RESEARCH BOOK How to create a successful Perfume Brand
CONTENTS
Introduction
Field of Study
Focus
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History
Branding
Packaging
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CONTENTS
Perfume
Case Studies
Literary Review
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Final Outcome
Conclusion
Bibliography/ Illustrations
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INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
For a long time, I always knew I enjoyed creating things by hand and exploring and testing new techniques, which is why creating packaging for a perfume product was something I became interested in. It was in second year where I understood the type of graphic designer I am, which paved the road into the direction I wanted to go in. Second year of university allowed me to experiment and develop my skills as a designer, which I then took into third year.
With all of the skills that I have learnt throughout my time at university, I hope to create an outcome that reflects who I am as a designer. Additionally, previous projects of mine have influenced my final project, in a sense of style, techniques and graphic elements. Also, being a designer who enjoys being hands-on, I hope this project challenges me as a designer and pushes me further out of my comfort zone and into unknown territory.
It was in third year where I was introduced into exploring different techniques such as laser cutting, screen printing and sandblasting. These techniques challenged me as a designer and helped me understand where my confidence lies in the graphic design industry. Being a craft creative has always been my strength, which is something that I hope to explore and reflect in my final project.
However, I want to push the boundaries future and learn something new about graphic design as well as who I am as a designer in this project. For me, I want my final outcome to be something I have not created before and something that challenges me. I want my final outcome to be unlike anything I have designed before in terms of style, technique and content.
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Aims for the Project
With every outcome that I create, my main aim is to create something that looks professional and demonstrates the skills I have learnt through my years of university. However, for this specific project, my aim is to challenge myself as a designer and branch out of my comfort zone. Also, another aim of mine is to produce something that is unlike something else that I have in my portfolio, which will show the range of skills I have within graphic design. For this project, I want to show who I am as a designer and what my strengths and weakness are.
My personal aim for this project is to help me understand my career path and to refine my graphic design skills both on and off the screen. I want to be able to create packaging that looks high quality and professional. Also, I want to be able to improve my confidence in designing on screen and learning about new techniques. To help me accomplish these goals I will be planning my time well and researching relevant topics that link with my project. Also, I will be attending workshops and exhibitions to help me understand what is going on in the world of graphic design right now. My development for this project will be seen in my design journal, which will include the entire process of my project from start to finish. Before this project, I was never comfortable with branding, however, I am hoping by the end of this project I have learnt more about the practice.
Throughout my degree, I have always experimented with creating a piece of physical artwork without using a laptop, which is something I would like to continue for my final piece. However, with my previous projects, I have learnt to enjoy the digital side of graphic design and developed my skills. Another aim of my project is to learn more about a graphics practice, which would be branding.
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WHAT IS RESEARCH
What is Research?
There are many ways to define what research is, for example it can be used explain or backup pieces of evidence. Also it can be used to analyse pieces of information that has been gathered for a certain subject or topic. Research is a process of gathering data about a certain subject and documenting the finding, which can include facts, theories and opinions. Whilst designing, research is an important step in the process as it explores the subject from different points of view. After that it’s all about getting in-depth knowledge and organising all the information that can be used. Also research can be used to inspire designs and explore different methods to get to the finished product. It can be used to help with experimentation and shed light on what the next step should be whilst designing.
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is what I’m doing when I don’t “ Research know what I’m doing. ” Wernher von Braun
Researching is all about getting to know a subject in more detail and choosing the areas that relate to your topic and interest you.
Quote - https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/research
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Purpose of Research
The purpose of research is a vital part in the design process as it will answer questions and expand your knowledge of the subject. Questions such as who are the competitors and what is the history of a certain perfume brand are all answered while researching. Research is an important part whilst designing as it helps to understand and organise the process of design.
Research helps to look at similar products that are already on the market, which can be a source on inspiration and can be used when designing. Research can be used to understand what your product has to offer that other products do not. Also researching helps find solutions for problems that occur whilst designing and solves them to make the product better. Well-conducted research offers information about the latest design trends, as well as background research into the areas of design.
Researching is an essential part as it helps to gather information on the topic, target audience and design process. Also it helps to create solutions for problems, such as searching for inspiration for a specific pattern for perfume packaging. Researching helps to develop in-depth knowledge on a certain subject, which can be used to while designing a certain product.
Well-done research always comes with rewards as it provides answers and information to questions. Research is a chance to understand in-depth information about the topic that interests you and come across new facts that could be helpful. There would be nothing worse than designing a brand or packaging to discover its too similar to another brand or the style does not suit the target market.
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Primary Research Type of Research
Primary research is information that has been conducted by you. Primary research is solely based on what information you need and want, for instance if there is a new perfume targeted at girls between 18 to 25 year olds, the research would include feedback regarding the specific questions that are asked, such as what scents did you get from the fragrance. The aim of primary research is collecting data that is accurate and can be controlled how the information is collected.
Focus groups are a popular research technique as it’s a fast way to gather information from a number of people all at once. Also focus groups can be used to collect data from different types of people that fit the criteria, for example females between the ages of 18 and 25 from different ethnical backgrounds. Another primary technique is observation, which includes observing the target audience reactions of the topic and making notes. Unlike focus groups the researcher interacts with the audience, in observation, there is no direct interaction between the researcher and consumer. This can be a long and boring process as it includes watching the reaction of the consumer.
Also primary research includes surveys, interviews, focus groups and observations. Interviews are a great way to collect data, as the response is more personal and delivers accurate results. Open-ended interviews help to gain in-depth information into the opinions of the audience. Furthermore, surveys are mostly done online as they convenient and can be sent by email or filled out online. Most surveys include a mixture of open-ended and closed-ended question, which means some information may be left out.
However there are disadvantages to primary research as it can be time-consuming. Primary research involves a lot of personal time to conduct interviews, sending surveys and then organising the data that is received. Also primary research may not be enough, for example more information may be required for a topic, which will mean looking elsewhere.
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Secondary Research
Secondary research involves data that already exists. This type of research includes data that has been collected by others and that is available for others to use. Secondary research involves using existing data that has already been sourced for you to help support your subject, for example surveys that included the best perfumes for women in 2019. Also secondary data is much more time efficient as it is only retrieving data that already exists. One benefit of secondary data is that it’s already organised, which means its faster and easier to access the information needed.
Educational libraries would have articles, books and other sources that would only be accessed by students or staff, which would mean it would be a unique source. Secondary research includes commercial sources, such as newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations. Commercial sources are a great way to obtain information has they have include first hand information that has been collected. A down side about secondary research is data may not be accurate and not to be trusted. Secondary research may not be up to date, which will mean some information may be left out. Also some of the secondary research that has been gathered may overlap with primary research that has been collected. Another down side of secondary research is that it may not be specific, which will men some question may not be answered or there will be no relevant information. A major issue with secondary research is some sources might have copyright issues, which will mean some information, will not be available to use.
Also secondary research includes data that is available on the Internet, which is one of the most popular ways in collecting the information that is needed. Another source of secondary data can be libraries, whether it be a public or university library, they have data that may be of importance to a specific subject. Also libraries include large collections of books or articles that can be used to gather information.
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Qualitative Research
Qualitative research involves gathering information on people’s opinion and explores their experiences. It is based on text-based research that explores what other people have said. Also qualitative research focuses on the text and side of research, which includes interviews, case studies and theories. Qualitative research is often gathered from observations, surveys and existing text. An aim for qualitative research is to understand the opinions of individuals or groups. It is all about exploring explaining the how and why questions that have been asked and finding information that is related to the topic. Furthermore, qualitative research is mostly unstructured, which can lead to information be scattered all over the place. Most of the information that is gathered through qualitative research use open-ended questions, which allow in-depth information. This helps to understand the data in detailed and is often text heavy data. However, photographs, videos and recordings can also be considered qualitative research as they involve people’s opinion. Qualitative research explores ideas and opinions for the purpose of developing a theory, which can then be used to back up findings.
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Quantitative Research
Quantitative research is uses numbers to form data that can be used to gather information. Also quantitative research is collected in a more structure-based way than qualitative research as it involves gathering information based on statists. Quantitative research includes collecting data from a number of sources for instance online surveys, systematic observations, online polls and face-to-face interviews. Having quantitative research number based, means the findings and information is more precise and based on verifiable statists. Quantitative research starts out by being general information that can be turned into specific data and be used to answer questions and support the findings. Moreover, quantitative research is based solely on structured statists, rather than the opinions of the audience. Quantitative research can be orgainsed by specific algorithms or systems to help understand the data that has been gathered. Having data that is easily organised makes it easier to navigate what needs to be kept. Also quantitative research is gathering cold hard facts and figures that give quick information to help understand what needs to be improved in the product, for example if a survey for a new perfume was taken and the results came back as 80% of the women thought the perfume was overpower. This shows that there needs to be a changed made in the ingredients in the perfume.
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FIELD OF STUDY
FIELD OF STUDY Women’s Cosmetics
The aspect of branding that interested me were women’s beauty products, which includes products such as makeup, perfume and jewellery. I was interested in understanding if packaging played a big part when buying certain products and if the brands were the reason behind purchasing the product. Also, the field of study was all about narrowing down my final idea, which came from understanding what I was interested in. The field of study was the area of research that I would look at for me to get to my final idea. It was a way for me to pick what area I was interested in. The field of study helped me refine my main focus, which is women’s perfume. I chose women’s perfume as I wanted to create a brand and packaging that would appeal to a younger audience and it would be something that they could afford. Being a university student there are not many luxury perfume brands that are aimed at students as they are expensive. Also, I wanted to create a brand and packaging design that looked feminine yet mischievous, which would appeal to young women. Finding a perfume that smells good, looks good and is affordable yet is a luxury brand is hard to come by. Speaking to a few young women, most buy perfume from high street stores such as Zara and Superdrug as they are affordable and smell good.
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is a mark of female identity and “ Perfume the final touch of her style. ” Christian Dior
Quote - http://www.wiseoldsayings.com/perfume-quotes/)
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FOCUS
FOCUS Women’s Perfume
The main focus for my final major project is creating a women’s perfume brand and designing packaging for said brand. One of the reasons that I chose to create and design a women’s perfume brand is my own fascination with perfume. From a young age, I was always looking and smelling the different types if perfumes my mum and sister wore and as I got older that fascination grew more and more. I wanted to know why women wore perfume and how smelling a certain way can change your mood. Also, I was interested in how they would make these amazing scents up, did they have to go too far away lands to get certain scents or did people in boring lab coats make it.
However, after being introduced to the design world, I became interested in the branding and packaging side of women’s perfumes. Questions such as do women buy perfume based on the smell or is it all in the name, for example, if a perfume smells like a field of daisies, however, it was made by The Body Shop, yet the same smell would be designed by Chanel. Would women buy The Body Shop perfume, which costs £8.99 or would they go for Chanel, which costs £65 solely based on the brand name? Another reason I chose to create a perfume brand and packaging design was my love for perfume packaging. Whenever I buy perfume I like, most of the time I keep the packaging because I love the look of it. My favourite packaging design is Elie Saab Girl of Now, which is embossed and is foiled. The design is simple, yet I am mesmerised by the beauty of it. The packaging itself represents the perfume and the smell of it.
Obviously now I know to some extent of how perfume is made, which includes extracting oils from the ingredients, then it’s all about blending them together and the final stage is ageing the perfume. Also, I became interested in the stories behind the perfumes, such as Chloé Love Story tells a story about falling in love over and over again. 24
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are no women who do not like “ There perfume, there are women who have not found their scent. � Marilyn Monroe
Quote - https://www.scentbird.com/blog/15-worlds-best-quotes-fragrance/)
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HISTORY
HISTORY Perfume
Perfume has been around for centuries. From the Ancient Egyptians using perfume in rituals to brands such as Guerlain and Coty becoming the first big companies to mass-produce perfume. The history of perfume is much more than people trying to smell nice, it involves people expressing their class status, religious devotions and cleanliness. From looking at how Chanel No.5 broke the sales records and understanding why having celebrities being the face of perfume brands defined that perfume line for decades, for instance having a Marilyn Monroe as the face of Chanel No.5. Perfumes have come a long way and have developed throughout its time, from chemicals that were derived from the butts of dead cats, “sweat of god�, scented feet and whale vomit. The ingredients for perfumes have been more historically important than who endorses them. Scents have always been used to create a division in class status. Perfume has been used to divide nobles from the peasants, for example, Elizabeth I wore perfume made that was made of musk and rosewater.
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Ancient Egypt
The ancient Egyptians were huge fans of perfume and used it for many purposes such as religious rituals and beautification. The Egyptians believed the scent came from the “sweat of the sun god Ra�. Egyptians considered smelling clean and nice was a sign of health and vitality. Also, the Egyptians had a god of perfume called Nefertum, who wore a headdress made out of water lilies, which was one of the main ingredients used during that time to create perfume. Other ingredients that were used include Frankincense, opopanax and myrhh. Also, oil was used as the base for the perfumes that were created instead of alcohol, which is used today. For Kings and other high status, Egyptians perfume was apart of their everyday life, they were covered in scented oils to keep them fragrant throughout the day. This meant peasants were not allowed to wear any perfume as it a way to show the ranks of people. Most of the ingredients that the Egyptians used in their perfumes were imported from Punt, a region in Africa. Trading ingredients became a big part of international relationships for both regions and other places such as Europe and Asia.
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Ancient Persia
For the ancient Persian royals were also truly invested in perfume. It was common for Persian kings to be pictured with perfumes bottles. The Persians ruled over the perfume trade for hundreds of years. Also, it was believed that they were the ones that invented the distillations process, which led to the discovery of uses alcohol as the base instead of oil. Philosopher, Avicenna was one of the first people to experiment with the chemistry that persevered the aromas of flowers by distillation. He figured out the chemistry behind perfumes that were not oil based and that would create better scents. By the thirteenth century, Persia was manufacturing most of the raw materials that were used on scents. They would export the materials to Venice, where together they with exotic products and species, would trade to the Middle and the Far East.
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Ancient Rome and Greece
Many of ancient Roman and Greek perfume recipes have survived, which meant we are able to recreate ancient perfumes that Romans and Greeks wore. The Romans and Greek documented their perfume making processes, for instance, there is a mural in a perfume makers house in Pompeii, which documents the process of making Greco-Roman perfumes. The process included, first, the base of the perfume would be made, which was made by olives being pressed down. Then ingredients such as plants and woods were added to the oil using thorough scale measurements. Finally, they were left to steep, which is where the ingredients are left in the oil so it could take on the scents. The final step would be selling the perfume.
The ancient Greeks believed perfume was a gift from the gods, which led to many of them being named after Greek goddesses. Wearing perfume became an act of pleasing the gods. Many Greeks used perfume as a form of aromatherapy, which uses certain scents to improve health, vitality, and moods. Similar to the ancient Egyptians, the Greeks used perfume in everyday life, from birth to marriage to death. They would wrap bodies in perfumed cloths to ensure their happiness in the afterlife. Also on wedding days, they would consider using specials fragrances as a good omen. Another way the Greeks used perfume was a source of hospitality, which meant whenever guests would arrive at a home, the servants would wash their feet in perfumed oils. However, it was not until Alexander the Great ruled Egypt and sent plants, spices and incense to Greece for perfume that would be created for him.
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Ancient China
Ancient Chinese relationship with scent is quite different, as it did not focus on wearing perfume, instead, they used scent by burning incense and fragrant materials in special places. Also, most of Chines perfume ingredients were used for other purposes such as food and medicine. Perfume was never considered a cosmetic there, however, they used it as a disinfectant and for purity as it was believed scents could eliminate diseases from rooms. For China, wearing perfume was never the trend, even though scented flowers were places in traditional gardens and women used mandarin oranges to scent their hands. Chines women also gathered fragrant grass for fertility rites. However, the period between the Sui and the Song dynasties, there was a widespread in perfume. Nobles would compete with one another to see who had the best scent and there was a rise in importing ingredients via the Silk Road, which was an ancient network of trade routes. By the Qing dynasty, which lasted from 1644 to 1912, the emperor carried a perfume pouch, which was an adaptation to the traditional pocket pouch that brought luck. He would stuff the perfume pouch with fragrant herb and keep it with him all year round.
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Medieval Europe
Between the 1200s and 1600s, many people carried a pomander, which was a scented ball of material that was kept inside an open case. The pomander was suggested to ward off infection and kept the air around you clean and smelling nice. Many medieval Europeans believed that bad air could make you sick, which is the theory of miasma that guessed diseases were created from badly scented and unhealthy air. This meant the pomanders were seen as literal lifesavers and a charming accessorise to have.
Also, one of the first alcohol-based perfume was created during this period. It was known as Hungary Water, as it was believed to be created for the Queen of Hungary and involved distilled alcohol and herbs. Some of the animal-based ingredients included the “musk pod� of the male musk deer, which is an organ used for marking territory. The civet ingredient is from the anal glands of civet cats and castor is made from the scent glands of beavers. Also, the ambergris comes from sperm whales, which is a grey oily lump that is found in the digestive system.
The idea behind the pomander popped up in the Middle Ages after the Crusaders returned from the war in Arabia, which s where they brought back perfume making secrets from the enemy. Also, the whole idea of personal oil-based perfumes did not work out well, however, the discovery of civet, castor, mush, ambergris and other animal-based products could be used to make bases for scents.
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1400s - 1500 Italy
During the 1400s and 1500s Italy, a major breakthrough in the perfume industry happened. They discovered how to create aqua mirabilis, which is a clear substance that is made out of 95% alcohol and is infused with a strong scent. This was the first step in creating liquid perfume. After the invention of the aqua mirabilis, Venice became the centre of the perfume world. Catherine de Medici who was an Italian and married to French Henry II was one of the people that displayed Italian perfume for France and the rest of the world. She had her own perfume created for her by her Italian perfumer Rene le Florentin. The perfume itself was scented water with bergamot and orange blossom. Also, he created musk and civet scented gloves for her. However, in 1800s Victorian England, artificial mixes of perfume began to be discovered, which introduced the modern perfume industry.
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Present Day
Another area of perfume that is being explored is how the sense of smell can help. The sense of smell is considered to be connected to the right side of the brain, which is where emotions, memory and creativity are active. Aromatherapy is being studied by how smells of certain oils and fragrances can cure physical and emotional problems, such as helping to balance hormones and body energy. The theory that is behind aromatherapy states that using essential oils can help strengthen the immune system when inhaled or massaged in.
Perfumes now are being made and used in many different ways than they did in the past. One major change in the perfume industry now is how perfumes are being manufactured faster and they contain more artificial chemicals than natural oils. Also, less intense perfumes are becoming increasingly popular now as more and more people wear them throughout the day and do not want to be suffocated by too many scents. Using perfume to heal, make people feel good about themselves and improve relationships between the sexes is the next stage that the perfume industry is exploring. Creating perfumes for both males and females to use is a step in which the perfume industry is going in, for instance, CK One by Calvin Klein is one of the most common unisex perfumes that are available.
