The Celebrity Fragrance Phenomenon

The last few years have certainly seen an upsurge of celebrity endorsed perfumes. Similar to last Christmas but even more imminent, the perfume counters this past Christmas season are featuring the latest and greatest releases by Paris Hilton, Faith Hill and Usher. In the early 90s when Elizabeth Taylor’s White Diamonds was released, celebrity fragrances were few and far between. Today, celebrities are using their names as brands and consumers are buying into the idea (literally)! Perfume producers are targeting an existing consumer audience comprised of celebrity fans. Celebrities’ status in society supports this high-end image that consumers strive to impersonate. With the release of numerous new celebrity clothing lines and shoe collections, consumers feel like they can relate to their favorite artists and actors. Now they’re purchasing the toiletries to match. Do the celebrities themselves even have influence on these scents? If so, the question becomes, who do you want to smell like? More importantly, are celebrities really wearing their name brand scents? And if not, why are consumers?

Contributed by:  Ashley Popham