So I am back from Pitti since yesterday evening and managed to send most e-mails, and ship orders and open the snail mail without major bills induced depression. It is always amazing how many bills fly in when you are gone for a couple of days, isn’t it?

I took the train back, allowing me to get an hour or two of sleep: And after three days on the stand and with a lot of evening gettogethers, this came in handy. Being at a stand at Pitti is very tough. I ususally got there after 9 in the morning and left after 6 pm, without lunch break, just interrupted by a coffee break from time to time. Thus, you stand and meet perfume lovers, retailers, business partners, and also some suppliers. I do not speak Italian, thus much of the talking was left to my friends and partners from Italy who make sure that Tableau de Parfums finds its way into some shops.

I was interviewed by Extrait about niche and what I think about the market these days. So I was talking about the way I see this market these days. First, one has to say that there is an economic crisis and it will affect the way we do things. You do not really feel it when you are at a show like Pitti where all is gold and light, but it sure is there. Furthermore, I mentioned that I do not use niche for what I do, but rather artisanal perfumery. But in the end, to be frank, let us call it niche or mass or artisanal or artistic: In  the end it is about bottles that want to get sold. The bottles are different, the inside is different, the way the fragrances are created and how they speak and engage its wearer is different, but in the end we all make perfumes that we wish to be sold at the end of the day because it is how we make a living.

And this, in a sense, is weird. In a sense, I feel like an artist, and in a sense I feel like a business man. Trying to bridge this gap is not always easy and a constant balance. To give you an example: I ended up talking to a Middle East distributor who wants my scents for his shops which is fine. The business man in me would tell you: Yes, there is a big potential for some of my scents. The artist however was a bit shocked: We discussed the brand, the history, the packaging, the bottle, but I could not show one of my scents. There was no interest in actually smelling.

So, this is another side of Pitti that I wanted to share with you. Besides all this glitter and scent and glory: There is a business side to it all.

One (no names here) of my perfume making colleagues, well established and known for his brand(s) brought it to the point by saying: “We create perfumes for the people who buy them. Not for the people who talk about them” (i.e. bloggers et al.) There is some truth in it. On the other hand, I create perfumes for people who love perfume, and many may not buy a bottle, but just get a sample, and I guess that is fine, as perfumes speak to us and we want to speak to other perfume lovers about them. Perfume is communication. And yes: Perfume business is communication business.

And a lot of visual comunication!  You see a lot of wonderful presentations, stand decorations that were simply mind blowing! There were simple stands, there were opulent stands, there were huge stands and there were very little stands. I guess this is one of the aspects that I love about Pitti: There is room for all of us. And as every year: A LOT! of visitors.

So, on our stand that was still quite modest, we showed Loretta, the newest offering from Tableau de Parfums. I told the story of this fragrance about 1000 times that last days: Thus, in a nutshell Loretta is a fragrance inspired by a film character in Brian Pera’s movie “Woman’s Picture”. Loretta is a young woman, working in a motel, as room cleaning lady, and she is shy and won’t speak. She lives in a dream world, builds a reverie, where there is music, where she dances and falls in love with a man. Loretta is sensual, sexy, but there is a secret, a dark mysterious side that the film won’t solve. There remains a secret.

In today’s picture you can see the mini poster that we did for Loretta and I love it. It was designed by Jessica Jones.  It encapsulated what Loretta is all about. For me, Loretta translated into sensual white flowers: Jasmine, tuberose, orange blossom. A sweet ripe fruit that is yummie and sexy, too. And then there is this dark secret: Patchouli, amber, and a woody, resinous underline. Loretta is present, but not loud. Loretta is sweet and soft, but not too sweet and there is a strength in Loretta.

Loretta was admired and loved. And I am very happy. I think Loretta is very unique. In my palette of scents it sure is. One last detail about Loretta, the fragrance: I made two trials, only. Trial one had a minor mistake in the head notes. Then I created version 2 which was basically identical, just a change in the head notes. And then I was done. Loretta, the Woman’s Picture character spoke to me obviously in a very inspiring way.

So… Loretta was very well received and I am looking forward to sending her out soon into the world. Next stop: Los Angeles, @ Luckyscent’s scentbar October 19.