Just like aromatherapy, research is being conducted to create human perfumes and understanding the body scents that we produced and how they attract or repel other people. Also, new perfumes are being created to duplicate the effect of pheromones that attract humans to the opposite sex. Perfumes are being created to help stimulate sexual arousal receptors in the brain and how certain scents make that happen. Perfumes could help improve the physical and emotional well-being of humans.
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FRENCH PERFUMES
HISTORY French Perfume
France has become one of the main hubs of the perfume industry. Some of the greatest names in the perfume industry all come from France, such as Chanel, Christian Dior and Estée Lauder. The perfume industry is centred around Paris, where creators of prestigious perfumes are based, whereas Grasse is the historical capital of the flowers and ingredients that are used in the perfumes. With Grasse mild climate, it is the perfect place to grown fields of scented flowers, such as roses, lavender and jasmine. Professional perfumers or “noses” as they are called in France are still based mainly in Grasse and Paris and they work to create blends of the utmost perfectly scented perfumes for the world.
The perfume journey in France began from Catherine de’ Medici, who came to France in 1553 to marry King Henry II. When Catherine de’ Medici left Italy and came to France, she brought along her trusted perfumer with her, Renato the Florentine, who created her perfumes. Catherine de’ Medici would wear perfume scented gloves as she did not like the way the leather made her hands smell. After she arrived in France, she helped boots local industries of scents in Montpellier and Grasse in the south of France. However, the true turning point for the perfume industry in France came when scent-obsessed King Louis XIV (1638–1715), encouraged the development of perfume making. The King’s minister of finance, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, made sure companies who were making perfume, where supported and had everything they needed to develop the craft of perfume making. By doing so, this meant France was becoming the centre point in the European perfume industry. 48
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After some time King Louis XIV moved his court from Paris to Versailles, to overlook the making of perfume. The inside of his palace was brimmed with perfume, which earned Versailles the name “the Perfumed Court.� During the era that had no indoor sanitation, the French royalty found aromatic solutions to keep pleasant scents in the living environment. They would fill water bowls with flower petals and would scent their furniture, fabric and feathers fans. Royalty would also add scents to their garden fountains to help sweeten the air around them.
Also in the palace, the daily grooming of oneself, involve applying cosmetics on the whole body and face. Dusting scents onto hair wigs and sprinkling perfume onto fresh linen was another daily activity. King Louis XIV had his own shirts scented with Aqua Angeli. The scent was made from nutmeg, coves, benzoin, which is a sweet-smelling gum. It also included storax and aloeswood that are two exotic Eastern materials that were boiled in rosewater. Orange flower, jasmine and musk were added to the scented mixture.
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However, even after sanitation was developed, French royals stilled used their own perfumes. Queen Marie Antoinette custom made lavish scents to the House of Houbigant that reflected her romantic moods. Similarly, NapolĂŠon Bonaparte, who was a military man, was crazy about perfume. He would consume cologne-soaked sugar cubes to rejuvenate. Another French royalty that loved perfume was Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III. She was known as a fashion icon and favoured the perfume Guerlain. The citrusy perfume Eau de Cologne ImpĂŠriale was composed for Empress Eugenie in 1853 and was very first Eau de Cologne by Guerlain. It is still being produced today. From the places of French royalty to perfume boutiques around Paris, France has shown the development of fragrances and how important they are. Fragrances continue to express femininity in the simplest way, yet add elegance and grace to the everyday women.
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Why French Perfumes
One of the reasons I chose to look into French perfumes was the diversity of perfumes that are created. France has become one of the main contributors to the fragrance industry by having the city of Grassed near Cannes, where most of the industry fragrance developed from perfumed gloves to now it is the centre of perfume making. The fragrance industry in France has never seen a decline.
After speaking to young women in my target audience, I came across many of them loving and choosing French perfumes. This led me to research the history behind French perfumes and get to grips as what make French perfumes so loveable. I found information on were some of the most common ingredients that are used in perfumes are grown in France, such as jasmine, lavender, myrtle and wild mimosa.
France has expanded its perfume industry by creating hundreds of new scents each year, which means a bigger and wider target audience. Also, French perfumes are among the most incredible and varied scents in the world, with brands such as Chanel, Nina Ricci and Guerlain, that creates endless amounts of love potions that women and men all over the world adore.
Before this project, I did not know much about perfume, just that it is something I put on to smell nice. However, after reading about perfumes in France and how it became one of the main places perfume is made, I became more intruded in why some many women wear perfume and if there are any stories linked to perfumes they wear.
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4. “Long after one has forgotten what a woman wore, the memory of her perfume lingers.� - Christian Dior
Quote - https://thoughtcatalog.com/kara-nesvig/2015/05/16-quotes-thatperfectly-explain-the-magic-of-perfume/)
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5. “A woman’s perfume tells more about her than her handwriting.” - Christian Dior
Quote - https://thoughtcatalog.com/kara-nesvig/2015/05/16-quotes-thatperfectly-explain-the-magic-of-perfume/)
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BRANDING
HISTORY Branding
Branding has been around for hundreds of years. To brand something has developed over time since the word came into use. The word brand originated from the word “ Brandr”, a word that came from Ancient Norse, which meant, “to burn”. Around 950 A.D branding meant to burn a piece of wood.
During the 1820s, there was a rise in mass production in trade goods. Products such as wines and ales began to be distributed wider, which lead to producers burning their brand into crates and packaging. Burning their own mark into their products meant suppliers could separate themselves from their completion. By the 1870s, companies or suppliers could register their trademarks to prevent competitors from stealing or creating similar products. This meant certain symbols were associated with certain products.
However, by the 1500s the meaning of branding had changed and referred to a mark burned on cattle to shoe ownership. Ranches would have their own unique mark burnt onto their cattle to show their ownership. Also, the mark would be used to determine if their animals were lost, stolen or got mixed with animals from other ranches. Each of the brands had to be simple, unique and be easy to identify, which are traits that are still common with modern branding.
A major breakthrough in the branding industry came through the introduction of mass media. By the 1960s, distributors were using mass media to combined brands with emotions. Associating brands with feelings created an emotional connection that would sway the buyers. For example, Chanel perfumes are associated with the feelings of glamour, luxury and femininity.
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By the 1980s, companies began to focus solely on building their brands and getting recognised, rather than focusing on their products or services. Creating brands that would be recognised meant consumers would become loyal to their products and they would create personal attachments that certain companies. Branding was not only used for products, however, but political groups, celebrities and corporate companies also used branding as a tool to get their names known. The rise of the Internet and social media brought a whole new evolution of branding. Consumers of the 21st century want brands that add the personal touch to them. Brands such as Facebook and Instagram use personal preferences to gain their consumer’s trust and loyalty. Branding has come a long way from simply burning symbols onto cattle, it has been used to promote major companies around the globe.
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What is Branding?
Branding is much more than logo designs, slogans and business cards. Branding is all about what you have to offer. It’s about the values and principles that are perceived throughout the company or product. Also, branding is a carefully set of actions that express the emotions and beliefs that make up the brand. It’s not only how you perceive your brand, but also how your target audience identifies the products of that brand. Logs, business cards and websites are all apart of the brand identity, however, branding is all about how an audience connect with the products.
Branding is all about the ideas and images that the target audience have in mind when thinking about products, for example how a certain product makes you feel. Therefore, branding is not only about the physical features, but it’s also the feelings that are associated with the product or company. An important part about a brand is how the consumers connect with the brand itself as products can be copied, however, a brand has to be unique from the start.
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Furthermore, when branding is done, it can become a beautiful mixture of design, typography, language and colour, all bringing together the values and ethics of the brand. Designing a brand is all about the message that you want to put across to your target audience by choosing specific colours and typography. Also, a brand is visually showing what the brand stands for and highlights the message that wants to be put across. Branding is all about receiving an emotional response from the audience and making them believe what the brand wants. Also, branding is about creating a specific meaning, which can help draw in the target audience, for example, the message behind Lancome’s, Tresor is “The fragrance for treasured moments.�
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Brand process
It all starts off with what is a brand and what is brand identity. A brand is a way a company represents itself the world. Branding involves designing and shaping the character of a brand. Also, brand identity includes all of the brand elements that the company designs and creates to portray the right image of themselves to their consumers. The brand identity includes everything that gets the brand easily recognised by their consumers, for example, their logo, business card even a tag line.
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Strong brand identity The best way to develop a strong brand identity is to know what the mission and the values are important to the brand. Also, it is important to create a brand personality, which portrays the type of nature the brand has and what makes them special and unique. Just like brand personality, it is important for a brand to understand their tone of voice, this will help to understand how to communicate to the audience, for instance in a friendly or serious manner. One of the main aspects of brand identity is how a brand differentiates themselves from their competitors and understands what the brand can give to the consumer that the competitors cannot.
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The Design The design of the brand can either make it or break it, from the logo to the packaging and the web design. Each of the different assets are an important part of the brand. Getting the design right will mean the brand identity will look good. This will mean the brand will be an accurate representation of who the brand it and how successful it will be. Creating a brand starts from the bottom, from the typography to the colour palette and shape of the logo design. Typography is a major aspect of the brand as it says a lot about the brand, for example, if a brand is going for a feminine atmosphere, the typeface may be curvy and light, whereas a more serious brand will have a simple and easy to read typeface. Also, the colour palette is a big visual aspect of the design that needs to work, as it is what links all the elements together. Colour is also associated with emotions, which is an important part of the design process as the chosen colour has a serious impact on how the brand is perceived by the target audience. For instance, the colour green is associated with nature, which will be a good colour for an environmental brand. When it comes to designing the logo, thinking about form and shape is an important element. The shape and form of a logo can be used to highlight the desired reaction from the audience, for instance, a logo design that circular, appear warm and soft, which links to the community. Whereas a logo that has sharp edges will appear serious and trustworthy.
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Design elements Once all of the elements of the brand chosen, such as colour palette, typography and form, it is time to move onto the brand identity. Brand identity can express a number of elements and depend on the business, some assets may be more important than others. An example of this would be a digital advertising agency will focus more on how their website flows and look on their social media pages.
Logo The logo is the basis of any brand. It is the element that goes on every piece of marketing, whether it be a website or business cards, the logo is an element of the brand that everyone sees. The logo of a brand should clearly communicate who the brand is to the audience and it should be visually appealing. For instance, it should be clean, simple and easy to understand. The brand logo should make a lasting impression on the audience. Another aspect of the logo that needs to be taken into account is how it sits within the other marketing elements, for example, social media pages and packaging design. For example, does the logo work in black and white and does it look when it’s resized to fit on bigger or smaller pieces of work.
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Website/social media Another aspect of brand identity that needs to be taken into account is the website and social media platforms. The website and social media platforms should be the most characteristic aspects of the brand identity. With technology on the rise, websites and social media accounts are important platforms to communicate with the audience. Websites and social media pages are where the brand identity should shine and be in full focus as this is where many people decide of the brand/product are worth their time.
Product packaging design Having a physical element in brand identity can be another way for the brand to shine. It can be a way to communicate the brand to the audience in a more personal and individual way. Product packaging a key element in attracting the right consumer. For example, if packaging for a perfume brand includes a logo, brand name and the perfume name. It also includes colours that can be associated with a perfume collection from that brand, which the audience has seen on their website or social media. Having a physical element in brand identity is a great way to interact with the audience as it drives both loyalty and repeats purchase of products from the audience.
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Business Cards Business cards are a fast way to exchange information from brand to client. A well-designed business card offers a chance to connect with the audience and create a positive image of the brand. It reflects that image and professional status. Having creative and unique business cards will leave an impression on the client or audience. However, it should be simple enough for the audience to understand and get the key details that are needed about the brand, such as name, email and phone number.
Brand Guidelines Brand guidelines layout the design asset. Once the design assets are designed, the brand guidelines make sure they are used in the right way. It outlines what designers and other business can use and how to use the brand elements, for instance, the typeface that is used throughout the brand must not be changed or altered. Also, the brand guidelines created to make sure wherever the brand assets are used, they are used in the correct way for the audience still recognise the brand.
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EMOTIONAL BRANDING
Emotional branding
Consumer today expect a lot from brands, they expect them to know they are and what they want. Consumers today expect brands to know who they are as individuals and their cultural orientation. This creates a bigger challenge for the branding industry, as consumers are willing to spend money on brands that “known� them. Also with the rise of social media and influences from daily cultural around the world, it has made the lives of the consumers wanting more and has increased their expectations of brands. This is where emotional branding comes in, it creates a relationship between the brand and consumer by tackling issues that are most meaningful to them. Brands have started to connect with their audience by creating and designing products that are culturally relevant, socially acceptable, and are something that is needed throughout the consumer’s lives.
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branding is a means of creating “ Emotional a personal dialogue with consumers � Marc Gobe
Every year thousands of new brands are introduced, so what makes each brand different? What is the difference between YSL Black Opium and Marc Jacobs Daisy perfume? It all comes back to the emotional relationship that the consumer has with the brand. The emotional connection is what makes the consumer choose a brand that they like. It is the promise that the brand makes to the consumer, for instance, YSL Black Opium suggests women who wear this perfume will instantly irresistible and seduce everyone around them.
Quote - Gobe, M. (2010). Emotional Branding. New York: Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated.
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Target audience
There are three major age groups that link to retail. They are the baby boomers (46 to 64-year-olds), then Gen Xers (29 to 45-year-olds) and finally Gen Yers (10 to 28-year-olds). All of these consumer segments do not speak the same language when it comes to branding. For example, the baby boomers look for status and performance in their brands, whereas, Gen Xers value imagination, originality and relationships within brands. Finally, Gen Yers look for brands that are fun, interactive and create new experiences for them.
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As I am targeting women between 18 to 25-year-olds, the generation that I am researching is people from the Gen Yers, which may be one of the most complicated groups as they tend to get bored with the mainstream, and as soon as a brand becomes big it is in danger of becoming unpopular. Creating a brand that will appeal to this generation leads back to respecting them and identifying that they are mature adults. This generation is all about following the latest trends yet still being individual, which means brands create products that still let the consumers express who they are, whether it be letting them personalise their products. Reading about the Gen Yers, it has come to my knowledge that them using technology is not all about shopping and playing games but a way they stay connected to one another, which brands use to their advantage. By having logos or brands marketing material on social media sites or other Internet sites means the brands are always connected to their consumer. An advantage of brands doing this means they are directly connecting and communicating to their target audience and using language that they would understand.
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Gender
As my target audience are young women between 18-25, researching about how they respond to emotional branding is an interesting way for me to understand how to create my brand to appeal to them. Women have always been shoppers and have influenced trends for many years. Emotional branding for women has become highly valued, as they understand the values and ethics behind brands. Also, women look at the bigger picture in brands, for instance, what the brand stands for or if a brand’s ethics are similar to theirs and is if the brand’s image matches to their own. They want to make a deeper connection and relationship with brands they like. Women consumers want to be respected by brands, for instance, women would research about a product before buying it and are careful when it comes to making major decisions like what hair straighter to get or what car would be better suited for their lifestyle. Also, women look for brands that express their individuality, for example, a woman is feminine, powerful yet is smart and sexy.
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“ No company today can afford to ignore women.� Marc Gobe
Women base most of their big decision on emotions they feel and the connection they feel for that product. They want to understand if they buy perfume from Dior, what will it do for them personally. Finally, when shopping for clothes or a car, women want brands that they trust and often look for brands that represent something important to them. Having a brand that gains a women’s trust will often mean she will stay loyal to that brand. All of these elements go back to emotional branding targeting women.
Gen Y female consumers have made it their mission to stand up in what they believe in. They are females who are playing by their own rules and creating trends as they go. Gen Y females have started to carve their own definition of what beauty stand for them, which has more to do with personal style. Linking this to emotional branding means Gen Y female are stepping out of traditional stereotypes, for instance buying products that are targeted are men and making decisions that men would normally make like what car or TV to buy. This means Gen Y women will much less likely to tolerate stereotypes in branding for products.
Quote - Gobe, M. (2010). Emotional Branding. New York: Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated.
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Brand Presence
Brand presence is all about creating identities that connect with different national and global audiences through the use of appropriate visual and emotional designs to create different experiences. However, the key element that should always be consistent through brand presence is the core brand values. Brand presence is all about communication that is targeted, personal and relevant to an audience without compromising the brand identity. In order for a brand to stay connected to its audience, in their day to day lives and connect the consumer’s lifestyle as well. Also, to connect to a growing audience, brands need to be able to evolve and be able to connect with consumers emotionally in various ways at different times during the brand’s existence.
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“ Brands are not static; they have many facets to their personality.� Marc Gobe
A crucial part of a brand presence is understanding how to build an emotional experience with the consumers at different times. Brands need to be felt as well seen, as it is important to connect with an audience in a more personal way. A key way to understand how to connect to consumers is putting the brands view in their shoes, what is the first thing the consumers should see and what message do you want the consumer to gain from a brand.
Quote - Gobe, M. (2010). Emotional Branding. New York: Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated.
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PACKAGING
What is Packaging?
Packaging design is a stylised form of functionality. The main function of packaging is to carry, support, protect and present a product. The style or design is created to draw in the audience. Style creates a desire for the product and delivers what the brand has promised its consumers. It enriches the users experience when purchasing the product.
Packaging design involves designing the container of the product to appeal to a specific target audience. It should be designed in such a way that it shows the strength of the brand and make the consumer want to purchase the product. An example of this is the perfume packaging for Gucci Bloom, which is designed with a floral print on the packaging. The floral design not only links to the scent of the perfume but also Gucci Bloom fashion accessories collection that includes bags, backpacks and sneakers.
The packaging tells a story. It is a physical experience that engages the audience through sight, touch, sound, smell and taste of the product. All of the little details on the packaging invite the consumer in and want them to pick up the product and get a closer look at it. The packaging is designed to help the consumer to understand what the product is, how it should be used, who should use it and if they should purchase it or not.
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One of the main functions of packaging design promotes the content that is inside. Depending on the type of product that is inside, the packaging design can be simple and straight-forward or colour and extravagant. Brand designing their packaging in a specific way to make sure the consumer sees their product first among all of the others like it. Information on the product may be printed on the packaging, which let the consumer know what is in the product straight away. Some packaging design is used to evoke some type emotion out of the consumer, for example whenever I smell the perfume Lancome Tresor in a store, it instantly reminds me if my mum who always wears the perfume whenever we go out. These types of emotions are used to get the consumers attention.
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Designing Packaging Elements when designing packaging
Before starting designing packaging for a product, there are questions that need to be answered. For instance, what is the product? Who is the target audience? How will people purchase the product?
