Niche perfumes, or what Chinese shoppers refer to as “salon scents,” are having a moment as younger consumers look to stand out from the crowd.

Even though global players such as Chanel, Dior and Hermès still dominate the market, niche perfume brands such as Documents and To Summer have captured a new crop of shoppers who crave scents that reflect Chinese traditional culture, which is in sync with fashion trends like New Chinese style.

— Read more in Niche Perfume Brands Are Capturing Chinese Shoppers with Scents That Create a ‘Persona’ at Women's Wear Daily via Yahoo.

Consumer preferences in the fragrance market are shifting once more. Cool credentials and heavy marketing spend are no longer enough. Instead, successful fragrances are emphasising innovation, tapping the wellness trend and promoting a commitment to sustainable values.

In the 2010s, celebrity-fronted perfumes and fashion house brands lost ground to a boom in niche perfumery as challenger brands such as Byredo and Le Labo became wildly popular. These brands defied the concept that fragrance giants could simply pay their way onto consumers’ dressing tables.

— Read more in What’s the next blockbuster fragrance brand? at Vogue Business.

Estée Lauder snapped up Le Labo and Frédéric Malle in 2014, and Puig acquired Penhaligon’s and L’Artisan Parfumeur in 2015. In 2016, Estée Lauder was back with the further acquisition of By Kilian, then L’Oréal stepped in with the purchase of Atelier Cologne. The following year LVMH took the plunge, with the acquisition of Maison Francis Kurkdjian.

They were wise strategic moves. The latest 2019 financial results from these companies reveal that not only are luxury artisanal brands experiencing some of the strongest growth in their portfolios, they are, in some cases, offsetting weaker performances in designer fragrances.

— Read more at Cosmetics Business reveals the 5 biggest fragrance trends in new report.