NEWSMAKERS
The nose of Guerlain
ARCHANA SUBRAMANIAN
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She began like anyone else. But her climb to being a world famous brand is noteworthy. Excerpts from an exclusive telephonic conversation with Sylvaine Delacourte.
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Creating fragrances: Sylvaine Delacourte
Guerlain’s creative director shoulders the responsibility for the world’s legendary perfumes. Sylvaine Delacourt is a stylish 45-year-old mother of two and the creator of almost all of Guerlain’s new fragrances like Insolence, L’Instant de Guerlain, the light-as-air Aqua Allegoria collection.
The most-recent feather in her cap is a new men’s fragrance — Guerlain Homme — inspired by a Mojito cocktail. Sylvaine is also responsible for the Private Collection fragrances sold only in the flagship perfumery.
Sylvaine joined Guerlain in 1983 and was nominated in 2002 at the Direction of Fragrance Evaluation and Development. In this exclusive tête-À-tête, she talks of her journey, her creations and how to choose the right fragrance …
What inspired you to enter this field?
I used to be a dedicated make up artist but knew I wanted to do something different. I decided to take up a job at Guerlain. After a while, I realised I knew nothing about fragrances and underwent training in fragrances. This changed my life. I trained for two years in the only school in Europe: l isipca. Soon I joined the marketing team of Guerlain. From make up, marketing and plenty of other profiles I have now become the nose of Guerlien.
What’s the essence of Guerlain?
Guerlain means creativity. We have more than 750 perfumes, which began five generations back. We started out with beauty products and moved on gradually. We were the first to start a spa as early as in 1936 in Elysees. Guerlain means quality. Guerlain launched the first perfume called Jicky in 1828, marking the first-ever creation of an oriental perfume.
What makes Guerlain so timeless?
Guerlain perfumes are like precious paintings. Some creations still evoke the same emotions, as they did the first day!Our perfumes have an olfactory seal composed by raw materials, like bergamot, rose, jasmine, Tonka bean, iris and vanilla.
Marketing perfumes has always been risky …how do you manage?
Rightly said, it is always a challenge. To launch a Guerlain perfume after so many masterpieces, we need, to be inspired, to be confident, to get an intuition, and we carry out a pilot study at out factory before marketing can be done.
What’s the one scent that has appealed across the globe and why?
I think a floral smell appeals worldwide. It is the most appropriate. It should not be just a single floral fragrance but a perfume with performance, tenacity, beautiful trail, and charisma! Flowers speak to every woman in the world.
Is there a panel that designs the brand? Or is it a one-man show?
We need inspiration, intuition, feeling, convictions to feel the right product. We are a small team which decide what’s going to work and why and what’s not going to work and why not?
Why has Guerlain only stuck to fragrances and make up?
For the moment No, but may be one day … But we will never get into fashion for sure!
From choosing raw materials to designing the label and the bottle itself…it’s a harmony…
We have to finish the fragrance at least one year in advance, and one year before the launch. A perfume is not only the fragrance. It is the most important but all other elements have to be coherent too! Nobody knows the recipe to success!
How do you select the fragrance?
We improvise a lot, but first you have to smell the fragrance in your head to get a strong and precise idea! For example for the masculine fragrance, we knew we needed a new freshness that would mark the brand.
Six years back I went to Cuba where I discovered a new cocktail similar to mojito. I figured it was really a nice idea to associate the lime, mint and rum. With that I was able to start the new creation. We did dress it up with some other raw materials, because we don’t want anyone to wear “a mojito” but a Guerlain perfume, which stands for elegance!
How should people select a perfume?
I have created a very precise consultation to help me to understand their inner personality! Some people change, according to morning or night; others prefer wearing the same perfume through the day. There are others who will even stick to it whether it’s winter or summer, day or night. In reality there is no rule. Either you can be faithful to a perfume like me, or you can change according to the occasions, emotions, moods, weather ...; everything boils down to emotion.
Do fragrances relate to personality? There are smells one may like but may not be suitable … what then?
Of course they relate to personality. That’s why I have created a test to match the right perfume to the personality. We can’t tell in advance. It’s all about trial and error. You need to have patience especially when it doesn’t work.
The right way of wearing perfume...
You have to respect the Guerlain ritual. When using a pure perfume only a few drops should be applied on the pulse points in the mornings. Then the perfume remains intimate, not strong. You’ll still be able to smell the people around you; a perfume should never really be aggressive. The other points: hairline at the neck, hollow of wrists, elbows, breasts, and the navel. Perhaps the inside of the knees.
Your personal choices?
I have been wearing ‘Heure Bleue’ for more than 20 years now. Sometimes I also use Cuir Belgua, exclusively from the Maison Guerlain that I designed for myself!
What is it like to be the nose of such an exquisite brand?
I am very proud! And each day, I say to myself, that I am a lucky woman! Now I share that mission with a younger nose Thierry Wasser, so that I have less stress and two is certainly company!
Why did you take such a long time to launch in India?
We wanted to be ready, to have a good distributor, team, services, and the right moment!
Any special fragrances for India?
All the fresh and happy fragrances, like the range of Aqua Allegoria, Insolence Eau Glacée, Guerlain Homme, L’Instant Magic and Champs- Elyséees
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