What is the product? This question is all about determining if there are any logistical requirements that have been created for the product packaging. For example, perfume bottles are made out of glass, which is a delicate material that requires more secure packaging. Also thinking about how the product will be transported will mean thinking about how the packaging should be designed, for example, will the product in extra cushion inside the packaging design? Knowing what the product helps to understand how big or small the packaging needs to and what materials should it be made out of.
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Who is the target audience for the product? Product packaging should appeal to its idea consumer. It is an important element to understand before starting the design process. For instance, is the product aimed at women or men and is it targeted at children or adults. Knowing the audience to all of these types of questions will help design packaging that will attract the consumer. Packaging design that is targeted at young females between the ages of 18 and 25 will be attracted to designs that involve pastel colours, feminine and easy to read yet curvy typeface. For example, if a perfume brand describes itself as a luxury, the materials how the packaging looks should represent that.
How will people purchase the product? Knowing where the product is going to be sold changes the packaging design for the product. For example, the packaging will look different if the product is going to be sold just online or if it will be sitting on store shelves. If the product is going to be sitting on store shelves then the packaging will need to be designed in a certain way to make it stand out from the competition. However, if the product will be sold online, then thinking about the stability of the packaging will be a top priority as the product will be transported differently, which may mean the packaging may bend, tear and break.
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Designing Packaging
The packaging design process is a long one, from choosing the right packaging design for the product to creating the physical packaging design. There are many steps that are involved to research the end point of the design, however, there is more to do after, getting feedback from the target audience about the packaging and the making changes to the design to fit their needs is another process in itself.
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Packaging design layers There are 3 layers when it comes to packaging design. The 3 layers of packaging design are outer packaging, inner packaging and product packaging, however not all products need all 3 layers. Each one of the packaging layers gives the brand a chance to tell a section of the story, for example, it may the story of the product getting deliver to someone’s home.
Outer packaging The outer packaging is the first thing that the consumer sees. The outer packaging is what protects the products, for example when a perfume is ordered online, it comes in a cardboard book that has the address and name of the person who purchased the product. This could include the box that the product is transported in or the bag that the product is paved in.
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Inner packaging The inner packaging is what keeps the product secure and safe. This might be tissue paper that is wrapped around the product to stop it from getting scratched or shoved around. Also, it may be foam packaging peanuts that are used to help the product from breaking while it is on the move. In other cases, it might be a sealed bag that helps to keep the product fresh and new for the consumer.
Product packaging Product packaging is the box that the product comes in. It is the packaging that contains all of the information about the product and is what most people think of when they think about packaging. Also, it can be the bottle that has a label on it, a tag that is on a piece of clothing or the wrapper for a chocolate bar. The product packaging is what the majority of people see when they are buying a product.
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Right Type of Packaging
There are many types of packaging designs available for different types of products. Choosing the right type of packaging is crucial as it is the first thing that the target audience will see yet it has to be practical enough to be used or placed anywhere. Knowing the product helps in choosing the right type of packaging, for example, if the contains something fragile, then the packaging has to make sure it keeps the product safe from any damage. However that does not mean the packaging cannot be creative, for example, Issy Miyake L’eau D’issy pure perfume packaging is an awkward shape, however, it works together with the shape of the bottle. The unique packaging shape is also a point of sale as there is nothing like it on the shelves of stores. Also knowing the competition is another valuable element when designing packaging. Looking at what other brands have designed for their packaging and what is already out on the market will help you design packaging that will stand out from the crowd. For example, the packaging for Dior Poison Girl is simple yet has its own flare. The packaging design is striking and noticeable with its bright pink colour and embossing that goes all around the packaging design. 90
Information Content
Looking back at what is the product? Who is it aimed at and how will people purchase the product helps to understand the type of information that needs to be put on the packaging. Thinking about what the first piece of information the consumer should see and remember is important, as it will the aspect that brings them in. It should be the centrepiece of the design, whether it is the name of the product, the brand or a tagline.
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Evaluating Packaging
After sketching out ideas and creating designs for the packaging, the next stage is getting feedback and evaluating what designs works. A few to think about whilst evaluating and getting feedback from the target market is if the product is clear through the packaging. Also, it is important to evaluate if the packaging is clear for the target audience and if they understand it. Another vital aspect of packaging evaluation is making sure the packaging design is unique and does not look like an exact copy of the inspiration you looked at. Another aspect that should be looked at whilst designing is how the packaging design would look like a physical product. By creating physical mock-ups helps to see what sections of the designs work and which parts need to experiment further. Creating 3D mock-ups of packaging design makes it easier to understand how the final design would look, for example, if I were to create a perfume packaging that was in the shape of a triangle, creating mock-ups would help me to understand the dimensions of the packaging design. Having a physical mock-up helps to see the little imperfections that I wouldn’t see whilst design on the screen. The design on a screen will look completely different once it is created in a 3D product.
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Furthermore, understand how the packaging design would look like whilst it is sitting on the shelves of stores is an important part of the design Self-impact is important for the product that will be sold in the store as the design would have to be able to stand out from the crowd. It is important to understand if elements of the packaging designs stand out, for instance, do the colours work together in the physical mock-up once the packaging is next to similar products. Also does the typeface work together with the product itself. Another aspect that would help to understand how the packaging design looks is by placing it with products similar, for example placing packaging for perfume in the fragrance section in a store and seeing how it looks and observing what other people think about when they see they packaging design.
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Collecting Feedback
Before designing the final packaging design, it is important to get feedback from the target audience. It is important to get feedback from not only the target audience but designers that could help pick out details that non-designer could see. By showing the final product and getting feedback from both designers and the target audience, it will help to answer questions such as what is the key message that you get when looking at the product packaging and does it appeal to the target audience? The answers to these questions will help to determine if the packaging design is meeting all of its targets. Also, it will help decide if the packaging communicates what it needs to and if not, the design needs to be altered and changed to meet the needs.
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EMOTIONAL PACKAGING
Emotional Packaging Packaging
Packaging is an element that needs to catch the consumer’s eye in an instance. The message that the packaging communicates should be easily understood, yet emotionally connected. It should be easy to identify and practical, however, it is important to engage the consumer. even when the consumer has brought the product, the packaging should still appeal to the consumer. Each element of the packaging should invite the consumer in, from the touch of the packaging to how the box is opened. It should create an experience for the consumer and builds on the brands promise to the consumer. Furthermore, packaging is the main communication tool and it may be the first element of the brand that the consumer sees. This means that it needs to be able to stand out from the crowd and claim the attention of the audience. It should also meet the needs of the consumer and fit their personality and style.
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“ Packaging has to compete based on impact in order to be seen, but it must also create an emotional contact with the consumer in order to be loved. - Marc Gobe
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Also, packaging has the power to create emotional attachments between the consumer and a brand. When looking at a product on a shelf, packaging has the power to raise the expectations of the product and make the consumer rethink about their opinion of the brand. For example packaging for Dalston’s soda reflects how they are as a brand, which is fun and loud. It works with the target audience and appeals to them. Packaging is mainly seen as an element designed to protect the product as well to display the product on shelves in stores. Also, it is used to give important information about the product and brand to the consumers, such as the name and the ingredients. Product packaging should be designed in a way that is convenient for consumers to use daily. There are many elements of packaging that should be taken into account such as is it environmentally friendly and how much packaging waste is produced.
Quote - Gobe, M. (2010). Emotional Branding. New York: Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated.
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Fragrance Inustry
Packaging in the fragrance industry is an important element as it is what differentiates one fragrance from another. Fragrance packaging needs to create an emotional promise to the consumer straight away, for example, Daisy Eau So Fresh by Marc Jacobs says that it is a perfume that appeals to men. The fragrance industry is all about how perfume makes you feel, which is why the packaging has to communicate the message clearly. Fragrance packaging needs to express an idea in the most emotionally way possible. By using different shapes, textures and materials invite the consumer in and want more.
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“ Packaging defines cultures and periods
of time, and it is fascinating to see how a brand can evolve through packaging to stay relevant. - Marc Gobe
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Fragrance packaging is all about telling a story and sending out messages to the audience. For example, Chloé Love Story Eau Sensuelle perfume is inspired by a love story between in Paris, which the perfume delivers with its name and scent. In the fragrance industry, packaging and communication go hand in hand. The packaging should communicate what the product is and what the consumer is buying. It should be able to all of the elements from, the container, the visual merchandising to the secondary packaging. All of the fragrance packaging elements need to work to together in order to express the emotional experience that the consumer has with the product.
Quote - Gobe, M. (2010). Emotional Branding. New York: Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated.
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HISTORY OF PACKAGING
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HISTORY Packaging
The development of packaging always comes back to food. Thinking about the stone age, food was immediately on the spot, however, the need to transport food and drink got people thinking about containers and packaging. The history of packaging starts off with the type of material that would be used to create the packaging in the first place, however, the packaging design does come into account and thinking about how packaging a useful element yet still attractive. Before the design of packaging emerged, packaging went through a series of material changes, from glass to plastic to paper. The changes not only reflected how packaging has changed, but it also shows the shift in technology.
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How it all started
Packaging first began in Egypt around roughly around 3,500 years ago. Way before can soups became iconic, the first attempt at packaging was created from natural materials such as gourds, leaves and hollowed out logs. Also, animal skin was used to packaging up food while it was being transported. Most of the Egyptian food and water containers were created from glass water pots, which were coloured. However, it was not for another 500 years that glassmakers could produce transparent glass.
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Flexible Packaging Flexible Packaging
Around 200 B.C, the Chines invented new ways to transport food. They began using treated mulberry bark, which later develops into making paper packaging. Paper packaging is the oldest example of flexible packaging, as it was made from the extracting cellulose fibres from plants. However, the skill of Chinese papermaking took several centuries to reach the west. It was only in 1310, that England developed the skill of papermaking, yet it was not until 400 years later that in arrived in North America. In 1867, paper became industrialised, as the process of extracting cellulose from wood pulp was developed.
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Canned Packaging
Napoleon Bonaparte is known for keeping his French army marching all over Europe and for invading country after country. However, the one challenge that he faced was feeding his army. He offered 12,000 Francs to anyone who could help improve the food lifestyle for him and his army. After 15 years, in 1805, Nicholas Appert who is known as the father of canning understood that food could be preserved for a longer period of time if it was boiled at a high temperature and then sealed in a glass container. This led to British inventor and merchant Peter Durand to use this idea of preserving food for a longer period of time, however, he demonstrated it could be used with a tin can instead of a glass container. This method is still being used today to preserve food and has a longer shelf life.
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The Paper Bag
In 1817, the Victorians produced the first cardboard box. This led it to a thinner version being made for, which was eventually used for cereal boxes. The innovation of the cardboard box was followed shortly by the first commercially manufactured paper bag in England in 1844. However, by 1852, American Francis Wolle invented the bag-making machine. The bag-making machine created an opening for glued paper bags and later developed into the first semi-flexible packaging design.
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Paper Packaging Design
Brooklyn was a major manufacturing centre, however in the 1870s Brooklyn printer and paper bag maker, Robert Gair invented the first automatically made paper boxes. This became the world’s first semi-flexible packaging and today the folding boxes are the main backbone in the dry and processed food market. Also, the first brand that used the folding boxes technique was the National Biscuit Company (NABISCO). Before folding paper boxes were invented, biscuits and cookies were sold in unpackaged containers. The National Biscuit Company used the folding boxes to package their Uneeda biscuit brand. The name for the brand was suggested by one of Gair’s sons, who suggested to the NABISCO that you need a name for the brand.
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Cardboard
In 1906, William Kellogg began using cardboard for cereal packaging. William and his brother Dr John Kellogg ran a hospital in Michigan, which is the developed Corn Flakes cereal as of their patient’s health regimen. However, the original Corn Flakes packaging was different from the one that we are familiar with today. Kellogg originally wrapped the cereal box in wax paper, which meant the cereal was left exposed inside of the cardboard box. The heat-sealed bag was intended to make his product stand out from the rest and make it look more attractive. Nevertheless, John, L Kellogg, William’s son, changed the design, which meant the bag was inside of the box protecting the cereal.
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Frozen Packaging
After Napoleon challenge of preserving food in the 19th century, Clarence Birdseye wanted to take food preservation to the next level. Clarence Birdseye is known as the father of frozen food. Whilst he was working in Northern Canada, Birdseye learned a new technique of preserving food from the Inuit Tribe, which was fast freezing food. Even though Birdseye learned the new technique of preserving food by fast freezing it, frozen packaging did not exist until the 1920s. Clarence Birdseye knew that frozen packaging has to waterproof, remove any air pockets and has to be able to apply waterproof ink into it. This led to a number of experiments, such as cellophane, although that was not yet waterproof. This led to Birdseye approaching DuPont, who design a waterproof version of cellophane.
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Aluminium Cans
Before the first drink can was designed in 1935 by Krueger Beer, drinks were only available in glass bottles. Soda soon joined in the can business, however, one major flaw about cans during that time, was there was no pop tab. This led to consumers having to puncture a whole on the top of the can. In 1959, the drinks can be got a modern update. Coors introduced the aluminium can, which cost less than a tin can. Yet the same problem remained about having to puncture a whole into the top of the can. It was in the same year, a farm boy name Ermal Fraze did not have anything with him to puncture a hole into his can, this led him to get the inspiration for the pop tab that is used today.
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Plastic Packaging
Plastic is the newest material that is used for packaging. Numerous plastic substances were discovered in the 1800s, yet they were not yet ready to be created and design for packaging. It was not until 1908 when cellophane was invented that the foundation of plastic packaging came into light. One of the first commercial plastic packaging designs was an underarm deodorant in a spray bottle named “Stopette� that was debuted in 1946. Years later in 1977, PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) plastic bottles appeared, which quickly became the slandered material for plastic bottles, it was strong, non-toxic and 100% recyclable.
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Packaging Part 2
Living in a world that is filled with billboards, online adverts and sophisticated product marketing. Branding and packaging go hand in hand, that it is difficult to think and imagine products without packaging designs elements. However, for centuries, products such as food, drinks and other consumer goods were sold in nameless and boring glass jars, wooden crates, steel cans and cloth bags. It was not until the late 19th century that paper and tin packaging came into the light and became cheap enough for manufacturers to create them on a larger scale.
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From the Start
It was not until the late 1800s that packaging containers were either used for storage or reserved for luxury goods, for instance, food and jewellery. There were no disposable packaging ideas, which meant some manufacturers saw an opening to promote ‘after use’ packaging. An example of this is The Dixie Queen company, which began to design its tobacco packaging tins to resemble picnic baskets and lunch boxes. These items remained popular until the early 1900s. The rise of multi-use packaging in the late 1900s offers some of the earliest examples of branded consumer packaging. The use of multi-use packaging is still used today, for example, many consumers use recycled bags or branded tote bags from favourite stores.
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Branding on Packaging
The first use of branding on consumers is arguably on the Smith Brothers Cough Drops packaging. The image first appeared in 1866 and the cough drops were very popular. Many of the Smith Brothers competitors began selling cough drops in the streets under similar names. This led the brothers to mark their products by printing their picture on to the product packaging. Just by adding their image and name on the product, meant they were representing their ownership of the brand.
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Designed Packaging
One of the first fully designed brand and consumer packaging design came from NABISCO’s Uneeda biscuits’ in 1896. No manufactures had the resources and ambitions to reach this type of packaging design. NABISCO had invested $1 million in the advertising and branding designing, which led to the brand becoming a success and thrived until 2008 when it was discontinued.
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Branding and Packaging Icons
The curve of the Coca-Cole bottle has become an icon in the branding and packaging industry. Coco-Cole had been a popular soda drink from the beginning of the 1880s. It all started in 1900 when the bottle was straight. This meant the competitors of Coca-Cole began to copy the design of the brand and used names such as ‘Koko-Nola’. In 1914, Coca-Cola took things into their own hands and asked its bottle suppliers for a unique design. In 1915, Coca-Cola showcased its curve bottle, which became an essential branding point. It was not until 1961 that the U.S. Patent Office officially recognised the curve bottle as their trademark.
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Colour and Packaging
P&G (Procter & Gamble) created a memorable packaging design for their consumer. By using strong colours, fonts and images, P&G go the attention of their consumers when they designed their packaging for their Tide detergent in 1946. The packaging was designed by a famed architect and designer and is considered to be one of the first products to use bright and vivid colours for their packaging design. It is not enough for packaging design to look, however, it should also convey a message, which is what P&G did with their Tide detergent. The bright orange and yellow colours were intended to alarm and communicate a sense of heavy duty from the detergent. Also, the bold typeface was in bright blue that was used to communicate the possible danger. Using colours add a sense of emotional branding, which draws the consumer in.
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Printing and Packaging
Until the 1930s packaging designers were limited to only using letterpress print to design on the packaging. The development of flexographic (flexo) printing, which was aniline dye on flexible plates made from rubber and plastic made sure printers could print onto different material such as metal films, milk cartons and folded boxes. The invention of flexographic meant designers could create packaging design that was sophisticated yet contained many colours and images. The first dyes that were used for flexographic printing were made with coal, which meant by the 1940s the FDA had banned using the ink in food-based packaging. Until then flexographic was mainly known as aniline printing. In 1949, safer ink was created and to remove the bad name that aniline printing had produced it was renamed flexographic printing.
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Packaging and Pop Art
Before Andy Warhol became famous for pop art, there were packaging designs there were using pop art in their design. An example of this is ‘The Campbell’s Tomato Soup Can’. The packaging design has strong graphic elements, for instance, the red and white colours, the Campbell’s cursive script and the gold medallion in the centre of the design. The original design dates back to to1897. In 1962, Andy Warhol created 32 silkscreened paintings based on all of Campbell’s flavours, which meant the commercial packaging design was turned into fine art. Pop artist Andy Warhol early pieces of work involved advertising and commercial art. He understood the importance and power that iconic brands had on consumer culture.
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Private Brands
Private brand packaging design got a bad name during the 1970s during the recession, which meant high prices but slow growth. They were seen as generic brands that used plain white packaging that delivered an impression of low quality good. This bad name stuck for years. After some time, retailers changed their generic packaging designs into their premium and high-end brands. An example of this is Costco introducing Kirkland Signature in 1995. Their products used similar type, colours and images as other brands, however in a sophisticated fashion.
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Labels on Packaging
The Nutrition Facts label first began appearing in food packaging in the early 1900s. The label itself became a common occurrence on food packaging and it was suggested it was the most reproduced piece of graphic design of the 20th century. As the Nutrition Facts label was to be printed onto food packaging, the FDA allowed some leeway when designing how the label should look. Designers can use any font size, any single colour and put the label anywhere on the packaging, however it has to be clearly seen by the consumer.
