If you’ve ever wondered at some new line of fashion that doesn’t fit whatsoever, a slightly off-kilter sensibility to a bag or a pair of shoes, perhaps a new fragrance has a scent that simply doesn’t resonate with you — well, maybe it’s because the Western consumer is no longer driving the market.
Perfume makers pin their hopes on China:
“With sales in much of the rest of the world slowing or declining, the perfume industry, primarily based in Paris and New York, has high hopes for China . . . many in the business say they believe that the concept of perfume is so new that a lot of Chinese consumers are, in fact, not buying a perfume but rather the brand to which a bottle of perfume happens to be attached. ‘China is about brand, brand, brand,’ Alexandre de Chaudenay, Asia-Pacific managing director of the perfume licensee Beauté Prestige International, said . . . ‘Everyone talks about how strong Chanel and Dior perfumes are in China,’ Chaudenay said . . . ‘Are those brands’ perfumes selling well? I think so. Are the consumers coming back? We don’t know.’”
