Missoni is giving it a new go in the fragrance market. The Italian brand, well-known for its brightly colored knitwear with abstract patterns, is launching the first fragrance from its collaboration with licensing partner Euroitalia, simply named Missoni.
Previously, Missoni had inked a deal with Max Factor in the early Eighties for three now discontinued scents and collaborated with the Estée Lauder Cos. on a Missoni fragrance line and the Mediterranean scent Acqua, which bowed in 2007.
“I have deep confidence in the professionalism of Euroitalia and I found an excellent partner with which to establish a fruitful cooperation and open to a creative Made in Italy,” described creative director Angela Missoni the brand’s new licensing partner.
For her, scents have always been like a second skin for a woman’s femininity. “Launching a new fragrance was for me an act of complicity to all women who choose Missoni for their style and daily routine,” she said, noting that her woman is curious, self-confident and lives outside of conventions and preconceived schemes.
“I wanted to create a fragrance dedicated to a sensual and exuberant woman, decided by the femininity,” she said, adding: “She is a confident woman, who wears this fragrance as a dress that glides on the body, enhancing the vitality and charm.”
According to Giovanni Sgariboldi, president of Euroitalia, distribution for the new scent will start in Italy from mid-November, followed by a preview at Harrod’s London on Nov. 22, before continuing distribution to other countries in the second half of 2016.
“We have been working on how to best develop a fragrance concept that transfers as much as possible of the brand’s DNA, its identity, and its unmistakable elegance, taste and sophistication” noted Sgariboldi. He added that he was very satisfied with the finished bottle, made of prismatic glass that refracts rich color. “We have made a remarkable bottle, with an innovative form, nice to see and hold in the palm of your hand,” he described of the oval-shaped flacon, which is topped off with a cap wrapped in a golden collar to resemble a thread of fabric.
Inspired by the passion for Venetian blown glass, Missoni wanted to capture the brand’s essence in the flacon. “I thought of a unique bottle, made of glass in shades of purple, fuchsia and green that combine to create a precious, soft, contemporary and timeless design together, just the unmistakable Missoni,” she said.
Available in 30-ml., 50-ml. and 100-ml. versions, retailing for 56,50 euros, 76 euros and 99,50 euros respectively, or about $62, $83 and $108 at current exchange rate, the eau de parfum natural spray will reach an estimated 5,000 doors worldwide, when rollout is complete. Sgariboldi believes that the new launch will be fit for every market.
“Although it seems utopic, this really is a scent suitable for all markets, both for the previously described concept and the fragrance, which is international,” Sgariboldi said. “So far we have not found a country that manifested the slightest doubts about this product,” he noted and added that the enthusiasm in every region from Europe to Russia, the Middle East and Asia is “skyrocketing.”
Sgariboldi would not discuss any sales projections but industry sources suggested that the fragrance could reach $20 million in wholesale in the first year on the shelf.
Quentin Bisch of Givaudan created the woody fruity floral juice, which starts out with a trio of Italian citrus, including lemon, bergamot and citron as well as pear over a heart of mahonial, petalia and jasmine sambac, dried down with tonka beans, sandalwood and ambroxan.
The advertising campaign, under the artistic direction of Angela Missoni herself, has a close to home cast, starring Italian-Egyptian model and actress Elisa Sednaoui, shot by Italian director and Academy Award winner Paolo Sorrentino. “Missoni is known for its unique and innovative style, born more than sixty years ago, so I wanted an artist with me, who had the same elegant, but unconventional reality vision,” Missoni explained of her director’s choice.