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Barcode on Packaging
The first UPC barcode was produced in 1974. The development of the barcode meant packaging was not just a box placed on a shelf, however, it was a to communicate the value of sale data to the retailer. With the development of QR codes and smartphones in the 21st century, the barcode is the way for the brand to engage with their consumers in aisles of stores or in the comfort of their homes. It was not until 2010 that designers had no changes to make on the barcode on packaging. That year, Digimarc Barcode appeared in the market. Digimarc Barcode is an advanced barcode that can be printed on any sort of packaging. It makes it easier for phones, computers, cameras and other retail barcode scanners to scan the product and create a simple transaction.
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PERFUME
Making of Perfume
The reason I have chosen to research the process of making perfume is to help me understand in-depth of research and technique that goes into making a perfume. Reading about the process of making perfumes has made me understand the thought process goes into making a single perfume, for example figuring out what method of extracting oil would be right for a specific perfume.
Researching the process has helped me to answer any questions that I was stuck on for instance, how many ways are there extract oil from the ingredients and what are some of the processes of extracting oil from the ingredients. Researching and finding more information on the perfume industry has to expand my knowledge and I know understand the process of making perfume better. It has helped me to get with their terminology that is used in the perfume industry such as another name for a perfumer is a “nose�, which stands for an expert on creating perfumes due to their fine sense of smell and skills producing perfumes
Also researching the process of making perfume has future my knowledge of the perfume industry. It has made me understand every aspect around making perfume and how long it take to create a single scent. Whilst research, I came across many facts about the perfume industry that I did not know before such as perfume needs to age for the scent to be developed and how the ageing process depends on the value of perfume.
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Copyright ©1992-2017 Michael Edwards
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Making of Perfume Harvesting the Ingredients
Before the manufacturing process begins, the ingredients for the perfume must be gathered. The ingredients for the perfume are harvested from all around the world, such as lavender from Bulgaria, Ginger from The Indies and Jasmine from Morocco. Most of the time the ingredients are hand-picked. However, people known as perfume chemists create some of the not so natural elements of the perfume, such as aromatic chemicals in laboratories. Once the collection of the ingredients is complete, or they are created in the lab, the manufacturing process can start.
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Extracting Oils To create a perfume, the natural ingredients must have their oils extracted. The oil extraction is violet substance in the perfume making process. Unlike other oils that we come across, oils that are used in perfumes are not greasy and mostly evaporate hardly without leaving a stain. Extracting the oils from the ingredients is a complex process as some crops have to be picked at specific times of the day, for instance, roses are picked in the early morning when they are socked in dew. Also, the essential oils come from different places, for instance, roots, leaves, stems and seeds. Oil extraction can be done in several methods including, solvent extraction, maceration and enfleurage, steam distillation or expression.
Solvent extraction This method is used on delicate flowers, whose odours have been damaged due to the high heat. The oils from the flowers are extracted using solvents, such as ethanol. This process is used for ingredients such as roses or jasmine. For instance, sacks of roses are emptied into an extractor that is divided into layers, which will mean the flowers do not get crushed under the weight. The solvent is then piped in and the mixture of the two elements is heated. The plant-based ingredients are eventually dissolved, which leaves a waxy substance that contains the oils that are needed to the perfume. The substance is then mixed with alcohol and then the mixture is gently heated so that the alcohol can evaporate, leaving a very concentrated perfume oil.
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Maceration and Enfleurage The process of enfleurage dates back to the ancient Egyptians. It involves plants or flowers being placed onto a glass sheet that is covered with grease. The glass sheets are then placed in layers between wooden frames and left for the plants or flowers to release their natural oils. The flowers or plants are then moved by hand and replaced until the grease is saturated with the fragrances. The grease is then mixed with alcohol mechanically until every fragment of the flowers or plants has dissolved into the alcohol. The mixture is then chilled and filtered to remove all the fat. After that process, the alcohol is then evaporated leaving the pure oil behind. The process of maceration is similar to enfleurage, yet it is used for animal-based ingredients. Also warmed up fats are used to soak up the fragrance from the ingredients. The fats have to then be dissolved in alcohol for the essential oils to be obtained.
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Distillation The method of steam distillation is the main method used to extract oils from ingredients. The process of steam distillation is when plants are boiled with water and then the rising vapour is then passed through the tub, where is where it is cooled. This is where the steam and oils condensate back into liquid. Also, the mixture of water and essential oils are then collected at the bottom of the container and as the oil particles are lighter than water, they rise onto of top of the container where they are collected. The water is collected at the bottom of the container and is sometimes sold separately as it contains traces of the oils.
Expression Expression is one of the oldest forms of extraction and one of the simplest. It often involved the use of extracting citrus oils from the rind of citrus fruits. The rinds of citrus fruits are cold-pressed to extract their oils, which either done mechanically or manually until all of the oils are extracted. The fact that no heat is involved in the entire process results that the oils smell very closer to the living plant.
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Blending Process
Once all of the oils are extracted from the ingredients, they need to be blended together. The oils are then blended together according to the formula that has been created by a master in the perfume industry, who is often called a “nose�. Once the perfume oils have been blended together, the scent is then mixed with alcohol. The amount of alcohol that is added to the perfume oil is different to each perfume as it depends on what the final product will be, for instance, Eau de parfum will have a lower strength of alcohol, whereas scents such as body mist will have higher concentrations of alcohol in them. Also, one single perfume can include hundreds of different ingredients and can up to many years to develop.
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Perfume Ageing
The ageing process for perfume often depends on the value of the perfume, for example, higher quality perfume may age for months or even years after the scent has been blended. This is done to make sure that the proper scent has been created and ageing the perfume allows all of the different scents or notes in the perfume to mix together really well. Perfumes are made up of 3 different notes, which are the top notes that typically fade after about 30 minutes. Top notes include scents such as fruits, herbs and citrus. The heart note defines the character of the perfume, they tend to be mostly floral, spice or woody notes. These include ingredients such as jasmine, lilac and carnations and last up to 2 to 4 hours of average. The last note is the base note, which is also known as the dry notes. These notes include scents from spices, woods and animals, for example, some ingredients are cinnamon, vanilla and musk. Base notes usually are strong from the beginning.
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Quality Control
The whole process of manufacturing perfume includes many quality control step, for example, natural ingredients such as jasmine or roses can be difficult to harvest and time-consuming. Also, some animal-based ingredients oils can be difficult to collect. This has led to artificial perfume to be creating as allows perfumers to create scents faster and simpler and require less quality control.
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Perfumer Who creates perfume?
Similar to how painters need a good eye, perfumers, need to have a good nose to be able to separate scents apart from one another. The casual name for a perfumer in the industry is ‘nose’, which is not only their only talent. Some perfumes suggest that they can tell where the scent originated from, for example, if the essence of lavender came from Grasse in the South of France. Others simply say their nose is not different from others, just trained and highly knowledgeable of understanding the different scents. It is not all about knowing different scents, perfumers also have to have a great imagination, commercial awareness and understand the chemistry behind creating and designing the perfect scent. The perfume industry has developed throughout the year, for instance, a century ago there were around 150 ingredients for perfumers to work with, now there are around 600 to 700 natural ingredients and over 4,000 manufactured ones. To make a fragrance, the ingredients must be weighed with precision. Perfumers usually work in-between offices and laboratories. Offices are used for meeting clients, evaluating scents and doing everyday paperwork. Whereas in the laboratories, using a fan that holds strips of paper that are sprayed in different scents, the perfume will sniff the scents throughout the day to asses the development of new fragrance over time.
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A perfumer starts the day by exercising his nose by smelling different ingredients, and then in the laboratory, the technicians weigh out the ingredients for the recipes. The average perfume contains around 30 to hundreds of ingredient. Once the perfumer has chosen on the balance of the test perfume, all of the ingredients are weighed out and the formula is recorded in parts per thousand, for instance, 50 parts vanilla, 90 parts clove and so on. Then it is onto experimenting and improving the formula over months on end.
Furthermore, most perfumes have a signature, which appears in almost every scent. An example of this is all of Guerlain fragrances include a scent known as Guerlinade, which is what makes Guerlain perfume instantly recognisable. All perfumes have their own palette of scents. As the perfume industry is constantly growing, so are the demands. In the first of the century, perfumers had more freedom and had the luxury of creating a single perfume every 4 years or so. However, now perfumers do not have that luxury. Over 90% of perfumes come from companies where scientist, perfumers and marketing people work together to create high-quality scents for detergents to flavouring in drinks, cigarettes and paper.
It can take up to 6 months to 2 years to create the perfect scent that is noticed by the consumers. Creating a perfume that grabs the consumer’s attention has become the number one responsibility when creating a scent, which is why it is important to design a scent that consumers will remember and is different. Also creating a scent that the audience is comfortable with and is familiar also is another way to draw in consumers.
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Perfume training can take up to 10 years to learn, creating the right scent for perfumes as well as cleaning products is a highly skilled method to learn. The first step in training, perfumers have to memorise the endless vocabulary of odours, which is something they will continue to develop throughout their career. A technique that some perfumers use is linking different scents to memorises to help them remember. This technique will allow perfumers to remember the ever-growing list of scents. The next step for perfumers in training is to the building blocks of fragrance. At the same time, they learn the science behind the different rates various oils take to evaporate.
Perfumers work in secrecy when given a brief by clients, whether it is from a big fashion house, celebrity or a shop. Most of the time the briefs that are given are often vague and give no indication of the type of ingredients that should be used, for example creating a perfume for young women who love her nightlife and is feminine. However, as scents are all about emotions and moods, perfumes are able to find scents that portray these emotions. Perfumes would produce around 50 to hundreds of testers for a single perfume, each one may be slightly different from one another or completely different. The final choice for the scent of the perfume comes down to the client, whether the perfumer, client and marketing people all like different scents. In this case, the scents are tested anonymously on the target audience to see which one the consumers like better.
After their basic trainer is over, perfumer’s are then sent to work within various parts of the processing plant and weighing formulation laboratories. After several months of training in the industry, the training perfumers are ready for the final exam, which is where the perfumer is given a fragrance to copy. After the student creates the fragrance, it is then tested blind and then taken to the head perfumer. If the head perfumer is satisfied with the result, the student then becomes a junior perfumer.
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Mark Dixon Research and Development Perfumer
Whilst researching the history behind perfume and the making if perfume, I got in contact with Mark Dixon who works at spent a couple of years in the formulation of fragrances at P&G and Coty, which means he is more familiar with the R&D (research and development) product side of the perfume market, with minor input into the creation of artworks. His responsibility in R&D was facilitating the implementation of the selected oils into various product formats to meet Marketing’s inspiration and ensure that these are stable. Mark Dixon always made sure that the odours stay recognizable over time and the colour of the fragrance does not deteriorate, among other responsibilities. Right now Mark works at Unilever R&D on personal care products. His work is based quite heavily on artwork creation and approvals, and what is required to make them legally compliant for the UK market.
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11.
“ The most expensive ingredient in any
fragrance product is the fragrance oil - even considering it’s a fairly small percentage of the whole. - Mark Dixon
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One of the reasons that I choose to get in contact with Mark Dixon is to find out a bit more about the background information that happens with fragrances and getting first-hand knowledge about fragrances. He answers the questions that I gave with more detail than I expected, which was a great way for me to understand what he does. Whilst reading through the answers, it was interesting to find out new information about the fragrance industry. This interview was an eye-opening experience, as it did not understand that much about fragrances before I started this project, however speaking to Mark and getting an insight of the fragrance industry made to think more about how I would want to design the brand and packaging for fragrance.
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1. What do you think is the purpose of perfume? In general, the purpose of perfume is the obvious, it makes you smell nice. A very corny addition, but perfume can make people happy, albeit it many different ways; It can provide a boost of confidence, enhance peoples moods or in some cases act as a trigger of fond memorys (or bad memorys if you are unfortunate)
2. What is your favourite ingredient to work with? And why? My favourite ingredients are actually the dyes. The colouring process in generally is very intricate but rewarding. Every EDT/EDP starts as a generic looking pale yellow liquid in the lab, but it’s in the addition of colour that products really started to come to life for me.
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3. Who are your favourite perfumes or perfume houses? And what do you like about their work? My personal favourite perfume to wear myself is Givenchy Gentlemen only, it has a spicy aromatic fragrance that isn’t overpowering. Also, I generally find anything from Boss is great to wear, always very pleasant and understated. In terms of packaging design and fragrances I very much enjoy Pennhaligons, even if they are not the kind of thing in terms of fragrance that I would wear on a day to day basis. Jo Malone is also a pleasure; yes she makes great fragrances, but I also recently attended a talk from the women herself on her personal journey, and it was genuinely very moving and gave me a real appreciation of what she endured for the success of her fragrances.
Favourite perfume house in terms of oil formulation varies depending on what aspect: > Givaudan is the obvious choice for me in terms of fragrance quality; there is generally no half measures in terms of unique & exotic ingredients. However, this can lead to potential stability issues in products so this does have its drawbacks. > IFF are probably my favourite in terms of being great to work with. The one time I did encounter stability issues that require perfume reformulation, they were very proactive and knowledgeable.
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5. What is the favourite perfume that you have created?
What makes an expensive perfume?
It seems to be a theme of these questions that I can’t pin down a singular answer, I have 2 favourites so I have had a hand in creation along with my colleagues.
The most expensive ingredient in any fragrance product is the fragrance oil – even considering it’s a fairly small percentage of the whole. These fragrance oils can be very expensive especially when including natural ingredients – my understanding is that the processes required to harvest these ingredients is far beyond what is required when creating it synthetically.
> Boss the Scent For Her EDT (not to be confused with the EDP) – This had its fair share of problems during formulation as the fragrance oil was very susceptible to UV, which meant that the colour of the formulation was very prone to fading. However, it smells amazing! > Boss Bottled United EDT – This one is for slightly selfish reasons. Male fragrances are a lot less common as new product development, and this is one I still wear it on occasion to this day
Taking various fruits as an example, my understanding is the natural fragrance ingredient is extracted from the pith of the peel, a much harder and more expensive endeavour than mixing in the lab.
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6. Do you take into account target audience? Target audience is certainly at the root of all fragranced products, and this audience varies mainly based on the brand. Each brand typically has an audience specified that relates to its various public communications. When selecting the fragrance, you have to ensure it appeals to your target e.g. fruity/flowery notes are very popular with Gen Z women e.g. Impulse & Escada, whereas mature women may prefer aromatic notes more prominent in Gucci & D&G. From a packaging perspective too, older women are more likely to spend more money on a fragrance, and so products targeting this audience are typically more premium. For the younger audience it may focus on colour or novel product formats that are ‘instagramable’ like body mists.
7. Do you research you market?
Not personally, but a huge amount of work goes into identifying what the need states of our consumers are. Brands are likely to continually assess their key consumer base, innovations of key competitors, what formats are most popular, what price they are likely to be etc. all to meet the needs of their consumers in the most effective way possible (with the added benefit of market share obviously)
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9. Do you do focus groups for new smells? Yes, both externally and internally. Not the be all and end all, but typically internal panels will assess a large range of fragrances supplied by various fragrance houses, with a view to create a kind of fragrance library. Then when projects are proposed, fragrance experts will pick from this available library based on the consumer proposition. Perhaps if this gets narrowed to a few candidates, a test might be run externally to gauge consumer perception. Fragrances can otherwise be designed specifically for large projects.
8. Where do you find your source of inspiration when designing a perfume scent? Sometimes inspiration for perfumes may come directly from consumers. Brands on the whole aim to please their customers, and if this consumer base are vocal enough regarding the type of fragrance or format they would like to wear, of course companies will innovate accordingly.
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10. What is the process of creating a perfume for your client? The route to market of a perfume product can be a very lengthy process from inspiration to production – A standard timeline, which can vary based on the amount of risk the business would like to take, but is usually the larger portion of a year. Below is a simplification of the process, subject to changes based on the specifics on the project. > Project creation Project creation is led by Brand/Marketing functions Often in the form of a project Brief which can take many different forms. Briefs contain an assumptive business case – ensure progression has business justification e.g. financial, brand equity, resource required. > Project scoping + Team Assembly The brief is assessed by senior representatives for justification and feasibility. Project scope is established – sets ‘must have’ need-states and ‘desirables’ Project team is assembled. Consistency of people is key, so members of this cross functional team often represent the interests of a whole function.
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> Fragrance Selection + Compliance checks etc Fragrance creation teams work with Brand/ Marketing and Fragrance houses in the selection of fragrance for the target audience.
>Coding Specification & Recipe Creation Once satisfied enough with the stability of the formulation and general feasibility of packaging – products coded and material ordering processes begin Supply Chain function ensures raw material and component availability for launch production
> Product Formulation & Testing – Lab and Plant Pilot Fragrance levels assessed in each of the product formats Products formulated in the lab by Product R&D at specified fragrance level Stability testing of formulations – Formulations exposed to conditions that accelerate product ageing and are regularly assessed for odour, appearance and various analytical attributes to ensure products are stable.
> Artwork Build & Production trials Brand inspirations are often briefed to a design agency who will feed back design ideas for the product label and carton – often takes into account existing product/brand family of products so it does not look out of place In depth assessment of packaging and printing feasibility – Any printing issues, scuffs, transport marks etc
> Packaging feasibility and tooling assessments Packaging R&D work with Brand/Marketing on their inspiration – loose feasibility assessment based on existing knowledge and techniques Inspirations can sometimes be dialled back at this point as new components & decorations can be a huge investment in terms of plant production
> Artwork approval Uploaded into a traceable artwork approval system for each of the relevant functions – includes legal & regulatory checks for labelling etc > Production Handed over to the plant for ongoing production – ongoing demand assessed by the supply chain to help plan production schedules
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11. How do you come up with the idea for a new perfume? New perfume ideas can come from many places, but mostly it is either to capitalise on a new opportunity, to react to a competitor or to extend the reach of a successful
> By new opportunities I refer mainly to a new unique ingredient or a fragrance enhancing technology which the business now has access to – businesses always need to make the most of these unique chances and regularly innovate to drive growth.
> Extending the reach of a successful product – I’m referring mainly to line extensions and slight fragrance twists on a popular product. Key examples are the Boss the Scent product range and Marc Jacobs daisy which have many different iterations built on the success of the original product. (Daisy EDT, Daisy EDP, Daisy Dream). In cases they may introduce new product formats to build on this success, like Body Lotions or Shower Gels that can be included in gift sets.
> Companies regularly react based on competitor activity – A key example is the introduction of new fragrance formats to the market, one such now being the recent rise in popularity of body and hair mists.
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12. What are some of the challenges do you face whilst making perfumes? As product R&D, most challenges involve either not quite meeting the expectation of Brand/ Marketing, or around the stability of the formulation failing during testing.
