According to Women's Wear Daily, the Italian denim-wear brand Diesel needs to amp up their women's business "following a long period where it became heavily reliant on men’s sales". Expect to see higher prices, better fabrics, more shoes and bags, and a more feminine look. Also key: Loverdose, their latest fragrance and part of their overall strategy to attract "a somewhat older customer than before, between the ages 25 to 55, with a sweet spot of around 30."1
The ad copy for Loverdose is mostly about sex — quelle surprise! — with a splash of rock 'n roll: yes, sex sells, apparently, whether you're 15 or 25 or 35. Loverdose is meant to be a "beautiful but deadly narcotic for the senses" and reportedly it includes molecules that "stimulate the hypothalamus, the part of the brain that induces attraction and desire".2 If it all sounds like the usual fragrance marketing fol-de-rol, luckily, the floriental juice has the same sense of humor as the television commercial, which features model Ashley Smith in a series of more-comical-than-sexy scenarios, and ends with her boyfriend not bothering to wake up when she comes home and kisses him.
Loverdose opens sweet and fizzy, with elements of root beer and indeterminate fruit — it's sort of vaguely what you might get if you crossed Dior Hypnotic Poison with something hyper-fizzy (Jean Paul Gaultier Ma Dame? Ed Hardy Love & Luck?). The heart is a modern, middle-weight licorice floral — in other words, something like Lolita Lempicka Premier Parfum if you replaced the heavy Thierry Mugler Angel base notes with something paler and calmer. Once it settles, it's a lot drier than Lolita Lempicka. The far dry down is a slightly creamy vanilla with a sheer, even-more-slightly powdery finish (a little nod to Love, Chloé, perhaps, or Hermès Eau Claire des Merveilles) over almost-bitter dry woods; by now, there's really only a faint whisper of licorice.
It isn't the stuff of genius, exactly, nor is it outrageously original, but I thought it was great fun, and great fun is not so easily found as you might expect, at least not on the perfume counters. I enjoyed wearing it even though I don't feel any compulsion to go buy a bottle. And hey, that's one fun looking bottle. I have not yet seen it in person, but it's just the sort of thing that might push you over the edge if you were dithering.
Diesel Loverdose is available in 30, 50 and 75 ml Eau de Parfum. It was developed by perfumers Honorine Blanc and Olivier Cresp; the notes include mandarin, lemon, star anise, gardenia, jasmine, licorice, vanilla, ambrox, cedar and sandalwood.
1. Both quotes in first paragraph via Women's Wear Daily, 8/2/2011.
2. Via Escentual.
Loved this review. It’s so good to see reviews that metions other fragrances. It’s a way to guide us and make us thinking how the fragrance may be. I’s also a way to educate our sense with a “good travel”. By the way: I though the brand was North- American . And higher prices?? Here were I live Diesel paints are already expensive!! Maybe they want to reach Hermès prices…
Yes, they are already expensive! $230 for a pair of denim? Umm, thanks but no. I’ll stick to my $55 standbys, my god ole Levi’s 501s. Now about the fragrance: why does it sound like the last 2,517 to hit the market? Sure the bottle is cute (if a little derivative; it’s painfully close to the Vera Wang Princess bottle, without the crown thigamajig), but you don’t WEAR the bottle, right? Typical. Sounds like more care and attention went into marketing & bottle design than the juice itself.
That’s ‘good’ ole Levis. Fat fingers.
Levi’s are good options. 501 and 555 are as cool as engineered line. A pair of Diesel paints here are about 600 to 1000$. About the perfume the juice seems good too, didn’t you think?
It is most definitely a derivative scent — and it’s trying VERY hard to be trendy — but it’s better done than most, IMHO. It’s aimed at the middle and it hits it’s target, so I don’t think it’s necessarily going to find a gajillion perfumista fans.
No, they are Italian. I did not even think they were all that well known here, but I know so little about fashion — hope others will chime in, is it a big brand in the US?
I had never heard of the brand outside of this blog; I didn’t realize they weren’t a perfume company!
But then I am a die-hard Levi girl.
But Diesel paints can make you change your mind for sure…
Oh yes, Diesel does pretty big business here in the states…they have at least 4 ‘flagship’ stores on the island of Manhattan alone…one on an uber-expensive stretch of Fifth Avenue….another directly across from the ginormous Bloomingdale’s on Lexington Avenue…all multi-level behemoths…with live DJ’s and all…quite an..umm, interesting retail experience.
Thanks both!
I started the review skeptical (diesel…”loverdose”…pink juice..no thanks) but now I want to try. It’s good to see that there are fun, enjoyable scents to wear coming from some mainstream clothing lines. I am guessing this will be a be a bit more affordable (despite their confession to aspirational pricing…wtf?) than other new offerings.
The WWD article seemed to imply that they’d lowered their pricing too much during the recession — they don’t want to turn into a budget brand, apparently. I would NOT expect Loverdose to be expensive though. But we’ll see — it’s not officially out in the US yet, and to be honest I didn’t pay any attention to the price in euros or pounds.
