Did you know that flowers were originally planted in Grasse to cover the stench coming from leather production? Now under the direction of mayor Jerome Viaud, the city has been declared a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Site, and it’s experiencing a revival and renewal while preserving centuries old perfume traditions.

The way consumers discover, wear and interact with scent has changed drastically in just five years. Not only a means of self-expression it’s also a subject of discussion and social exchange. This article points out five trends marking fragrance today from scent-stacking to personalization to slow perfumery – a topic to be explored at Esxence next month.

Fragrance house Iberchem has created an immersive experience where visitors can literally travel across Spain by way of their nose. The installation, which includes 8 fragrances created by in-house perfumers, is a way for the public to discover the nation’s perfume culture and olfactory heritage.

Brand founder David Benedek looks forward to spending more time on creative endeavors while leaving the day to day to team members. In this article he talks about some of the priorities he’ll address in the coming years. Surprisingly, his strategy includes slowing the launch calendar and further developing existing successful scents.

In this article, the author writes: “Sometimes I wonder how much of online fragrance culture is actual discovery and how much is algorithm disguised as discovery.” I’ve often wondered the same question: with the thousands of scents on the market, why do we keep seeing the same ones? Do any journalists have faith in their own choices or are they blindly following the others like sheep to the trough?

The Institute for Art and Olfaction has announced the list of finalists for the Golden Pears this year. Every year the jury goes through a meticulous, blind evaluation selection process to identify excellence among the independent, artisan and experimental perfumer and community. The awards ceremony will be held in Athens on June 11th. See the article for the full list of finalists.

The Chinese fragrance market boasts double digit increases with two platforms seeing similar sales volume. However, unit sales vary drastically: Tmall sells more higher priced international, niche brands where volume comes from lower priced SKUs but revenue comes from more expensive references. Douyin champions domestic brands at low price points.