Not meeting expectations - there is a tendency by people to think that the perfume colour can look exactly as a colour does on a computer screen or a magazine. The reality is that it often does not; the colour of a liquid as viewed directly by our eyes can differ greatly on the presence/absence of light, the thickness of the bottle or even the type of lightbulb that you have on in the room. Brand sometimes have this very strong sense of colour they of the liquid that may be very difficult or even impossible to achieve.
Formulations can fail stability testing – Some formulations can deteriorate in terms of odour, appearance or analytical tests like pH or viscosity during testing. Businesses are obviously not happy with releasing sub-par products, and work very hard to establish a shelf-life for consumer products. Failures mean reformulation is required, and therefore extra time and investment.
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13. Do you think the brand name has a big part when it comes to the sale of the perfume? And why? I believe the brand name plays a huge part in the sale of any product, in any industry. How many of us now must check reviews of manufacturers before buying anything – reputation is everything. If a company is renowned for great smelling products and has built this trust, customers are understandably more likely to try smelling their other creations in store. With the sheer number of products available, and a limited amount any average consumer will smell in-store, attracting customers in this first interaction is vital.
14. Does the packaging design for the perfume play a major role in the sale of the perfume? And why? Definitely. In fact, even though my bias as a formulator should probably lean towards the role of the Product, I believe Packaging may even play a greater importance. Packaging is the first connection we have with every consumer. Consumers cannot smell through tv and pictures, and shops are filled with so many varieties. There is only so many the average consumer can smell and appreciate when deciding what to wear, so Packaging is a vital first connection with the consumer to draw them in to enable the fragrances to do the talking.
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15. What inspiration is considered when thinking of the packing and bottles? Biggest considerations are Consumer target, Price point & Fragrance ingredients. > Price point plays a huge role – not so much in terms of inspiration but in what is achievable. Projects have to be continually justified in terms of business viability throughout a project, and packaging is a massive part of the cost. The cost of packaging can vary greatly based on the complexity of the bottle; various printing technologies, creating unique bottle shapes and embossing – all require the development of extensive manufacturing and tooling lines to be viable. This is a very costly endeavour, and as a result can result in compromises to the marketing inspiration > Fragrance ingredients play a part also in the packaging as this is instrumental in the theme of the perfume i.e. you would expect packaging with flowers to also contain a product with a great floral top note. Perfume packaging often celebrates the more pronounced fragrance ingredients.
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BOTTLE
Bottle Allure Bottle design
Perfumes used to be valuable as jewels and treasures in ancient civilisation. This meant they were stored in luxurious containers and bottles. Scents were used more than just smelling nice, for example, they were used in aromatherapy. Perfume bottles were made from clay or stone and designed with long necks so only a few drops of the oil would come out. The oldest known perfume bottle comes from the eastern Mediterranean, from Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt and dates back around 5,000 years. Materials such as Alabaster, calcite and stone were used to create perfume bottles as they kept the oils cool and prevented from air and liquid to be passed through. Other materials included earth and clay, which were shaped into people or animals, mainly fish. Ivory, bone, faience, porphyry, bronze and ostrich eggs were other types of materials that were used to store perfume in ancient times. Many of these bottles were designed in creative ways, for example, have both animals and people on the bottle design.
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Another popular material for perfume bottles was glass, which started to appear in Egypt in the fifteenth century. Glass became the perfect material to store perfume, as it was light, and did not let the fragrance evaporate through the bottle. Glass then developed from a being plain and boring to having small specks of colour added to the glass. However, the ancient Greeks started using clay to store their perfumes and would decorate them with painted vases and falcons. Also, they shaped the clay into animals, for example, hedgehogs and ducks. Another perfume bottle shape that the Greeks created using clay was the shape of plemochoe, which was a wide lidded bowl that with the rim shaped inwards. This was used to store cheaper perfumes that would be used after bathing. The ancient Greeks created many types of containers for perfumes, for instance, the typical Greek fragrance container was the aryballos. They were originally amphora-shaped but were then designed like animals or women’s breast. The aryballos were designed in a certain way so that they could be hung on hooks rather than being stood up. The majority of Greek perfume bottles came from Corinth, a city in Greece that was the main hub of designing and creating perfume bottles. Different designs were created to identify the different scents that were inside the bottles.
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Another popular material for perfume bottles was glass, which started to appear in Egypt in the fifteenth century. Glass became the perfect material to store perfume, as it was light, and did not let the fragrance evaporate through the bottle. Glass then developed from a being plain and boring to having small specks of colour added to the glass. However, the ancient Greeks started using clay to store their perfumes and would decorate them with painted vases and falcons.
The ancient Greeks created many types of containers for perfumes, for instance, the typical Greek fragrance container was the aryballos. They were originally amphora-shaped but were then designed like animals or women’s breast. The aryballos were designed in a certain way so that they could be hung on hooks rather than being stood up. The majority of Greek perfume bottles came from Corinth, a city in Greece that was the main hub of designing and creating perfume bottles. Different designs were created to identify the different scents that were inside the bottles.
Also, they shaped the clay into animals, for example, hedgehogs and ducks. Another perfume bottle shape that the Greeks created using clay was the shape of plemochoe, which was a wide lidded bowl that with the rim shaped inwards. This was used to store cheaper perfumes that would be used after bathing.
Glass became the number one materials to be used for storing perfume after glass blowing was discovered at Sidon on the coast of Syria. The most common shape that was designed from glass was animals, fruit, shells and fish. Glass became the favourite material for the Romans as it could be created beautiful and simplistic designs.
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Bottle Allure Early European bottle design
In early Europe, scents were stored in anything that was available, such s glass, gold, silver, porcelain and stones or shells. Long coloured glass was designed to lay on its side and was used as toilet water in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. Also during the dark ages, perfume survived thanks to the Arabs and Churches. Incense had been widely used by Hebrews, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. Churches used perfume during Mass by blowing clouds of resinous perfume. Perfume was not only used in spiritual matters but to ward off evil. Earing with hollow spheres containing cloth soaked in perfume. The most common way perfume was stored in the Western World was in Pomanders. Pomanders come from the Middle East. The perfume was in a solid state and shaped into a solid ball and then when hardened carried on a chain. They were mainly filled with musk and then later ambergris. the Pomanders itself was created from gold or silver and decorated with jewels. They were either wore around the neck or hung from a belt, whereas smaller Pomanders were attached to a ring by a chain. The development of Pomanders meant they opened up like sliced apples, which would mean each slice could be filled with different scents and could be opened separately.
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However, it was not until the sixteenth century that perfume bottles were first introduced. Scents were always seen as status symbols, which meant perfume bottles had to portray that. perfume bottles were decorated using jewels, gold and silver and fashioned into beautiful objects. Many of the perfume bottles were designed to be either worn or displayed. This led to Pomanders to go out of fashion and be replayed by perfume bottles. As liquid perfume came around, vinaigrette boxes come about. Having a sponge soaked in perfume, women would be able to carry the box around with them. By the mid-nineteenth century, glass and crystal bottles were being filled with perfume. The seventeenth toiletries would be packed together in a box known as an ĂŠtui, which would include essentials such as scissors, combs and scent bottles. Gradually, ĂŠtui were only made for delicate perfume bottles, which became quite popular. The box would hold two or more perfume bottles, a funnel and sometimes a dish to help mix the different scents together. The box was designed to make it easier to travel with the delicate perfume bottles.
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By the eighteenth century, porcelain becomes a common material to use for perfume bottles. Meissen was the first western company to use porcelain for perfume bottles. Many of the perfume bottles came in different shapes such as statuettes of girls playing or pug dogs. Also, glass became another common material that was used for perfume bottles, which eas often shaped in the form of a teardrop. Perfume bottles would be decorated with scenes from mythology, landscapes or fruit and flowers. It became a common occurrence to send people perfume bottles that were inscribed with messages such as ‘Love & Wine. Also in the eighteenth century, bergamots became a popular material to create boxes for perfumes. The individual boxes would be made from bergamot orange and left to harden over time. They would then be soaked in bergamot and rose oils before being sold as containers for perfume bottles.
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France did not become the main hub of the perfume industry until the seventeenth century, which meat Itay was the centre of the perfume world of the East. Coloured glass bottles were made in the sixteenth century in Venice and were used to contain new perfume oils. It was not until the discovery of clear glass that made the perfume industry grow. Glass became the ideal material for storing perfume as beautiful and cheaper. it allowed the colour of the different perfumes to be shown, which was a beauty in itself. However, the one downside about using clear glass was how it let in light, which changed the perfume oils over time. the use of glass for perfume bottles grew over time and by the end of the nineteenth century, most perfumes bottles were made from glass. Perfume was often sold in cheap, plain bottles with boring labels. Most perfumes were sold in identical glass bottles and the only difference would be the label that would be placed onto the bottles. Nevertheless, the beginning of the twentieth century brought a new wave of perfume design bottles. RenÊ Lalique, in partnership with perfume François Coty, designed a new way for bottles that reflected the name or brand of particular scents. They understood how to design perfume bottles that reflected the scent inside.
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FRAGRANCE &FASHION
Fragrance and Fashion
Perfumes have been linked back to the maker of who created them, for instance, Franรงois Coty and Jacques Guerlain. Then there is the ever so famous Coco Chanel, the first couturier to understand the meaning behind how important a name is. Coco Chanel brought together both fashion and fragrance and creating one of the most successful fragrance lines that link with the world of fashion.
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Guerlain
Guerlain has become one of the most known names in the fragrance world. Whilst other perfume houses have disappeared from the public eye, Guerlain has held its fort and come out on top by competing with major international fashion houses over two centuries. The company was founded in Paris in 1828 by Piere Franรงois Pascal Guerlain. During this time, anything English was fashionable in Paris and having studied chemistry in Englan, Guerlain imported English perfumes and cosmetics. After some time, Guerlain started to experiment with his own products. In 1834, at the Exhibition of Products of French Industry, Guerlain featured many of the typical fragrance goods that were typically at the time such as dressing for cuts and burns, scented handkerchiefs and scented paper. Guerlain became known for creating scents that matched certain moods. Guerlain then went on to create a perfume to wear during the day, which was discreet and familiar.
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On the death of Piere François Pascal Guerlain in 1864, the company was passed onto his two sons. His son Gabriel took over the management side of the company, whereas his other son Aimé became the nose of the company. After a few years, Aimé wanted to create a scent that does not reflect one’s taste, which led him to create Jicky in 1889. Jicky became a fragrance that was still shocking for Victorian women to wear as it contained strong scents and was one of the first perfumes created with unnatural materials. Men would be seen wearing this perfume first, however, it was not until the second decade of the twentieth century that women were wearing this perfume. Jicky was the perfume that began to define the Guerlain signature. Guerlain’s most famous scent is Shalimar, which was created in 1921. Similar to Jicky, Shalimar was not an instant success with the public. It was not until four years later that Shalimar was accepted. The scent itself was a development form the scent Jicky by adding new synthetic vanilla to the formula. The next Guerlain successful perfume was Samsara. It was created in 1989 by Jean-Paul Guerlain.
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COTY
François Coty is one of the most famous perfumers and his work in the fragrance industry has been widely admired by many. François Coty is known for experimenting with synthetic ingredients and creating scents that went beyond the boundaries of naturally-sourced fragrances. In 1905, Coty created a fragrance called ‘L’Origan’, which some say was the first modernised perfume. The perfume itself was infused with spices and florals scents that became an instant success with the public, thus starting the trend for spicy floral perfume scents. However, it was François Coty perfume ‘w’ that he created in 1917 that opened the doors for the fragrance world. It not only became the first perfume for the ‘Chypre’ family but François Coty created a perfume that was sophisticated and beautiful. The ‘Chypre’ perfume line became a scent that reflected the new wave of women, not the feminine floral innocent women, but women who were independent, fearless and free. The scent itself was sold within the flow of how the women were progressing through the economy.
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François Coty was not only an incredible perfumer, however, but he also began the modern perfume market by selling his fragrances abroad. Also, he understood the importance of a fragrance having strong names, for instance, he named his perfume ‘ La Fougèraie au Crépuscule’, which translates to ‘The Fern Garden at Twilight’. François Coty also knew the importance of fragrances having a strong visual representation, a concept that has become one of the main selling points in the 21st century for perfumes. This led Coty to commission designers such as René Lalique to design strong visual images for his products. François Coty introduced the conception of luxury fragrances as an affordable luxury for a wider target market. Also, François Coty became a genius perfume throughout his time before passing away in 1934. The company was then passed down to family and then passed through several hands, which led the company dropping in popularity. In 1992, the Banekiser corporation brought the company and began the long road of bringing the company back to its glory.
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The Name
More so than ever, the world which we live in is dominated by the names of the products that we buy, from a Louis Vuitton bag to a Chanel perfume. The name of a product is what draws us in, either the brand itself or the name of the product, it is the element that is the selling point for some products, which is created through the packaging, advertising and name. Perfume is a great way to understand the power that a name has for a product, for instance, the majority of people wear perfume to feel sexy and want to get the attention from the opposite sex, which is why perfumes that with names that represent those emotions will appeal to the target audience. There are many perfumes that portray this such as ‘Lady Million’ by Paco Rabanne or ‘Hypnotic Poison’ by Dior. Sexy and romantic names appeal to a bigger audience as it reveals what they feel.
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The name of a perfume reveals what it does for that person, for example, if a woman wants to smell sexy, compelling yet respectable, then a perfume such as ‘Hypnotic Poison’ by Dior would appeal to that target audience. The name itself hints women who wear this perfume are mysterious, powerful and hypnotic who captivate men with this scent. Also, the name is a female fantasy that suggests women who wear this scent hypnotise men with their magic and can make them do anything they please.
Women wear perfume based on how they want to perceived by the people they meet, for example, if a woman wants to feel feminine, then a perfume such as ‘Daisy’ by Marc Jacobs may be something she wears as the name suggests she is soft, gentle and delicate.The name of the perfume in the industry is important as it can make or break the product. The name has the power to sell the product and attract the attention of the consumer. Also, the name of a perfume links back to the emotions that the person wants to feel.
However, perfumes names relate mostly to emotions, places or food, for example, ‘Joy’ by Dior or ‘Honeysuckle and Davana’ by Jo Malone. Women now wear perfumes for themselves and for them to feel good. Perfumes are now worn as a sense of self-therapy and to feel empowered. Similar to how paintings tell stories, perfumes have the power to communicate and tell their own stories, which is another reason why people wear perfumes.
As perfume has become a big part in peoples everyday lives, the name of the fragrance represents the mood, place or memory they want to live in that day. Wearing perfume connects to peoples memories and stories, which is why the name of the fragrance is important, for example when a stranger asks someone about the perfume they are wearing or compliments on the perfume they wearing, it makes them feel good.
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Philosophy of Perfume Perfume
In simple terms, perfume is just vapour that smells nice. However, to help understand fragrances we have to give it an explanation. Similar to how painting tells a story of the time they were painted, perfumes tell stories about the mood of particular periods in time. When purchasing a perfume, we all are thinking what will it do for us and what is the purpose. When buying a perfume, we are not only buying a scent that we like but the brand and a product that represents our class. Perfume does not have to be new for it to be popular and ‘in’. Old fragrances can have just as much power and popularity are new perfume, for instance, ‘Chanel No 5’ or ‘Miss Dior’ by Dior. Chanel No5 is one of the most popular perfumes to be made for women. the perfume itself was created in 1921 by Coco Chanel who wanted to create a fragrance that was like no other. She wanted to create a scent that embodied women. Thus creating Chanel No5, which is a fragrance that is worn by many women now after many years since its creation. During the 1960s, Chanel No5 sales rose, with its minimalist design and a bold new scent. The perfume itself expressed the period of time, from bold and bright clothes to the first man landing on the moon.
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As years went on, women became more interested in becoming strong independent females, instead of being seen as sex symbols or housewives. By the 1980s, fragrances got stronger and powerful. Women wore perfume to get attention from men, however, not in the same way they did a few years ago. They wanted to create a strong impression on men in the workplace and reflect themselves as bold females, who mean business.
However, this all changed in the 1990s. Women needed a fragrance that was for them alone and a scent that would not add stress or weigh them down. During this time, scents had become an escape from reality and a sort of healing product for everyone. One of the most popular scents created in the 1990s was ‘Angel’ by Thierry Mugler. The name itself matched the philosophy of that time. The scent was fresh, exciting and creative. Also, perfumes that smelt like food became popular during this period. Women wore sweet smelling perfumes to feel good about themselves and would wear them as a treat instead of wanting to feel sexy.
Perfume was a way for women to bring out their confidence and still show everyone they were still feminine women. Perfume during the 1980s had to link with the big shoulder pads and massive hair, which was the fashion. Perfumes such as ‘Obsession’ by Calvin Klein or ‘Poison’ by Christian Dior. Both of these perfumes showcased women as being powerful, sexy and successful.
The one element that keeps on coming back in the perfume industry is how can perfumes make you feel sexy. Perfumes are all about giving people confidence, energy or attracting the opposite sex. The philosophy behind perfume is about understanding how scents can make you feel and is there a common emotion the people want to feel in a period of time.
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CASE STUDIES
Elie Saab Perfume Brand
Elie Saab is a Lebanese designer who is known for creating fabulous gowns for celebrities worldwide. From a young age, Saab was passionate about designing clothes for women that made them look elegant and feminine. At the age of 9, Saab created dresses for his sisters, and from there, his love affair for designing began. This led to Saab opening up his first couture house at the age of 18 that had many skilful seamstresses working for him. From there his reputation grew from dressing women in his neighbourhood to creating gowns for high society women. His main goal was to make women look glamorous and womanly. In 1998, Elie Saab launched his first ready to wear line, which showcased similar designs to his couture pieces, such as embroidered lace, pearl beading and brightly coloured silks.
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However, in 2002, Elie Saab became the first middle Eastern designer to dress an Oscar winner, this led to more actress dressing in his designs, such as Angelina Jolie, Beyoncé and Catherine Zeta-Jones. The elegance and luxury of Saab’s designs have won over the world, which has led him to become a personal designer for many princesses. His philosophy is ‘‘I like “womanly women”,’ and Women who twirl their dresses with desire and pride.
It was not until 2011 that Elie Saab launched his debut fragrance, Elie Saab Le Parfum. It was perfume expert Francis Kurkdjian who was chosen to design a perfume that brought Saab’s work to life by creating a scent that represented his designs. In its first year, Elie Saab Le Parfum won the Fragrance Foundation (FiFi) Award for Best New Fragrance in the UK, the US and France. The perfume range continued to grow, with Elie Saab Le Parfum In White, Elie Saab Girl of Now rang (Girl of Now Forever, Girl of Now Shine and Girl of Now). Also, his range of La Collection des Essences that showcase single ingredients, such as rose, gardenia, amber and vetiver, which are created by Francis Kurkdjian.
