German fashion design house established in 1923. The company initially made worker's clothes, and later, during the war, uniforms. After the war, the company moved into men's suits and then womenswear. Hugo Boss died in 1948; his involvement with the Nazi party and possible corporate use of slave labor during the war created some controversy in the late 1990s. In 1999, the company agreed to pay funds to compensate former forced workers.
Current brands include Boss, Boss Black, Boss Selection, Boss Orange and Hugo.
Fragrances were introduced in the 1980s with Hugo Boss Number One. Other well-known scents include Boss Elements (men, 1993), Hugo (men, 1995), Hugo Woman (1997), Boss Bottled (1998), Hugo Dark Blue (men, 1999), Hugo Deep Red (women, 2001), Boss in Motion (men, 2002), Boss Intense (women, 2003). Fragrances were produced under licensing arrangements with Procter & Gamble until P&G's fragrance business was sold to Coty in 2015.
Recent fragrances from Hugo Boss
2005: Selection, Energise
2006: Pure Purple, Boss Selection, Boss Motion in Black, Boss Femme
2007: Hugo by Hugo Boss Limited Art Edition, Essence de Femme, Boss in Motion IV, Hugo XX & XY
2008: Boss Pure
2009: Hugo Element, Femme l'eau fraîche by Boss, Hugo XX & XY Summer Editions, Boss in Motion White Edition, Boss Orange for Women
2010: Boss Bottled Night, Boss Orange Sunset
2011: Boss Orange for Men, Boss The Collection, Boss in Motion Made For Summer, Just Different
2012: Boss Bottled Sport, Boss Nuit Pour Femme
2013: Hugo Red, Boss Orange Men Feel Good Summer, Boss The Collection Damask & Oud, Boss Jour Pour Femme, Boss Bottled Unlimited
2014: Boss Nuit Pour Femme Intense, Ma Vie Pour Femme
2015: Boss Bottled Intense, Jour Pour Femme Lumineuse, Boss Bottled Oud, Boss The Scent
2016: Ma Vie Pour Femme Intense, Hugo Man Extreme & Hugo Woman Extreme, Boss The Scent for Her, Hugo Iced
2017: Ma Vie Pour Femme Florale, Boss Bottled Tonic, Boss The Scent Intense, Boss The Scent For Her Intense, Boss The Scent Parfum Edition & Boss The Scent For Her Parfum Edition
2018: Ma Vie L'Eau, Hugo Urban Journey, The Scent Private Accord & The Scent For Her Private Accord
2019: Boss Bottled Oud Saffron & Boss Bottled Oud Aromatic, Hugo Reversed, Boss Bottled Infinite, Boss Bottled Absolute, The Scent Absolute
Where to buy
At department stores and online fragrance discounters. Some of the Hugo Boss scents are not formally distributed in the US.
Website
Further reading
See all articles on Now Smell This tagged Hugo Boss, or take a look at our collection of Hugo Boss videos.