Robin, how did you get it? When does it come to the United States?
Someone sent me samples, and I’m sorry but I really don’t know. One place said next year, another place said later this fall. I do know that Sephora in Canada is already giving out samples, that would seem to be a good sign for later this year, maybe.
Usually only the clothes from Diesel are expensive.
Is licorice going to be the new oud? Seems like we have a slew of new licorice scents headed our way.
And do I even need to tell y’all I have to have this for the bottle? It’a actually rather elegant for this line.
Diesel has some fabulously campy bottles; I have the one that looks like an old fashioned pesticide sprayer that cracks me up every time I look at it, even though the juice itself is so harsh it probably would kill bugs.
Yes, I remember those! And I liked a couple of their early scents. Did NOT like Fuel for Life, although I think many people did.
Robin, try the male one. I like that. It’s like this new one, a little different from the launches os the last few years.
wasn’t Fuel for Life a Judas Priest DVD? What did it smell like? Leather pants, sweat and lighter fluid with a flaming top note? Showing my age again…
LOL…don’t think it was an inspiration for the fragrance.
:). It’s a Judas Priest DVD eIther. The perfume is kinda different oriental for men (very different from the commonplace Only the Brave) with raspberry and anise notes so evident, a sweet-fruit with woods, not being cloying. When it calms down it’s a beautiful scent, although it didn’t fit me.
Cute bottle, disgusting notes.
Root beer? Blaaacccch.
Oh, but I adore the root beer in Hypnotic Poison. And I adore benzoin in general, and it does smell like root beer.
Root beer is nice, but licorice – no thanks!
Does it smell anything like Vera Wang Princess or, even, Prada Candy? Earlier today, I was in Boots (a UK drugstore chain) and unfortunately had to walk through a noxious cloud of something sickly sweet created by a group of SAs who ignored customers and were instead generously spraying one another with some perfume. I assumed it was Loverdose since that’s what was on the nearby promotional stand and even made a mental note to avoid it but perhaps it was something else.
Might be vaguely related to Prada Candy, perhaps, given that Candy can smell a little root beer-ish.
My husband just bought a new electric toothbrush from Boots and a little scent-wipe sample of this was included in the box. Seemed a very odd place to have a fragrance sample, tucked in as it was next to a small tube of Colgate Sensitive Pro- Relief. Does their target demographic also have good oral hygiene??
Of course, I tried it out and thought ‘meh’ and then found myself mentally transported to clubbing in the 90’s and standing in the ladies room in a fug of hairspray, deodorant and perfume. Been there and done that so will give this one a miss. Love the colour of the juice though!
Ugh, I hate scent wipe samples! Will say that I like this one much better on skin than on paper, but who knows — might not be your thing either way.
Great bottle!!!
Yep!
great review, Robin. It is brilliant! I don’t have any desire to even test it, but it’s good to narrow them down. Is there any real standout perfume in 2011?
I think the best mainstream scents so far are probably Cartier Baiser, Prada Candy, maybe Elie Saab (I didn’t spend enough time with it yet). And hear Esprit d’Oscar was quite good but haven’t smelled it at all yet.
Perhaps I’m une femme d’un certain age (just outside the older range of their stated target), but the name sounds like a portmanteau of Loverboy (the band) and overdose! The bottle is cute, though.
I think they want you to get Lover + overdose. Don’t see why Loverboy doesn’t work as well!
Diesel Fuel for Life was one of those odd mainstream fragrances that LT gave four stars in The Guide and called “a gem of modern perfume architecture.” But that was composed by Thierry Wasser and Annick Menardo, so perhaps it is. Has anyone tried it?
Thought the ad was both cute and creepy by turns. I do love the bottle. Hope it ends up at the discounters!
Yeah, I did not ‘get’ that review.
I still think the bottle is very Vera Wang Princess.
There is some resemblance, but I didn’t think of it when I saw it.
Great review Robin! Here’s hoping it launches in the U.S. sooner than later. I’m DYING to try it!!! I did not care for their 1st two Fuel for Life’s. But I did like their Unlimited for women and their Only the Brave. : )
Let’s hope it’s this fall…
Great review. I find the bottle cute. Possibly I am the only one, but on my skin it reminded me of Magnetism by Escada.
Ah, I should try them together.
I tried this yesterday, it just smells like liquorice with some sweets and flowers mixed in. I wasn’t impressed but I love the bottle! it looks so much better in real life.
Glad to hear it!
I sprayed this on a paper and wasn’t sure about it but quite liked it on my skin, my boyfriend LOVES it though he says it’s the sexiest thing he’s ever smelt!
I guess those molecules are working then
I got my beautiful wife a bottle of Loverdose for her birthday and I’d just like to say everything I’ve read about this fragrance is true. My wife has a lovely, sexy natural smell to her and Loverdose compliments her perfectly… It’s her fragrance from now on, and as she finishes one bottle I’ll buy her another!