Ever since my childhood in Lebanon, I’ve examined the way they dress. I’ve always wanted to please them by flattering their curves.’ Saab has managed to create beautiful and stunning couture gowns that often reference back his Lebanese background, yet still, look so perfect on that glamorous red carpet.
Today, Elie Saab is known worldwide, with boutiques in Paris, London and Dubai. His empire has expanded from only designing beautiful gowns, to creating bags, shoes, fragrance and jewellery. Saab has designed clothes that make women feel beautiful and glamorous to creating fragrances that make women feel empowered and attractive. 209
The reason that I chose to research Elie Saab as a brand was because their fragrances are targeted at young women and the perfume Girl of Now was my main source of inspiration when starting this project. I and many other young women that I know have fallen in love with the perfume and brand itself. The brand reflects young, feminine and beautiful women, which is something that I have explored throughout my project. Also, speaking to my target market about perfumes they enjoyed, Elie Saab’s Girl of Now collection kept on coming up, as the scent was versatile for many seasons and occasions and it gets the right amount of attention from people. Also, the design of the bottle and packaging both captured my attention, I fell in love with gold foiling and embossing on the packaging, which is something I would like to experiment with in my own brand. The brand itself is very romantic, feminine, classy and glamorous, which is something I would like my brand to portray.
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Dior Perfume Brand
Christian Dior is a name that is known worldwide, whether it is for his fragrances or clothes. The House of Dior was founded in 1946, as “a private house” at 30 Avenue Montaigne in Paris. It was not until 1947 Dior launched his first fashion collection for spring and summer. The new collection for Dior went down in the fashion world as the “New Look”. The show of “90 models of his first collection on six mannequins.” was revealed at the company’s headquarters at 30 Avenue Montaigne. The “New Look” became very popular, with the full skirt silhouette that influenced fashion and other designers well into the 1950s. This led Dior to gain high-profile clients from Hollywood, the United States and the European aristocracy.
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In 1947, Christian Dior launched its first perfume Miss Dior, which was named after Catherine Dior, Christian Dior’s sister. However, in 1957, Christian Dior passed away, which to General Manager Jacques Rouët contemplating shutting down the business worldwide. The decision of shutting down a major fashion company was not received kindly by Dior licensees and the French fashion industry, which led to Jacques Rouët hiring 21-year-old Yves Saint-Laurent as the Artistic Director for the company. Saint-Laurent created clothes that represented Dior, however, he designed them softer, lighter and easier to wear. Until 1960, Saint Laurent has been the saving grace for Dior until he had to join the army and leave the House of Dior, which Marc Bohan then replaced him. Furthermore, Marc Bohan launched two more collections for the house of Dior, which were Baby Dior in 1967 and Christian Dior Homme in 1970. From 1946 till 1978, House of Dior was owned by Boussac Group, which went into bankruptcy. This led the company being sold to Willot Group in the same year. However, two years late, Willot Group filed for bankruptcy, which led to Bernard Arnault buying the company. By 1989, Gianfranco Ferrè became the creative director and changed the traditional Dior style design from flirtation and romance to refined and strict. Also, in 1997, CEO Bernard Arnault hired British designer John Galliano to replace Gianfranco Ferré, under the influence of editor and chief of Vogue Anna Wintour.
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The beginning of the 21st century brought a new wave to Dior, It marked a blooming period in every aspect of the company, from the distribution to the production and the advertising. New stores were opening up worldwide, from Italy, France to Japan and China. It was at the point that watches and fragrances boosted Dior’s business. However with every positive comes a negative, John Galliano was fired after making an anti-Semitic. The company then hired Bill Gaytten as their head designers, however after showcasing 2 collections that did not go too well with, he was then replaced by Raf Simons who has then replaced him with Maria Grazia Chiuri.
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Dior has been in the fragrance industry, which is why I chose to research the brand. They are known worldwide and create perfumes for a number of target audiences. Being one of the biggest luxury houses in the world, the brand offers something for everyone. Speaking to in people my target audience, a lot of them have been using Dior fragrances for most of their lives. This made me want to research the history of the company and understand what made them a successful brand. Also, their perfume Miss Dior is one of the most famous perfume from the brand, which is reflected, young women. Looking at The design for the perfume made me think about how I would design my packaging from my own brand. I loved how they incorporate the iconic silver bow in their Miss Dior collection. Also, the brand itself is understood how women want to feel when choosing a perfume that suits them, which is something that drew me into researching them. Whilst researching the brand, I came across many scents that reflect, young, feminine and stylish women.
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Dior The raw materials
Dior perfumer-creator François Demachy developed his love for fine materials in his birthplace in Grasse, Provence, The heart of French perfumery. Demachy travels all over the world in search ingredients he could use in his fragrances and meets the best producers of ingredients. Also, François Demachy likes to follow the journey of the grandiflorum jasmine, which is a delicate flower that is used in the J’adore perfume, which is grown at the Domaine de Manon in Grasse. The grandiflorum jasmine is a demanding crop, which only lasts from August to October. After a hundred days or so, the delicate flower is ready to be harvest, before they are weighed and treated to enhance their properties.
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The Formulation François Demachy describes himself as the director of the ingredients that are used when creating the perfumes. He creates harmonies with different and unique ingredients and then translates them into formulas. The ingredients are weighed in small measurements according to the required proportions. They are then blended together with alcohol and returned to François Demachy. This process happens at the Perfume Creation Laboratory. The process involves in finalising a formula that can take between several months to years to make right.
Conserving: the raw materials All of the perfumes that Dior’s products are made at its factory Saint Jean De Braye in France. The factor has its own cellar where over 600 ingredients are stored for the perfumes, whether the ingredients are natural or artificial. All of the ingredients require special care to help preserve the scents and the perfumes themselves require a high level of care.
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Production All of the ingredients are weighed by hand and are blended together according to the quantities indicated in the formula. From there, the concentrate is allowed to be mature so that all of the ingredients are mixed and blended together before they are diluted in alcohol. The blend is then filtered and chilled to make sure the ingredients have been mixed properly. Each of the stages is monitored to ensure the quality of the product. It is absolutely vital that every bottle of perfume remains unchanged over time.
The Art of Bottling and Packaging Each perfume bottle is unique and the craftsman pays attention to every little detail. At the entrance of the Saint Jean de Braye factory, there is a quote from Christian Dior, where is say “I want to return to forgotten manual skills”. The dozen of employees that work for Dior fragrance dedicate their knowledge to extracts, fragrances for La Collection Privée and J’adore l’Or. The craftsman places the labels of the perfume by hand onto the bottle to ensure it follows the curve of the bottle design.
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Dior’s manual skills Craftsman at the Dior factory creates satin bows that adorn every bottle of Miss Dior. Also, they place the gold thread that goes around every bottle of J’adore. The gold thread is coiled around the neck of the bottle and then hand sealed. The process of doing everything by hand makes it sure that each bottle has the Dior aspect to it.
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Amanda Nuttall Brand Manager
After researching about the company, I got in contact with the brand manager for Dior to ask a few questions about a specific scent of theirs. The perfume that I was most interested in finding more information about was Dior, Poison Girl, which is targeted at the modern daygirl. This specific perfume links with my own target market as the perfume is light, free and sexy. Also, Poison girl was one of the perfumes that I tested on my target audience and was one of the most favourite perfumes out of the whole lot. The questions that I asked where mostly open-ended questions to help me get as much information as possible about how perfume is sold, designed and created. Also, the questions that I asked helped me to understand the process of designing a perfume for a target audience, for example, researching the target audience is done on a worldwide scale as Dior is a worldwide brand. This questionnaire has helped me get a better understand of designing my own perfume brand and how I can design it to meet all of my own targets, such as designing packaging that would not only showcase the perfume itself but also the brand.
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1. What do you think is the purpose of perfume? For some it is the final part of dressing, others it is access to designer labels and luxury at a more affordable cost. It is aspirational and can evoke memories of people or moments.
2. What makes an expensive perfume?
Quality ingredients, packaging and celebrity endorsement to highlight the dream and aspiration.
3. Do you take into account target audience? Yes and the trends in the market. Ie Poison Girl is a gourmand, which was a key trend at launch and it was targeted to the millennials. Plus we do pax profiling vs nationality.
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4. Do you research you market?
Yes on a World Wide basis. Dior is a leading Global brand and it wants to maintain the leadership.
5. Do you do focus groups for new smells? Yes but more with experts and the marketing team in house.
6. How do you come up with the idea for a new perfume? Depends some are purely creative by our in house nose, and some are targeted to audiences as you mention above.
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7. What are some of the challenges do you face whilst making perfumes for a specific target audience? It is always a risk, finally the customer chooses just as you follow a trend it can change
8. What elements of the perfume making process do you think tells the story? Location / source of the ingredients, quality, are they natural. Authenticity, ie we promote 100% made in Dior.
9. Do you think the brand name has a big part when it comes to the sale of the perfume? And why? Yes in some respects, customers are proud to wear a fragrance made by Dior however it is important the quality of the fragrance itself can stand alone and not just be of a high quality because it is ‘Dior’.
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10. How does the design process lead to the final design? It is a very important part of the story so it has to make sense and be legitimate.
11. Does the packaging design for the perfume play a major role in the sale of the perfume? And why? Attractive packaging and luxury is key for some customers, especially those who collect or want to display the bottles. This is key for the Chinese to show all their bottles. More accessible travel friendly versions are now made for convenience
12. What inspiration is considered when thinking of the packing and bottles?
Again it is all about the concept, the story and having something different.
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Gucci Perfume Brand
Guccio Gucci founded Gucci in 1920 in Florence Italy. The first store opened in 1921 on Via Vigna Nuova and then later on Via del Parione, which specialised in leather and accessories. Gucci inspirations for designs came from his days working at the Savoy in London. In 1936, Gucci invented the first signature print, using only the finest imported materials. Guccio Gucci designed a unique equestrian theme that became the iconic horse bit. By 1938 Guccio Gucci opened a store in Rome, which led to providing products to the international market. A few years later, in the 1940s leather become a short supply, which led to Gucci finding other alternative such as linen and bamboo. The Gucci Bamboo bag was then born. Also, Gucci’s son Rodolfo opened up the first Milan store on Via Montenapoleone in 1951. The iconic red and green colours became the trademark of Gucci.
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Following the death of Guccio Gucci in 1953, his 4 sons Aldo, Ugo, Vasco and Rodolfo took over the company. This marked the development of the brand as new boutiques were opened in London, Paris and New York. During this time Aldo created the horsebit loafer shoes, which is one of the most recognisable pieces of Gucci couture today. Also in 1955, paying tribute to their late father, the family designed a new brand logo, which was based on the intertwined double G’s from the Gucci crest. It became an official trademark for the company and is still used today. The double G trademark was added to all leather products and clothing. Also former First Lady Of the United States Jackie Kennedy Onassis wore Gucci shoulder bag, which later became known as the ‘Jackie O’ bag’.
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Furthermore, Gucci created their first fragrance, Gucci No. 1 for women in 1974. Later stores opened in Hong Kong and Tokyo and the fashion side of the brand increased. A whole store dedicated just for Gucci clothing opened up in New York. By the 1980s Gucci launched their ready to wear collection and was shown for the very first time in Florence.
Gucci has become one of the most well-known brands in the world. In addition to clothes, Gucci products include fragrance, handbags, skincare, jewellery and other goods. With their timeless designs and luxury products, Gucci has become one of the most influential brands, with stars such as Dakota Johnson, Lana Del Rey and Jared Leto as Gucci’s fragrance ambassadors.
After Guccio Gucci sons sold their shares of the company in 1994, American fashion design, Tom Ford became the leader of all women’s wear before becoming the creative director. His vision was all about creating Gucci to become one of the most luxurious fashion brands in the world. Ford worked for Gucci for 12 years before moving on and being replaced by bag designer Friday Giannini, who became head of women’s wear before becoming the creative director.
When I first saw Gucci Bloom packaging, I immediately fell in love. This was the reason I chose to research the brand and understand their history. Similar to Chloé, I was inspired by their blush pink colour for their perfume packaging. It represented femininity yet makes a bold statement. This particular fragrance from Gucci made me think about how I could create a design that would portray young women as their real selves, while still trying to found out who they are.
By the 2010s, creative director, Friday Giannini collaborated with Fiat and introduced the ‘Fiat 500. Also, the Riva Aquariva Gucci boat came out, however, Giannini resigned from her role as creative director and Alessandro Michelle was appointed as Creative Director. In 2011, Gucci expanded their collections by including a children’s line. This collection combined child-like designs with elements from Gucci adult collections.
The brand itself is so diverse, which drew me in. Researching the history behind the brand made me understand the style of Gucci and how to design with their audience in mind. The brand has become a global sensation that has created and designed a successful product.
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Cholé Perfume Brand
Gaby Aghion, an intellectual Egyptian who lived in Paris at that time, originally founded Chloé in 1952, with her business partner Jacques Lenoir. The name Chloé was taken from one of Gaby’s but also belonged to a mythological goddess, Chloé. The first collection for Chloé was presented at Paris’s famous Café de Flore in 1956. The Café was familiar with people such as Picasso, Jean-Paul Sartre and novelist Albert Camus. Gaby Aghion recalled, “The models walked between the tables at breakfast time”. Chloé signature style has always been ease, romantic and sometimes bohemian, featuring flowy silhouettes and soft romantic colours such as blush pinks. The style has always been a mixture of dressing up with a sense of effortless.
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Chloé has given the world many famous designers such as Karl Lagerfeld, who Gaby Aghion enlisted in 1966 to help as creative director. Lagerfeld concept of combining airy blouses with delicate skirts has become the brands signature silhouette. Even though the brand’s instant success, the first Chloé boutique did not open until 1971. By 1983, Karl Lagerfeld has resigned and just 2 years after Gaby Aghion retired. In 1977, Stella McCartney took wheel and got the brand’s success up before reigning and passing the reigns onto her assistance Phoebe Philo in 2001. However, in 2006, Phoebe Philo desired to take a break, which led to Paulo Melim Andersson and Hannah MacGibbon taking over the brand for a short period. By 2011, British born Clare Waight Keller took over as creative director, however, left in 2017.
The originally Chloé fragrance was all about rich floral scents and was based around the era of power. However, when it came to making a brand new signature fragrance for the new women generation, it still has to symbolise the fresh, confident feminine that Chloé stood for. Also as Chloé was never about on singular women, in 2008, a group of stylish young women were chosen to represent this new change and launch the new scent. Perfumers Michel Almairac and Amandine Marie who created the new scent, with a combination of many different scents such as floral notes from, magnolia, peony, rose, lily and warmer scents such as amber and cedarwood. The inspiration for the bottle design came from a detailed sleeve of a Chloé blouse. This created the pleated glass effect, which was then topped with a knotted petal coloured ribbon. Since then, Chloé scents have all been about the sweet smells. For instance, Chloé Love Story explores the floral love story. It contains Chloé signature scent jasmine and orange blossom, which is the perfect combination that represents seduction and freedom. Another fragrance that represents the classic and youthful Chloé female is Chloé Eau de Toilette, which contains white rose and magnolia notes. The reason I chose to research Chloé was that I know women in my target market that has fallen in love with the perfumes that offer. Researching the brand, I came across myself falling in love with the packaging design as it reflects a beautiful, feminine and elegant women, with the use of blush pinks and muted colours in their design. It was one of the brands that I kept going back to, as their designs are simple yet attractive. Also, researching the brands, I came across information about their fragrance collection that inspired me, for example how they used the detailed the sleeve of a Chloé blouse to create the bottle design, which incorporated the fashion side throughout the whole of the brand. The brand itself is effortlessly gorgeous and captures ageless beauty that will never go out of style. They are a brand that is naturally beautiful and does not need any other elements to make it successful. 235
Dolce & Gabbana Perfume Brand
Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana both met whilst they were working as assistants designer for a fashion studio in Milan. In 1982, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana decided that the best way to express their own unique style was to create a brand for themselves. In 1985, the two Italian fashion designers got their first bog beak. They were chosen with 3 other upcoming designers to present their collection in the New Talent category at the Milan Fashion Show. After a year they held their first fashion show. With their talent and creativity in the fashion world, combined with interests from buyers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana quickly became famous all over the world. This success and interest gave Dolce & Gabbana the confidence to create and design their own fashion line. This led to the designer to expand quickly in the fashion world.
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From making their own paper patterns, prototypes and accessories, their vision and personalities are embossed on everything the design. Their philosophy is reflected in the work, which is designing for the “real� women. The inspiration for their fashion is drawn from their Mediterranean culture and vibrant colours. In 1988, the duo moved into a larger showroom and launches their first knitwear collection. They began to collaborate with Saverio Dolce, a family member of Domenico Dolce’s family company, for the ready-to-wear lines. In the same year, the pair signed an agreement with the Onward Kashiyama group, which led them to start distributing their designs in Japan. By 1990, the duo had launched lingerie, beachwear and menswear collections, which meant their brand was expanding worldwide. In that same year, Dolce & Gabbana signed another agreement to design the Complice line for the Genny Group, which is another important Italian fashion house. The pair expanded into Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and Seoul, After 9 years they opened their London studio, which was designed by British architect David Chipperfield. The result of this collaboration began to combine the pairs Mediterranean culture and English taste.
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Furthermore, Dolce & Gabbana perfume line started in 1992, when they first launched Dolce & Gabbana Parfum for women. This was then followed by a men’s version in 1994. Both of the fragrances won the top prize in their categories. Fast forward to 2001, Dolce & Gabbana introduced their fragrance Light Blue, which was followed by the male version in 2007.
In the1990s, Dolce & Gabbana created the D&G line. This collection starts with men’s wear in 1994. It was aimed at a younger audience, which was clearly seen the D&G logo that separated the label and marked it as being a new and younger line. In the same year, the duo brought out their first collection of home accessories. A year later to the pair bringing out their home collection, they made an agreement with the Marcolin Company that allowed the pair to design and distribute their eyewear and sunglass collections. By 2000, Dolce & Gabbana created their first line of watches, which made them gain global success. Also, they launched their very first children and Dolce & Gabbana Junior collection, as well as Dolce & Gabbana underwear.
Also in 2003, they launched another fragrance called Sicily. More recently, the duo introduced the successful Dolce & Gabbana The Only One, with Emilia Clarke as the face of the fragrance.
