprimerKarin, I'll definitely get to smell the new Piguets, especially since Piguet CEO Joe Garces will be on the same discussion panel as me. And I'm taking note of Profumi del Forte, which is totally unknown to me.
RépondreSupprimerHistoires de parfums !
RépondreSupprimerGranjon (hello L.!), thank you for shedding light on a mystery: I suppose that "HISTORIAE PERFUME OF HISTORY" is Histoires de Parfums? I was wondering about that new brand...
RépondreSupprimerGood point, Denyse - it's a chance to not only sniff but also meet the creators - I'm sure you'll find the most interesting. Looking forward to your posts! ~~nozknoz
RépondreSupprimerDenyse - try the Profumi del Forte Roma Imperiale. It's my favorite vanilla scent by far. Notes per their website:
RépondreSupprimerTop notes
Bergamot, mandarin, neroli, rose-wood, coriander seed, cinnamon, tomato leaves
Middle notes
Orchid, jasmine absolute, tuberose absolute, ylang - ylang, iris butter, Turkish rose essence, seringa
Base notes
Civette, oak moss, grey amber. Vanilla, sandalwood
Karin, thanks for the pointer, it's easier to zero in on one specifically good fragrance than to attempt to discover an entire line!
RépondreSupprimerMaria Candida Gentile. As an insider, I can tell you that she'll be there. A last minute special guest. ;)
RépondreSupprimerRob, thanks for the tip!
RépondreSupprimerAndrea Maack makes great perfumes that I imagine really smells like Iceland where she's from, like stone and glaciers and lava. One scent is a fascinating aromatic frankincense, and another is a lightly smoky, very pod-smelling but not sour vanilla (Smart and Sharp I believe). Very interesting. Also lovely bottles with the caps in stone.
RépondreSupprimerDD, I've got Andrea Maack samples which I'm ashamed to say I never took the time to live with. I'll look her up when I'm there.
RépondreSupprimerDenyse, I was hasty with my comment, didn't think about the Paris availability of the brands... And thanks for the Fils de Dieu review! I still suggest/wish you check out Six Scents, if they have the 4th series displayed. I just stumbled upon a tidbit of info online that the 4th series is going to have for example "Nappa Noir" made by Calice Becker (for the shoe designer Raphael Young). I think that the 1st series is pretty much gone, some from the 2nd can be found with luck but the 3rd series seems to be still around.
RépondreSupprimerMikael, I'll be sure to check them out then!
RépondreSupprimerKarin, most of the fragrances by Profumi del Forte has been composed by Maria Candida Gentile, who has then launched her own line. You should try it as well...
RépondreSupprimerThree names I am eager to smell: nasomatto, maria candida gentile, meo fusciuni. Ah, I was forgetting Bruno Acampora, don't miss him!!
RépondreSupprimerMiri, thanks: all duly noted!
RépondreSupprimer