PACKAGING FRAGRANCE FOUNTAINS
making more circular models a core part of its business.
Also launching at Selfridges back in 2019 was Experimental Perfume Club (EPC) with its Layers concession, offering a more personalised twist by allowing customers to create their own scent combinations from its six edp blends. The pop-up featured a refill fountain at its centre, allowing consumers to return with their packaging and refill their personalised scent at a reduced price, in a bid to reduce unnecessary packaging.
HOME & AWAY
While fountains and refills may have their roots in high society, however, today’s fragrance innovators face the challenge of making the concept more accessible and inclusive for a wider audience. In the UK, for example, 32% of beauty customers who have not used refill concepts cited the lack of availability as the reason why, according to Mintel. “There are barriers around convenience and ease as many non-users of BPC refills claim that refill options are not widely available, and that it’s easier to simply buy a new product,” says Malone, adding that these challenges create further opportunities for at-home fragrance refill options. Experimental Perfume Club, for example, last year introduced its Twist & Refill cartridges, with the aim of making refill options more accessible. They include a spout which can connect to the existing bottles, enabling customers to more easily refill their fragrances at-home. “These innovations will appeal to online shoppers, or those less able or willing to access stores with refill stations,” says Malone. Customers who own a full-size 50ml fragrance have the option to refill their bottle by bringing it back to Experimental Perfume Club’s London flagship, or alternatively customers in the UK can post their bottle back to the brand to be refilled. As well as helping the brand cut its carbon footprint, the process is said to save customers up to 50% when compared with purchasing a new fragrance, according to EPC.
Malone adds: “Ongoing inflation concerns present an opportunity to position refills as a cheaper alternative to buying a product new. This will help to offset the convenience factor afforded by simply buying a new product, and further incentivise responsible fragrance consumption habits among consumers.”
Offering customers a variety of options, with
at-home complementing in-store refill opportunities, looks set to play a strong role in the category’s continued growth.
“I think the benefit of being able to do [refills] at home is that there is a big part of the value that people put in different products and brands, based on how convenient and how in tune with them and their needs that brand is,” adds Collins. “[For] a lot of people, time matters. And if you can save yourself some time by going down a slightly different route, that helps to cement your relationship with that brand, because you feel that
38 September 2022
Pochet made the updated bottles for French beauty house Guerlain’s relaunched Aqua Allegoria fragrance collection (above), featuring more eco-friendly packaging and refills
it is catering to the needs of your lifestyle.” Further tapping into individualised consumer needs is the opportunity for increased personalisation at the point of refill. “There are a number of brands, [such as] Le Labo, where that refill opportunity for them also sees you being able to bespoke your label, leaning into different packaging and presentation options,” says Collins. Le Labo customers in the US can send their 50ml or 100ml bottles of the brand’s classic collection – which includes Santal 33, Another 13 and Rose 31 – back to the brand to receive a refill and an updated, personalised label. Kilian’s decanters offer a similar service at refill counters, inviting customers “to choose your cap, to choose the colour of the tassel, to choose the colour of the plaque that goes on your decal, to have something engraved on the decanter”.
A FRAGRANT FUTURE
Whether consumers choose to refill their favourite fragrances in-store or at home, there remains a wealth of opportunities for brands to tap into as the sector develops.
“The new consumer generations are getting very demanding and pushing the global industry towards more sustainable offers,” Pochet’s Lallemant and Reille observe. “Yet, in the luxury sector, brands are still reticent to make compromises when it comes to altering the global usage and luxury perception. We are convinced this is the main challenge of the future and will carry on innovating in this direction.”
For Harrods, Collins says, “we know that for most of our customers... sustainability is one of their number one purchase decision making factors”, and she emphasises that the shift towards refillability and more eco-conscious options is “a movement, not a trend”. “It’s important for brands and retailers to demonstrate how they can facilitate that decision making for clients, by being very upfront and transparent about [their] refill option[s]. What it looks like, how long it is going to last, how [they can] dispose of that packaging in an ecologically sound way, etc. So I think it will just be part and parcel of how brands are launching new products, and adapting existing products.”
TPS’ Smith agrees, saying: “I think the demand will only increase due to the simplicity of the execution and how it’s a step in the right direction in the face of sustainability. “We’re always working with our suppliers to lead the way in delivering O+O (online + offline) choices and options for our customers, as we know and agree that this is more and more important for everyone, not just now but in the future.” While the notion of refilling fragrances at fountains may be far from new, it is fresh innovation that looks set to ensure this heritage practice will continue to thrive, bringing what was once the domain of society’s upper echelons to a wider audience for a more sustainable and inclusive future
cosmeticsbusiness.com
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