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The relationship between Dolce & Gabbana and music all started when they caught the eye of Madonna, who hired them to create a special line for her world tour in 1993. “The Girlie Show” collection comprised of 150 exclusive outfits that were custom made for the superstar. This led to the dup designing not only costumes for her show in 2000, but also the whole stage. Another musical talent that they created collections for was Whitney Huston, for her 1999 tour. Also, they designed a special line for Kylie Minogue. Their relationship with the music industry became even stronger when they brought out their very own single in 1996, which was followed by other dance and house music tracks. Since then Dolce & Gabbana have more than 100 stores all over the world and have ensured their place in the fashion hall of fame. They have been subjects of many books and have had many famous celebrities as their brand endorsers. They have made a name for themselves not only in the fashion industry but also in the fragrance, accessories and home sectors. Also, I choose to research Dolce & Gabbana, as the brand is known for style, comfort and luxury. The brand is known all over the world for their women’s and men’s collection as well as their fragrance line. The reasons I choose to research the brand is because of the amount of detail they go when designing a product for a specific consumer. For example, the packaging design for their perfume Dolce is very elegant and includes elements of the bottle which as the thin black ribbon and the black script that is a replica of Domenico Dolce’s father’s own signature. Researching the brand, I got inspired by how they add different elements of the brand together, for instance, the black ribbon on the bottle of Dolce represents an image of the white shirt and bow tie that was a signature style of early Dolce&Gabbana catwalk shows.
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Chanel Perfume Brand
Chanel is one of the most famous design houses and is a name that is known worldwide. It all started in 1883 with the birth of Gabrielle Chanel born in France. By 1910 at the age of 21, Gabrielle opened her first shop in Paris, selling hats under the name of ‘Chanel Modes’. Her hat designs were popular among French actress during that time. Also, Gabrielle deigns became a sensation and helped to establish her reputation as a designer. Gabrielle Chanel style of dressing became a sensation in itself, with her simple, elegant way of dressing becoming a popular way of dressing in Paris. Three years later in 1913, Gabrielle Chanel opens a new boutique, which introduces a new collection of sportswear for women. Her line of sportswear became an instant success and changed the relationship women had with their bodies. With Gabrielle Chanel becoming more and more popular and successful, she opened her first couture house in 1915 in Biarritz, France.
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In 1921, Chanel unveils her first fragrance, which became the most iconic fragrance of all time. Chanel N05 was created by Ernest Beaux and was named Chanel N05 because it was the fifth scent that was presented to Gabrielle Chanel. The scent itself remains as one of the most feminine scents ever created and has been a timeless classic after all of these years. The next popular scent that was created was Chanel N022, which was launched in 1922. The fragrance was named after the year it was created and was created from similar ingredients as Chanel N05. By 1924, Chanel launched its first makeup line, including lip colours and face powders. During the same year, Chanel founded ‘Société des parfums Chanel’ dedicated to creating fragrance and beauty products. Also, in the same year, Gabrielle Chanel discovered tweed whilst on one of her trips to Scotland. Tweed became an inspirational fabric for her women’s suit line, which was traditionally seen as a masculine fabric. In 1925 Chanel introduced a new scent with Gardénia, which became a vision of femininity. Perfumer Ernest Beaux who designed Chanel N05 created this new intense fragrance. He used an unscented flower called camellia, which was Gabrielle Chanel favourite scent.
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A year later in 1926, Chanel launched another fragrance, which was inspired by exotic lands with notes of ylang-ylang and sandalwood. The fragrance is called Bois des Iles and was one of the first oriental fragrances created for women. It was the same year that Gabrielle Chanel created the iconic ‘Little Black Dress’, which revolutionised fashion with its simplistic style and design. In 1927, Chanel launched another fragrance, which was inspired by Russian History. The scent was again created by Ernest Beaux who was born and trained in Russia. The fragrance was called ‘Cuir de Russie’ and was included notes of tobacco and leather. After World War 2 broke out, only one out of the five Chanel boutiques closed down, which continued to sell perfume and accessories that were in high demand among Parisians and American Soldiers. However, it was not until 1954 that Gabrielle Chanel at the age of 71, re-opened her couture house and inspired another fashion revolution. During the 1950s she launched the 2.55 handbag, which was named after the date it was created. Gabrielle Chanel invented the new style of carrying a bag on shoulders, which meant women’s hand would be free. In 1957, she created the famous two-tone shoe, which created the effect of slimmer feet and long legs. In 1970 a year before Gabrielle Chanel dies, she launches Chanel No19, which was named after her date of birth. He was created by perfumer Henri Robert. By 1974, Chanel launches ‘Cristalle’ a fragrance inspired by Gabrielle Chanel love for crystals. A year later, Chanel expands its fashion rang with their ready to wear collection, which became an instant success worldwide.
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Perfumer Jacques Polge was named head perfumer for Chanel in 1981. The same year Polge launched his first of many fragrances ‘Antaeus’ a scent for men. In 1983, Karl Lagerfeld became head artistic director for Chanel fashion. Additionally, in 1984, Chanel launched ‘coco’, which was the first fragrance for women created by Jacques Polge. The scent was inspired by Venetian history and extravagant style.
Chanel has been a timeless classic feminine fragrance, which is why I choose to research the brand. The brand is known worldwide and is one of the most influential fashion brands in the industry. Whilst researching Chanel, I became inspired by the brands simple and elegant designs, for example, even though Chanel N05 was launched in 1921, it is still one of the most popular feminine scents. The design of the bottle has been slightly changed through the years to fit with each era. However, throughout the years the bottle design stood apart from the general fragrance design. Gabrielle Chanel designed a fragrance that was elegant and something that was never seen before in women’s fragrance design.
During the 1990s, Chanel introduced ‘Egoiste’ a scent that defined the conventions of fragrances for men. By 1996, Chanel unveiled a new oriental fragrance by the name of ‘Allure’. It was inspired by the elegance of Gabrielle Chanel herself. The fragrance was joined by ‘Allure Homme’ a scent for men. The next popular fragrance that was created was ‘Coco Mademoiselle’ in 2001. The scent was inspired by the Gabrielle Chanel and was based on the original ‘coco’ fragrance. In 2003, Jacques Polge created ‘Chance’ a perfume based on Gabrielle Chanel faith in the power of talismans and good luck. This scent was an original young scent with notes of sweet and spicy elements.
Researching the history of Chanel, I have seen constant elements in the brand, for example, the brand values have changed with the times, however, the brands still keeps its core values. Even after the death of Gabrielle Chanel, the brand still understands the importance of keeping her legacy alive within the brand. When looking at Chanel, the first word that comes to mind is elegance and luxury, which is something that can be seen throughout the brand’s life.
Additionally, Chanel launched ‘Les Exclusifs’, a collection of unique fragrances that are only sold in Chanel boutiques. Each of the scents in the collection reflects the life and character of Gabrielle Chanel. In 2010, Chanel launched ‘Bleu de Chanel’ a new and fresh fragrance for men. The fragrance explored a new provocative side of masculinity.
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Issey Miyake Perfume Brand
Issey Miyake designs are a combination of modern-day technology and Japanese style. He was born in 1938 and is well known worldwide for his innovative designs, exhibitions and fragrances. Miyake’s designs look at the relationship between combining fashion, technology and science together by using unusual materials. After graduating from Tama Art University where he studied graphic design, Issey Miyake went on to work in New York and Paris. This led him to gain the experience he needed to open his own studio, which he did six years later. The Miyake Design Studio produced high-end, luxury and sophisticated clothing for women. Additionally, Miyake got his first big break when one of his pieces was featured in Vogue and at Bloomingdales, which led to more of his work being published and Bloomingdales had assigned him a mini-shop within the store. By the end of the mid-1980s, Miyake began experimenting with different techniques of stitching, which is where he discovered a technique called pleating. Pleating meant Issey Miyake could create clothes that were more flexible and had a lot more movement in them. Issey Miyake wanted to design clothing that could be easily produced yet be comfortable for this audience to wear. This can be seen is a piece he designed for Ballett Frankfurt, which was called ‘The Loss of Small Details’.
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Another one of his collection included porcelain buttons that were created by Austrian pottery maker/artist. This piece of work was called Dame Lucie Rie. Also, Issey Miyake had created the popular turtlenecks that were worn by Steve Jobs, which became his signature look.
The next fragrance that Issey Miyake created was ‘L’eau d’Issey Pour Hommes’ in 2004, which was a fragrance targeted at men. This was then followed by ‘L’eau Bleue d’Issey Eau’, which was launched in 2006 and also targeted at men. In 2007, he introduced ‘Drop on a Petal’ and in 2008 Miyake launched ‘Reflections in a Drop’ both of which are targeted at women.
During the 1990s Issey Miyake started to explore new techniques and resources he could incorporate in his work. This led Issey Miyake to handover women’s and men’s collections to Naoki Takizawa. However, after gaining the experience whilst working for Miyake, Naoki Takizawa opened his own company in 2007, which was supported by Issey Miyake. This change led to Dai Fujiwara replacing Takizawa.
The reason that I chose to research Issey Miyake is how simplistic the brand is yet it links with the style of the brand. The brand itself is clean, simple and elegant, which is something that I have been inspired by. Also, whilst walking around a department store myself, I came across his fragrance ‘L’EAU D’ISSEY PURE’, which is something I completely fell in love with.
Furthermore, Issey Miyake was apart of the co-directors of Japan’s first museum of design called 2121 Design Sight in 2012. Miyake was one of the head designers along with four others. He also won many awards, such as Praemium Imperiale in 2005, Kyoto Prize for philosophy and arts in 2006 and Order of Culture, which he won in 2010.
The packaging for both bottle and box are unqiue. The box of the fragrance is an unusual shape for a perfume bottle, yet it links to the brand by being simple, clean and light. Whereas, it was the design of the bottle that inspired me to do something similar, for example, either engraving my brand logo into the bottle or using a sandblaster on a glass bottle to give it a milky, rough texture.
Similar to other fashion designers, such as Yves Saint Laurent, Elie Saab and Gabrielle Chanel, Miyake has his own collection of fragrances. The first fragrance he created was ‘L’eau d’Issey’, which was launched in 1992. The fragrance was targeted at women and had a light, floral and watery scent the starting point for this fragrance for Miyake all started with water and the impact that it has with the world. Also, the design of the bottle was created by Miyake himself and was inspired by the Eiffel Tower and the moon that could be seen from his apartment in Paris.
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Givenchy Perfume Brand
Givenchy is one of the most iconic fashion houses, with its timeless and elegant appeal. The fashion house has a rich heritage behind it, which is one of the reasons it still is a high-end popular brand. Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy was born in 1927 and founded the fashion house in 1952. In the same year, Givenchy presented a collection that would leave a mark on the fashion world. In 1952, his first fashion collection was something that was unusual for that time. Givenchy worked with Bettina Graziani to present his collection and opened the show with the famous ‘Bettina Blouse’. With elegant blouses and light skirts that were structured yet simple, Givenchy designs were an instant success, even though they broke away from the norm of that time period. This was the introduction for the ‘enfant terrible of Haute Couture’, where slender hips, slim silhouettes and high neck designs won over actresses from all over the world. The most iconic piece of clothing that Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy designed was the shirtdress that opened the door for less fitting shaped clothing, which he presented in 1955.=
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Givenchy muse was actress Audrey Hepburn who had accompanied him in creating a new style that would redefine the standards of elegance in women’s clothing. In 1957 Givenchy created a fragrance as a tribute to long-time friend Audrey Hepburn. The fragrance was called L’Interdit and was reinvented in 2008. This fragrance represents elegance and embraces the unique and usual side of the Givenchy house. Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy was always interested in men’s fashion from the beginning, which led him to launch his first fragrances for men in 1959. The scents were called ‘Eau de Vetyver’ and ‘Monsieur de Givenchy’. The ‘Givenchy Gentleman’ line was introduced in 1969 and became a collection for men’s fashion. Additionally, the line was a balance between elegance and casualness, which was the selling point for his ready to wear collection. A few years later, to celebrate the success for his ready to wear men’s collection, Givenchy launched another fragrance that is still used today. The Fragrance name is ‘Givenchy Gentleman’ and was introduced in 1975.
After spending more than 40 years being the head of Givenchy house and becoming part of the LVMH group in 1988, Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy retired in 1995. Additionally, Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy has been linked to some of fashions greats stars, such as Alexander McQueen, Julien MacDonald, and John Galliano. In 2018, Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy passed away in Paris, age 91. Since his death, Clare Waight Keller has been the head artistic director for the brand, which includes women’s and men’s ready-to-wear. A year after Givenchy death Keller introduced a new fresh looking for the house, which was based on the idea of light in the darkness. Also, it was Clare Waight Keller who designed the wedding gown for Meghan Markle for her wedding to Prince Harry. Keller designed a gown that had a boat neck, which was in double white silk, and had a hand- embroidered veil to finish off the look.
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Givenchy has always been one of my personal favourite brands, whether it is for their accessories or fragrances. The reason that I chose to look into and research Givenchy is because of their elegant, sophisticated and feminine style. All of these things create a timeless brand and is something that I was inspired by. Also, I wanted to create a brand that was timeless and could be fit within any era. Also, his fragrance lines have continued to grow and experiment with the times yet they still represent femininity and elegance.
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Additionally, whilst speaking with my audience about perfumes that make them feel good, elegant and sexy, I found Givenchy fragrances coming up repeatedly. The reason I found why Givenchy was popular with my target audience was that it represented femininity in a powerful and classy way. When they wore a fragrance by Givenchy they felt confident and beautiful. Also, the reason I chose to research Givenchy is because of how different each of the fragrance for women packaging is. ‘L’Interdit’ and ‘Live Irrésistible Rosy Crush’ are fragrances bottles that I got inspiration from. The bottle shape for ‘L’Interdit’ was something I was drawn to as I wanted my perfume bottles to have soft edges as it represents femininity. Also, the rough texture of ‘L’Interdit’ was something I wanted to incorporate in my design, which is why I experimented with using the sandblaster for my perfume bottles.
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Marc Jacobs Perfume Brand
Marc Jacobs is an American fashion designer known best known for his own fashion house and his work at Louis Vuitton as creative director. Jacobs was born in New York City in 1963 and spent most of his early life moving around following the death of his father. Marc Jacobs’s greatest inspiration was his grandmother whom he lived with as a teenager. After graduating in 1981, from the High School of Art and Design, he went on to study at the famous Parsons School of Design. This is where he was awarded three of the schools highest honours, which where Design Student of the Year, the Perry Ellis Gold Thimble Award and the Chester Weinberg Gold Thimble Award. The reason behind these awards was his collection of Op-Art sweaters that were hand-knitted by his grandmother. It was this collection of sweaters that got him recognised by designs, such as Barbara Weiser, owner of New York’s Charivari boutique. Weiser produced the sweaters and sold them in her boutique under the label Marc Jacobs for Marc and Barbara.
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Additionally, it was not only Barbara Weiser that caught the Jacobs sweaters, Robert Duffy who was an executive at Reuben Thomas Inc enlisted Marc Jacob to design for the company’s secondary label, Sketchbook. Jacob designed two new collections for Sketchbook, which both were an instant success. However, in 1985 Reuben Thomas Inc went out of business, which led both Jacobs and Duffy to create their own brand. In 1986, Marc Jacob unveiled his first collection, which carried the Marc Jacobs label.
In the same year as winning the Women’s Designer of the Year award, Marc Jacob and Robert Duffy officially launched their own licensing and design company. The company was called Marc Jacobs International Company and in 1994 Jacob unveiled his comeback collection with supports such as Linda Evangelista and Naomi Campbell who walked in his show for free. Furthermore, in 1997, Marc Jacobs was named creative director of Louis Vuitton, where he was in charge of creating the first ready to wear collection. During this time LVMH brought a share in Jacobs’ own label, which allowed him to further expand his business. In 2001, Marc Jacobs had launched his secondary line called Marc by Marc Jacobs. Whilst working at Louis Vuitton, Jacobs had increased the company’s profit, which was mainly known for its luggage into a global fashion house that was known worldwide. Having worked with people, such as Steven Sprouse, Julie Verhoeven and Richard Prince, Jacobs created high-end fashion pieces for the now famous fashion house.
The success of the brand led to Jacob to become the youngest designer to receive the CFDA’s Perry Ellis Award for New Fashion Talent in 1987. After two years, both Jacobs and Duffy decided to join Perry Ellis sportswear label as vice presidents of women’s design. Marc Jacob enjoyed working at the label and employed the then unknown Tom Ford to work with him on womenswear. This partnership lasted until 1992 when Jacobs presented the spring/summer collection of 1993 called ‘grunge’. Even though the collection was successful with the press, it did not do so well with the company, which led both Jacobs and Duffy getting dropped by the company in early 1993. However, even with the downfall of the collection, Jacob won the Women’s Designer of the Year award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America in the same year.
Marc Jacob was awarded the CFDA’s prestigious Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement prize in 2011. Also, by 2011 the CFDA awarded Jacob Womenswear Designer of the Year three times, Accessory Designer of the Year four times and Menswear designer of the Year once. However, in 2013 after working as creative director for Louis Vuitton, Jacobs left the company and had announced his departure from the brand after the companies spring/summer 2014 show in Paris.
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Moreover, one of the reasons that I choose to research Marc Jacobs was the values of the company. Jacobs believes that we are all staring in our own movie and by using fashion, makeup and fragrances we can explore and define our own personality and identity. Also, the designs of his perfume bottles explore femininity in a light, visual and wholesome way. His perfumes came up a lot when asking my target audience about their favourite perfume or which perfume they thought visually represented femininity. Whilst researching his brand, I was inspired and drawn to the fact that he has found the balance between traditional and modern elements, for example, his perfumes reflect youthful classic and fresh visions of femininity. His perfumes are not only visually appealing but also smell amazing. I have had a few fragrances by Marc Jacobs, such as Daisy Dream, which is light, airy and fresh. The different coloured liquids that Marc Jacobs has for his fragrances, was something that I wanted to somehow incorporate in my own brand, whether it be different coloured packaging or the actual liquid.
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Yves Saint Laurent Perfume Brand
Yves Saint Laurent’s is one of the most influential fashion designers in the industry who creating breath-taking designs. Laurent was born in 1936 and grew up in Algeria, where at the age of 17 he moved to Paris. This was the beginning of his amazing journey in the fashion world. In Paris, Laurent showed his drawing to Michel de Brunhof, who was the director of French Vogue. Brunhof immediately published several of Yves Saint Laurent’ drawings in the magazine. After attending fashion school, Yves Saint Laurent worked for Christian Dior and after becoming art director for Dior, he launched his first collection for the brand. The collection was called Ligne Trapéze and was a tremendous success, which led him to win a Neiman Marcus Oscar. Laurent left Dior after the death of Christian Dior in 1957.
