LVMH, the world's largest luxury goods company, has unveiled a 3.7bn euros ($5.18bn; £3.18bn) all-share deal to take over Italian jeweller Bulgari.
— Read more at LVMH to take over Bulgari in 3.7bn euros deal at BBC News. Hermès, so far, is holding out.
oh no! I just discovered and really love Eau Parfumée au Thé Vert. I will not be happy if they discontinue or change it!
Ugh!
Keeps fingers crossed that Hermes can hang on tight!
Oh, I don’t think LVMH works that way, necessarily…and that’s got to be one of the bigger sellers, I’d think.
I feel exactly the same about this, and I love Eau Parfumée au Thé Vert too! It is my go-to summer fragrance along with Hermes UJALM. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Oh, so sad. I was glad Bulgari was a hold-out. Have to admit that I’ve been wondering where the direction was over there lately, though. Omnia in 2003 (!) was the last one I thought was very good and true to their spirit; kind of strange for me to see that release date, since Omnia was, I believe, one of the first reviews I read here in early 2005 and one of the first fragrances I bought when I got into perfume.
My own fond feelings for Bvlgari are solely due to their output from 2005 & before, so I know what you mean (I am dating 2 years later than you because I thought Omnia Crystalline was pretty good, esp. for a flanker).
I hang my head in shame as I don’t like vert at all…
Black was my first ‘perfumista’ passion, but now I find it too sweet and to have little lasting power. Omnia I love, but don’t wear enough, and have just recently been quite impressed by the much more recent blu II EDP… (think I’m going through an iris phase)
It wasn’t mind-blowing, but you’re right: Omnia Crystalline was good, and definitely above average for a flanker. Unlike some who found they had anosmia to the muskiness of it, I thought it was quite musky and considerably stronger than the original, which was sort of funny for a flanker aimed at being fresher and lighter for the Asian market.
On a side note: I read your original Omnia review and found one of my very first NST comments, about ten comments down. I think my first three perfume purchases of the obsession era were Angel, Omnia and OJ Champaca, and you were the inspiration behind two of those. (Guess which two!
It makes me silly and fond to think of how much happier and financially poorer I am since I found this site: thanks, as always, R.
HA…we know it wasn’t Angel! So cool that you found your comment. I really hate seeing all those “Anonymous” names over & over. Sometimes I have trouble even picking out my own comments.
I was sad about the anonymous tags, too. But surprised and delighted by how often I can identify the writers anyway!
…and… the price of Black just went through the roof.
I do worry about Black, LVMH or no.
Robin, I am also very worried about Black!
Especially since it was discontinued in the UK, I’ve been trying to keep tabs on it, however information is hard to come by.
I would be incredibly grateful if there’s any way you could find any additional information for us on the status of Bvlgari Black – maybe you’d get more information on account of being a prominent blogger (hopefully?).
Just to share with anyone else who is concerned, here are the responses I received to a round of email enquirers in November:
Bulgari UK said:
“Dear Mrs ____,
We thank you very much for your e-mail and your interest in our brand.
Further to your request, we regret to inform you that the BVLGARI Black has been discontinued in the UK .
We thank you for your understanding and stay at your disposal for any further information you may need.
Best regards,
_____”
Bulgari USA said:
“Dear Ms. _____,
Thank you for your interest in Bulgari Fragrances. At this time there are no plans to discontinue Bulgari Black. You can find this fragrance at the following retailers: Beauty.com, select Belk, Bloomingdales, Macy’s, Neiman Marcus, select Nordstrom, Sephora and Von Maur.
Please let me know if you have any further questions.
Best regards,
_____”
You know, I’ve seriously given up on investigating discontinuations, not least because the people in customer service who answer such emails are not the same people who make decisions about what stays in production. Even if they tell you something has been discontinued, that doesn’t mean they won’t decide to do another production run 6 months later (case in point: Donna Karan Black Cashmere, which I was told was discontinued, then they brought it back before the original stock had even sold out). And more than once I’ve been told something was still in production, only to watch it slowly disappear from the earth.
And want to add: both of the answers you got relate to distribution, not production, which is usually the case.
What I want to know is: Will Bvlgari continue to make Black when the world’s current stock runs out? …and that is never the question they are answering. They are telling you if and where you can buy what has already been made.
That’s totally understandable – I’ve found trying to get information out of them to be a nightmare, and it’s not surprising they’re not really anymore forthcoming with bloggers.
Your point about production is exactly what I mean – I really want to know if they’re still *making* it. I mean … duh, they’re still selling it if they have stock, it’s the production that is key.
Black is my husband’s one and only, and I’m starting to think that slowly collecting a few backup bottles is in order, despite not really believing in backup bottles, and not really having a budget for perfume right now. I mean, when you only wear and love one thing, the priorities have to be different.
I’m also going to work on finding him a new love or two … but he’s so attached, and he’s really a one fragrance sort of guy. First stop – Le Labo Patchouli 24?
The thing is, they aren’t continually making *any* perfume, so it’s hard to answer that question. Just to give an example, if a company makes 2000 bottles of something, and a year later those bottles are still on the market and you ask “has it been discontinued”, of course they will say no. They don’t even need to decide if they will make more for another year. At that point, they might well decide not to make more…in other words, the answer we want doesn’t always exist & it isn’t just a matter of getting the answer out of anyone.
Their Rose Essentielle is the only perfume my husband has ever commented on, so I hope they leave it alone. It doesn’t strike me as having anything so exotic or expensive in it that they’d need to reformulate it, though. I suppose the danger might be more in them discontinuing it, since I seem to be the only one who wears it!
Ah well, more the reason to go to the Indies for our perfume fix…
Yes, indeed.
I wonder how long Hermes would be able to hang on with this LVMH onslaught… And I do worry about Black; such a rarity amongst mainstream perfumes in every sense!
Was so pleased to read that Hermes article the other day. Good for them. And how hilariously that LVMH guy fits the profile of the smooth-but-evil-operator… So much double talk!
Me too. I’ve had my reservations about LVMH for awhile, but hadn’t quite summed my feelings until this article did it for me…
“If you want to seduce a beautiful woman, you don’t start by raping her from behind,” Thomas said today.
Best. Line. Ever.
It seems very French to me, that’s for sure. Hard to imagine an American or British exec saying the same thing. Maybe an Italian…
*clutches Black to bosom* Not my Black! I’m still working on getting used to L’AP’s Dzing! and Black is like a lighter starter version I absolutely love. I’d better move Omnia and Jasmin Noir higher up on my must buy list in case they disappear.
I’ve never heard of LVMH. I had a look on their website which isn’t much help. and I’m slightly confused.
I found a page with some of the brands they own, apparently.
Dior Parfums, Givenchy, Kenzo, Benefit cosmetics, and even Guerlain.
I have a copy of Dior’s final accounts, and listed in their productive brands or whatever section, these brands were listed. Dior is the parent company of these brands but it didn’t say anywhere that part of Dior is owned by LVMH.
I’ve just been on the Wikipedia sight for it and it explains a bit better.
Dior owns around 43% of it’s shares, not owned by it.
Glad you found that Wiki page, that should explain things.
Ugh, after I JUST discovered and fell in love with Black. Come ON.
I’m keeping hope alive that they don’t mess with it…
And another one bites the dust… Dislike =(