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 It
was a tumultuous beginning to a decade that would see the
perfume industry make some waves of its own. Riding the commercial
successes of the ‘70s, designers continued to flood the market
with trendy new scents. Distributors grew larger, ad campaigns
grew more elaborate, and the consumer base grew exponentially
as young professionals indulged in the finer things in life.
The perfume industry caught on to the ideal of the sensitive,
successful “’80s man” early and began to wonder, “could men
be ready for fragrances of their own. Had they developed enough…style?”
By the early ‘80s, the industry decided that men were ready
for their own fragrances.
They finally developed some style.
To appeal to these new stylish men, perfume marketers offered
eloquent brand names as Adidas, Rodeo, and Toro. While perfumers
offered such titles as Elizabethan Rose, Obsession, and White
Satin for their new introductions, men were choosing between
Arrogance, Gambler, and Hawk. Some colognes tried to appeal
to this new enlightened man by naming their colognes after
sports cars such as Camaro or Lamborghini GT.
Others focused on the yuppie crowd with names
such as Dollar and Wall Street. And with these new, sophisticated,
thought-provoking names to choose from, the perfume industry
took men by the hand and gently guided them into the world
of fragrances. A popular cologne launched in the ‘80s was
Drakkar Noir by Guy Laroche. Launched in 1982, this chypre
scent took the name of Viking ships to emphasize masculinity.
It’s a blend of brisk, tangy top notes of verbena and lemon
rind, a sensuous, herbal heart of coriander, lavender and
juniper berries, and a woody base of patchouli, sandalwood
and fir balsam. The result was a product that was undeniably
masculine, one that any man could purchase proudly. Although
not launched in the U.S. until 1984, it was an instant success
here and continues to be a leading seller. 
Of course, the ‘80s weren’t just about
men. It was an important time for women as well. Giorgio Beverly
Hills, the signature fragrance launched in 1981, was a blend
of rose, jasmine, gardenia and orange flower notes in the
main body and sandalwood, patchouli and camomile notes as
a base. It was the first of what has come to be known as the
linear fragrances, which have a strong, instant effect that
remains constant. 1983 saw the introduction of Paris by Yves
Saint Laurent. Paris follows L’Air du Temps’ composition rather
closely, but it used violet and rose as the main floral notes.
Paris had top notes of rose petals,
orange blossom, mimosa, cassia, hawthorn, nasturtium, bergamot
and hyacinth, middle notes of rose, violet leaves, jasmine,
orris, ylang-ylang, lily of the valley and linden blossom,
and a base of sandalwood, amber, musk, moss, iris, cedarwood
and heliotrope. 1984 brought us Coco, created by Chanel to
honor its namesake, Gabrielle Chanel. This spicy-floral-oriental
fragrance was said to embody the spirit of Mlle Chanel. The
floral-ambery Poison debuted in 1985. This powerful fragrance,
created by Roure perfumers and released by Parfums Christian
Dior, was designed to be bold. It is a linear fragrance made
up of coriander, plum, anise, rosewood, rose, tuberose, honey,
cinnamon, orange blossom, blackcurrant and red currant with
a base of ambergris, labdanum and opoponax.
The same year, Calvin Klein launched
his first fragrance, Obsession. This was another unusually
strong perfume, also created by Roure. He followed that up
with Eternity in 1988, a fragrance that is the complete opposite
of Obsession. Samsara was introduced by Guerlain in 1989.
Jean-Paul Guerlain was put in competition against other perfumers,
and his won. In the late ‘80s, the power of publicity became
essential, and big budgets were allocated for launchings,
photography campaigns and film-making During the decade, a
series of brand acquisitions by powerful firms took place.
The French group LMVH bought Parfums Christian Dior. Unilever
acquired 5 perfume companies in 1989 for more than $2 billion.
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