The Fragrance Foundation has announced the finalists for the first annual Indie Fifi Awards.* The winner will be announced at the Elements Showcase trade show on January 30. The finalists are:
Carner Barcelona Cuirs
Bois 1920 Come L’Amore
Thirty-six fragrances from thirty brands had been entered into the competition; the complete list can be found on the Fragrance Foundation blog. The winner gets a $10,000 prize sponsored by Givaudan.
(via perfumerflavorist)
* Per the Fragrance Foundation, an indie brand “has been on the market for at least two years and is distributed in 1 to 25 doors”. If you missed it, you can see the announcement of the Indie award here.
I find this list rather confusing. I thought the purpose of this category was to showcase true independent perfumeries, not companies that already have presence on major retail counters like M&H, or companies that are funded by corporations like Bois. Personally this sounds more like “Niche” rather than “Indie”, and by their own admission, that’s how the parent company of Bois 1920 categorized it. Also – unless the launch was withheld after the announcement, I believe that on these very pages, DS&Durga’s Siberian Snow was launched in 2009, not 2011.
Just sayin….
Oops – MH, not “M&H”, and I do love her work, btw.
It is problematic — the FF always defines categories by number of doors, but you can’t define indie that way. I totally agree — Miller Harris & Bois 1920 are not indie brands, they’re niche brands. There is at least one fragrance on the list by Bertrand Duchaufour, which I think is just comic — how can you be indie and hire a famous nose? Indie, to me, means DIY.
Then again, the FF is not out to please perfumistas, and not surprisingly, they have a different (more market-based) slant on things than we do.
But usually they do only consider fragrances from the previous year, so I have no idea why Siberian Snow is on there.
I queried this via Victoria of Bois de Jasmin when I saw the announcment on her blog very late last night. The reply from the Fragrance Foundation was that D.S. & Durga re-launched their entire line in 2011 and while keeping some of the old names changed the juice. So, apparently this Siberian Snow is different from the one that existed when you announced the line in January 2009.
I’m of the philosophy that “if you change the juice, you should change the name” but apparently this brand is not.
As for “indie”, I too think of it as an independent perfumer rather than a niche brand, but the award criteria don’t. Perhaps some feedback to the “indie” advisory committee?
LOL…if that was all it took, they could enter Miss Dior as a new fragrance
Anyone who cares really should write to the Fragrance Foundation — I do think they are open to feedback. Personally it makes no difference to me how they define their categories so long as it’s clear what they are. And I know I’m (way) more ornery than most, but if I was an indie brand I don’t see why I’d be after the affirmation of the mainstream fragrance industry anyway — although the $10,000 might change things!
I’m with you, Opera Fan. When I think “indie” I don’t think Miller Harris, or Bois, or Frapin (which was on the long list).
Hi everyone! I just wanted to chime in here on behalf of the committee. We are aware of some issues that have arisen during our first year of the Indie Committee. We are currently developing new methods and standards so that the Indie Award process will be more streamlined and fair for everyone. This has definitely been a learning curve for us. We’re already working on improvements and are all very enthusiastic about bringing our ideas to fruition.
Your honest feedback is invaluable, and I thank you all for your comments!