Sergio
Momo, founder and creative director of Italian perfume house Xerjoff
has created a unique fragrance: Pikovaya Dama which will be
exclusively available to travel retail through Nuance. The fragrance
makes its debut in the new St Petersburg -Pulkovo airport shop which
opened in March and at Antalya T2.
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| Pikovaya Dama |
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| Sergio Momo |
Xerjoff
fragrances are exclusively available to travel retail through
specialist niches and luxury brand agency Be-Keen. ‘They are
performing very well
for
us,’ says Momo. ‘Antoine and Abla both have a real intuition for
the niche sector and understand completely both the culture of the
brand and of the retail requirement. They are really focused on
niche, what it stands for and what is required from airport
partners.’
Pikovaya
Dama is a bespoke variation of Xerjoff’s 17/17 collection which,
says Momo, best exemplifies the brand’s DNA. ’17/17 was the first
perfume created for Xerjoff and the collection is still - to me - the
best expression of the brand’s portfolio,’ he says. More
specifically it falls within the opulent Stone Label collection which
uses different natural stones to create the label. The name - which
means Queen of Spades in Russian - is taken from the short story of
the same name by Alexander Pushkin.
'Creating
an exclusive line for travel retail /duty free has its challenges,'
says Momo. ‘The customers for duty free are not so easy to
identify,’ he comments. ‘With my experience, I have very good
knowledge of our customers in specific territories, but duty free is
more difficult as the profile is much more diverse. You can have an
idea from the passenger profile at the airport but nevertheless it is
usually a real mix of cultures who all need to be gratified.’
Momo
worked closely with Nuance on the project, the retailer selecting the
final version from an initial three proposals. ‘We wanted to create
something around the theme of Xerjoff 17/17 which would have a
universal appeal for women and men. We chose musk which is very
recognisable but not always used very creatively,’ he says. ‘Musk
is quite hard to balance well with other ingredients but we think we
have found a way…so the result is neither too feminine nor too
masculine.’
The
result - Pikovaya Dama - comes as a one reference, 100ml eau de
parfum. Head notes of bergamot, lemon, rose and neroli follow with a
heart of coriander, cedar, iris, incense and nutmeg. The musk base
note blends with patchouli, sandalwood and vanilla to create a truly
unique and sensuous fragrance. The hand cut and polished flacon is
completed with a label made of Tiger’s Eye stone; presented in a
luxurious gift box labelled as an ‘Airport Exclusive Russian
Edition’. Retail price is 545 �.
The
creation is a demonstration of Xerjoff’s belief in travel retail
and the future of niche brands within the category. ‘We are one of
the few niche brands which really believes in duty free,’ continues
Momo. ‘I believe that there will be huge development in the way
retailers develop the role for niche brands over the next few years.
If the environment is right, airport stores offer an excellent
vehicle to showcase niche brands. People are travelling more often
and becoming more affluent and they demand more from their retail
experience - more choice, more innovation, more exclusivity.’
Momo
stresses the importance of space and positioning. ‘For niche brands
this is vital,’ he says. ‘The environment and space must reflect
the DNA of the brand; it must create the right ambience offering the
traveller a real shopping experience.’
For
Xerjoff, Nuance is the perfect retail partner: ‘Nuance likes to do
things a little differently, to take risks, and they are most
definitely leading the way in niche fragrances,’ adds Momo. The
company - which has also created a unique bespoke fragrance for the
DFS/ADAC Master of Fragrances event - believes that exclusive lines
can be an important addition for the travel retailer.
‘The
dynamics of duty free are very different to that of the domestic
market where, in fact, retailers are generally cutting down on the
number of skis offered. If we create an exclusive line for
Harrods then consumers know they just have to go to Harrods to buy
it. Airport retail is different - a consumer will not decide to go to
Turkey because Antalya has an exclusive fragrance there! However,
travellers are increasingly looking for a reason to buy when they are
at an airport and an exclusive offer is, we know, a big attraction.’
Momo
agrees that it is a waiting game to see how successful Pikovaya Dama
will prove to be but, he emphasises: ‘We are living in a period
where we must do some experimenting and for Xerjoff the risk of
creating an exclusive line for Nuance is most definitely worth it.’
Notes
to editors
Xerjoff–an
Italian (Turin based) perfume house fully dedicated to luxury
fragrance in its art form. Now in its tenth year, Xerjoff fragrances
combine Italian craftsmanship with French perfume know-how plus a
strong emphasis on using ingredients from nature - both for the
juices and the packaging - the latter all made in Italy. Fragrances
are conceived without being specifically targeted at women or men.
Xerjoff
fragrances are inspirited by original perfume culture when fragrances
were considered art forms presented in a form of art. Cut from
nature’s raw elegance, the XJ 17/17 Stone Label collection is
designed to continue the marriage between earth’s beauty and man’s
artistic nature. 100 ml bottles offer a natural extension to the XJ
line.
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