Scents can lift a mood, stir a memory, and soothe a racing mind.
But if weall smell the same, what's the point? Just ask the man with a
nose for trends, Calvin Klein. In 1994 Klein unleashed his first unisex
scent, cK one, and by 1995, it was one of the world's bestselling
fragrances. The sweet smell of success undoubtedly influenced not only
Klein's second "shared" fragrance, cK be, but also Paco by Paco Rabanne
and Gieffeffe by Gianfranco Ferre, not to mention Heaven, Earth, Grass,
Day, Dream, and Om, all from The Gap.
Why are unisex scents so popular? Annette Green, president of The
Fragrance Foundation, suggests shared fragrances may be a way for men and
women to be intimate without actually having sex: "Guys and girls are
doing things together that are not sexual, and AIDS has a lot to do with
that."
Avery Gilbert, Ph.D., president of Synesthetics Inc., a company
that promotes olfactory research, has another suggestion. He believes
gender-bender scents are a way for people to transgress boundaries. But
since at least 60 percent of men's fragrances are sold to women and about
hall of those are worn by women probably looking to get away from floral
perfumes, it may be mostly women who are crossing the line. Calvin Klein
Cosmetics says about 65 percent of cK one's customers are women and 35
percent are men.
Shared fragrances don't smell traditionally female--overly
floral--or traditionally male--excessively woodsy. Most are made up of a
combination of earthy or "green" mixtures based in the citrus family,
according to Peg Smith, chairperson of the cosmetics and fragrance
marketing department at the Fashion Institute of Technology. And that may
be why they appeal to women and don't necessarily turn men off. Indeed,
Robert A. Baron, Ph.D., a professor of management and psychology at the
Lally School of Management and Technology at Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute, says people find citrus scents such as lemon, bergamot, and
grapefruit among the most appealing. Fragrances also smell different on
people due to the wearer's natural body scents, their diet, and their
skin type.
So are sexually ambiguous scents here to stay? Probably for a
while. But then we'll undoubtedly come to our senses and want to smell
unique.
PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Kate Moss urges us to "Just be" in
Calvin Klein's ad for cK be (above).
PHOTO (COLOR): Lionel D'Aliotta caught a whiff of Comptoir Sud
Pacifique's Vanille Cafe, the scent he wears, on Susan Anapol D'Allotta,
president of CSP, when she came into his store. Now they're married
(left).
PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): cK perfume
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