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In 1962, Yves Saint Laurent set up his own fashion house with Pierre Bergé, after his national service in the army, where he designed his legendary smoking suit in 1966. Clothing was not the only product that Laurent was interested in, which led him to create his first fragrance called ‘Y’ in 1964. The fragrance was a collaboration with perfumer Jean Amic. It was inspired by couture fashion and was created for the women he dressed. The design of the bottles represented the silhouette of a woman’s body and the letter ‘Y’ was placed on the bottle to represent the neckline of a woman. Also, during the 1960s he also launched the reefer jacket, the sheer blouse and the jumpsuit. In 1971, Laurent launched his first fragrance for men called ‘Pour Homme’. The fragrance represented the values of the Yves Saint Laurent house, which were comfort paired with sophistication. The same year Laurent designed another fragrance for women called ‘Rive Gauche’. This fragrance represented the independent and high-spirited women of that time. The packaging for the fragrance itself was in a tin can, which is still packaged in this way. Years late in1977, Yves Saint Laurent launched another fragrance for women, one that would become an instant success. The fragrance was called ‘Opium’ that represented femininity in a new light, it was sexual and seductive. The perfume was created by perfumes Jean Amic and Jean-Louis Sieuzac. The next successful fragrance that Yves Saint Laurent created was called ‘Paris’, inspired by his love for the city. The fragrance was created by perfumer Sophia Grojsman. In the same year, Laurent launched another perfume called ‘Yvresse’ to celebrate the power and wealth of the economy. 269
At Yves Saint Laurent last show in 2002, he took his final bow and Stefano Pilati, who replaced Tom Ford in 2005, took over the couture house and continued Laurent legacy. In 2008, Yves Saint Laurent died at the age of 71 after a long period of ill health, however, his legacy lives on. The Oriental Collection by YSL was a tribute to the designer and his obsession with the East. The collection was inspired by different rooms in a middle East palace. Also, in 2014 YSL released one of the most Succesful fragrances of all time, which was Black Opium. It was created by perfumers Marie Salamagne, Nathalie Lorson, Olivier Cresp and Honorine Blanc. The fragrance celebreatred the new rock-chick look of YSL. The next fragrance to join the line was ‘Mon Parfum’, which was again inspired by Paris. Perfumer Harry Fremont created the fragrance.
The reason I choose to research YSL, as the brand is well known for creating feminine, fun and youthful fragrances. Whilst researching the brand, I came across many ideas for my own brand, for example, I want my own brand to be inspired by places or hobbies that I enjoy. Also, when speaking with my target audience, many have or have used YSL fragrances in the past especially ‘YSL Black Opium’. It is a scent, which makes my target audience feel powerful, sexy and confident. Another aspect of YSL that I took inspiration from was how the packaging for each of their fragrances are designed to suit that era or scent, for example, the packaging for ‘Paris’ is feminine, light and soft, which links with the ingredients of the scent. Whereas, the packaging for ‘Black Opium’ links with the characteristic of the scent, for example, it contains scents of black coffee and vanilla.
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LITERARY REVIEW
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History of Colour
Some time ago, many people believed colour was a mixture of light and darkness, whereas one scientist believed that colour scale ranged from red, which was the light colour, to blue and then black, which was darkness. However, Isaac Newton believed that this was wrong, as a single sheet of white paper with black writing did not look coloured even when seen from a distance. Instead, he believed that black and white colours blended together and created a grey colour.
This experiment confirmed that instead of the prism colouring the light, it was splitting it into the colour of the rainbow. This led to Isaac Newton creating a circular chart that laid out the colours that were seen from the experiment. This created the colour wheel that has been used to this day. Moreover, Isaac Newton thought that light was entirely made up of particles. Whereas Dutch physicist Christiaan Huygens thought that light was made up of waves instead. Isaac Newton theory explained the idea behind the reflection of light and the shadows, whereas the wave theory explained why the edges of shadows where not sharp when light was reflected.
By the late seventeenth century, many scientists were experimenting with the relationship between the using prism and the link they had to colour. The general idea was that a prism was the element that coloured the light, which created the rainbow colours when a light was shone through a prism and onto a surface. It was in 1665 that Newton performed his own experiment by using a refracting light and shining in through a prism onto a surface that was a great distance away.
By 1864, James Clark Maxwell thought light was an electromagnetic nature. However, after the discovery of radio waves and X-rays, the theory behind light revolutionised. Albert Einstein later suggested light was made up of particles.
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Colour Theory
Colour is not simply about using a colour that looks pretty and appealing. It is about conveying information to the consumer using a visual element. Different colours trigger a specific response in the central nervous system and the cerebral cortex. Once the different colours affect the cerebral cortex, they can stimulate thoughts, memories and feelings. Choosing colours that link with memories and feelings creates an increase in the consumer ability to process the information that is being given by a brand. Colour is around us every day, from looking down at our phones to waking passed stores. The human eye can see millions of different colours, which can make choosing one or two seem like a daunting task. Choosing the right colour for a design can be a long process as there are many factors to think about, such as colour combinations, how do they make the consumers feel and do the colours work with the product or design. When picking out colours for a design, it goes beyond more than a personal preference because colours have an extraordinary sense of influencing people’s moods, emotions and perceptions. Different colours link to culture, personal meaning and attract peoples attention, whether it is done consciously or subconsciously.
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However, for designers, the challenge of picking out colours is all about balancing the roles that colour plays. From attracting the consumer’s audience to making them feel something about the design, colour in design plays a major role. This is where colour theory comes in. It can help to understand which colours work together well and the effect of the colour combination that it will have on the audience. Colour theory is all about understanding the meaning behind colour and how to pick colours that will help portray the right kind of emotion across to the audience. Acculturation and physiology both go hand in hand when choosing colours, for example colours with long wavelengths are arousing and colours with short wavelengths are soothing. Take the colour red, it is the most eye-catching colour and the most exciting colour, which is a colour with a long wavelength. Whereas, the colour blue helps to lower blood pressure and is calming, which is an example of colours with short wavelengths.
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Visual Branding
The association of colour in any context creates connections with images and emotions. Every brand considers the effects the colours will have on their consumer’s emotions. For instance, the colour yellow links with positivity and happiness. The colours that are used in brands create a sense of experience for the consumer. Colour can be helped used to create an emotional connection to a brand or product, which is why it it important to choose colours that reflect certain emotions. For my own brand, I have used colours that link to femininity, happiness and fun. I have used colours such as yellows, pinks and blues in my logo design to represent different scents. Picking colours for the different scents was difficult as I wanted to portray happiness and femininity, however I wanted to choose colours that would represent the scents. This led me to research further about colour and the effects colours have on peoples.
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Colour in Context
Colour is something that cannot be heard or felt, it can only be seen, which suggests that colour is not tied to one thing such as a surface or texture. Colour is something that is all around us. People all around the world see colour different, however usually all of our eye work in the same way. They see the colour and process the information that is being received. What happens after the information has been received in another matter. Once a person has chosen a colour, it up to that individual on determining what the meaning of the colour is to them. For example, for some people, the colour white represents purity and hope, for others it’s a colour for mourning over a lost one.
Colour association depends on the individual and the different cultures. Colour can mean something entirely different for people, for example, the colour blue for a Sikh is associated with a soldier and strength, whereas in Western culture, the colour blue symbolises trust and authority. Colour is first seen, then linked with emotion or meaning of that individual, which creates the response. For example, a person sees the colour yellow, which makes them feel happy. Therefor they are in a good mood and are smiling.
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Understanding the colour wheel
The colour wheel is the most basic way of visually seeing the relationship between each of the colours. The colour wheel is a stripped down version of understanding colours that everyone is familiar with, from using it in school art classes to using it to understanding the combination of colours. The most common colour wheel that is used by schools, painters and artist is the 12 colours. Also, the colour wheel is all about mixing the primary colours together to create secondary colours. For instance, mixing together the primary red, yellow and blue creates the secondary colours on the colour, such as orange, green and purple. However, mixing the secondary colours with primary colours create the third level of the colour wheel, for example, red-orange, blue-green or red-violet. Also, the primary and secondary are apart of the visible spectrum of light, which some call them the colours of the rainbow, which includes the colour indigo. The rainbow colours include red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. The way to understand colour is known as a subtractive model, which includes mixing together coloured pigments like inks or paints.
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Primary Colours
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Secondary Colours
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Colour Terms
When working with colour in designing there are many terms that are used such as hues, shades and tones. All of these terms are used to understand the different types of colours to use in various designs, such as one design can include many shades of red or blue.
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Hue The name of a specific colour mainly referred to one out of the 12 colours on the colour wheel.
Shade A colour which has been darkened with black
Tone A colour which has been dulled with grey
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Tint A colour which has been lightened with white
Saturation The strength and intensity of a colour
Value The darkness or lightness of a colour
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Colour Harmony
Choosing the right colour when designing can be a difficult task as there are many elements of choosing colours that need to be taken into account. One of the best ways in choosing colours is picking out the numbers from classic colour wheels that designers have been using for years. Picking out the right colours for any design is understanding the balance and visual contrast between them. Also, colours that are being picked from the colour wheel can be split into one dominant colour. The dominant colour is the colour that either appears most often in design or is the colour that stands out the most in comparison to other colours.
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Analogous Hues of colours that are set side by side on the colour wheel. This type of colour scheme is adaptable and easy to apply when designing.
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Monochromatic Many different shades, tones or tints of one single colour. For example, a spectrum of the red colour, starting from light to dark. This type of colour scheme is more subtle and traditional.
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Complementary Complementary colours are opposite to the colour wheel. They are colours that compliment each other, such as red and green or blue and orange. However, when using complementary colours it can be difficult to find a balance when using them together, for example, they drown out the design itself.
Triadic These are any three colours that are evenly spaced on the colour wheel.
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Split - Complementary These are any of the colours that are on the colour wheel. This colour scheme has strong visual contrast, however, this colour scheme is less complicating than the complementary colour combination scheme.
Triadic/Double Complementary Both of these schemes when used together are very eye-catching, however, they are harder to use in design work, as it is difficult to find the right balance between each of the colours.
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Colour Inspiration
As already stated, colour can be found everywhere, from flowers and trees to posters and magazines. Nature creates the best colour combinations, which then can be transferred to designs, by colouring picking the colours. Colour can be inspired from anywhere, for example, travel, food or drinks and other everyday products such as makeup and clothes. Another area that can inspire colour is from temperature, such as warm or cool shades red or blue. Also, emotions and moods can inspire colour combinations, for example, if the consumers should be happy when looking at a design, then bright, fun colours should be used such as yellows or pinks. Different themes can also inspire colour combinations, such as seasons or holidays. An example of this is clearly seen when winter hits and the colour combinations are either red and green or white and blue. Furthermore, whilst researching for my colour palette many places and objects inspired me, for example fruit, nature and places. I found inspiration from places I visited, such as Italy and Indian, as well as flowers that in my garden. Whilst researching about colour, I have understood that the places, objects and people around us are a great source of colour inspiration.
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The Psychology of Colour
Every day we are surrounded by many different colours. Colour plays a big part in our lifestyle, for choosing the right coloured top to buy, to stopping at a red traffic light. Also, colour has a direct link to our mood and emotions, which is why some say they are “feeling blue” when they are said or “my heart is as black as my soul”. Colour has a connection to everything we do in our lives, from getting up in the morning to brush our teeth with a green toothbrush to wearing our favourite blue PJs to bed.
Also, for some colour mainly relates to nature, for example for some, red is seen as the colour of the sun, which gives life, however it can life away, which then links to blood. Another popular colour that has many meanings is the colour blue, which links to the sky and sea. It is seen as the colour of freedom and is a calming colour. However, for some, blue is a cold colour and represents loneliness. The representation of colour largely depends on the person and what they associate colours with.
The question is are we attracted to products or designs based on the colours or is there a deeper meaning. Do we pick colours regarding social and cultural methods or is it all based on our emotions. Colours and their meanings change between cultures and religions, however, the majority of the world relate colours to similar meanings, such as red for love or anger and yellow for happy.
Also, for many people, a single colour may be perceived differently to one another. To some a shade of yellow may be simply yellow, for others, it may be mustard or orange. Giving colours names is another way to manipulating their psychological impact. Many people base their attraction for colour on their names, for example, many people do not like the colour because of its name. However, paint manufactories have started to come up with unique names for different colours, such as Pink Flamingo and Aquamarine.
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Colour Symbolism
Also, for many people, a single colour may be perceived differently to one another. To some a shade of yellow may be simply yellow, for others, it may be mustard or orange. Giving colours names is another way to manipulating their psychological impact. Many people base their attraction for colour on their names, for example, many people do not like the colour because of its name. However, paint manufactories have started to come up with unique names for different colours, such as Pink Flamingo and Aquamarine.
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Red
Yellow This colour is mostly used to communicate happiness, cheerfulness and kindness. However, in some cases, yellow is used to indicate warnings and caution, such as on labels or street signs. In some Eastern and Asian cultures, the colour yellow is linked with royalty or people of authority. Whereas, in some parts of Africa and Latin America, the colour yellow is the common colour for mourning.
This colour communicates different things for different people. For some, red is associated with fire, which leads on either warmth or danger. Also in some cultures, the colour red symbolises good fortune and luck, which is why some brides wear red on their wedding day. Branding In branding, the colour red is often communicated as strength, confidence and power as it is a bright and easily visible.
Branding Yellow is used in brand to attract audience attention. As yellow is a bright and pure colour it is used to put consumers in a better mood. However, it can be visually unpleasant and hard to see.
Orange The colour orange communicates optimism and energy. Having a combination of red and yellow, it gives out a warm appearance. Also, it is linked to the harvesting or autumn season. For some, orange is considered a sacred colour, for example in India, the colour saffron symbolises courage and bravery. Whereas, in Japan, the colour orange signifies love.
Green This colour is associated with nature, energy and growth. It often communicates vitality, freshness and nature. Also, a darker shade of green is associated with money, stability and maturity. In many cultures such as Islam, green is a sacred colour. Another example of the importance of the colour green is linked to Ireland, as it is associated with St. Patrick’s Day and the lucky four-leaf clover.
Branding In branding, the colour orange communicates youthfulness and creativity. The colour gold, which is another hue of the colour orange represents luxury or expensive.
Branding In branding, the colour green is used to communicate nature, sustainability and health. It is used to represent environmentally friendly or organic brands or products. In some cases, other natural colours are combined with green such as browns, reds or yellows.
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Blue The colour blue is associated with the sea and sky and is often seen as freedom, peaceful and clean. The colour blue is connected to tranquillity and calmness. However, in some settings, the colour blue can be linked to sadness. Also, in Middle Eastern cultures, the colour blue is used as protection against evil. In many other cultures, as the colour blue is linked with heaven, it signifies immortality and spirituality.
Purple or Violet The colour purple is linked with royalty, power or honour. Also, it can be linked to spirituality or mystical connections as well as religion. In many cultures, the colour purple linked to royalty or wealth. Whereas, in Thailand and parts of South America, the colour purple is associated with mourning. Branding In branding, darker shades of the colour purple communicates luxury. Whereas, brighter shades of purple link to femininity or come across as young and childish.
Branding In branding, the colour blue is most commonly used as it communicates truth, security and stability. Also, darker shades of blue such as navy is commonly used in corporate logo designs, as it perceives a serious, professional look.
Black The colour black has many meanings, for example, it can represent power, luxury and sophistication. However, it can also represent death, evil or mystery. The two most common associations with the colour black are either sophistication or mourning. In some Asian and Latin American cultures, the colour black is seen as a masculine colour..
White The colour white is associated with light, a sign of innocence or perfection. In some cultures, brides wear white to communicate their purity and femininity. In many places around the world, such as China and India, the colour white is the colour of mourning. Also, in many cultures, the colour white is the symbol of peach, such as a white flag.
Branding In branding, the colour black is widely used as it is a neutral colour. Many brand use black to communicate a serious topic. Also, brands may use the colours black and white to communicate certain emotions to their consumer. Brands may combined bright colours with black as it will look more powerful against black.
Branding In branding, the colour white is often used to communicate simplicity or purity. The colour white is often used to communicate a modern quality that a brand is trying to put across. Also, brands will use the colour white as a way to communicate the minimalist a company.
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Colour in Design
Applying colour in any design is more than picking out 2 random colours and placing them randomly on a layout. Applying colour correctly to design is all about understanding the right balance, for example, having a teal blue colour paired with a light grey works well together. Also, the more colours that are used in a design, the harder and more complicated it is to find the right balance. The best way to understand colour and create the perfect balance is by splitting the colours up into dominant and accent colours. Dominant colours are the ones that are most visible in a design, for example, they can be the bright colours that are used in the background. Whereas, the accent colours are the ones that balance out the main colours. Accent colours are used to complement and even out the colours in a design.
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The key element of adding colour in design understands how the different colours interact with one another. It is about understanding how to create a colour contrast, for example using colours that are opposite from each other by using the colour wheel.
Whilst designing and choosing the colour scheme for my brand, I found it difficult to find the right combination of colours, such as using different shades of yellow with more bright colours. Once I had chosen the name of my brand to be ‘Lumi’ I knew I wanted to add the colour yellow into my colour palette, however, finding the right combinations of other colours with yellow was difficult.
Also, when using colour in any design, it is important for the text to be readable and understand the kind of mood that the colours give off, for example, using different shades of yellow will give off a happy vibe.
However, after researching about colour theory and colour in design, it came clear to me on how to find the right balance of colours for each of my scents. By using the 60:30:10 rule, I choose colours that not only complimented each other but also created the perfect balance of colours, for example, by pairing a mustered yellow colour with a light green, salmon pink, dusty blue and a plum purple colour.
Furthermore, when using three colours in a design, most designers use the 60:30:10 rule. The 60:30:10 rule is all about understanding how to layout the different colours used. The dominant colour will account for 60% of the colour used in the design, whereas the other two-accent colour will make up the rest of the 30% and 10% of the colours used in the design. This helps to create the perfect balance in the design. Additionally, using different shades and tints of colours, for instance using different shades of red or blue in a design. Using a lighter or darker version of colour helps to expand the colour palette without it overwhelming the design.
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Colour in Branding
Colour in branding is an important element. Brands are mainly recognised by their colours, for example, everyone knows the Facebook brand from the blue colour they are associated with. Colour in branding is not only about picking random colours, but it is also an important marketing decision that affects the way consumers perceive the brand as well as their products.
Some brands have already made sure the colours they use connect to their brand only, for instance, Coca Cola bright red is known worldwide and the brand is instantly recognised around the world simply by the red. Also, using colour with a short wavelength has a reassuring impact on the consumer’s mind. The role that colour plays in brand identity is an element that helps differentiate the brand from its competitors and makes it stand out.
When choosing a colour palette for a brand, it is important to understand how the colour works within the brand and how it fits within the brand’s characteristics and personality, for example, if the brand’s value is all about being environmentally friendly, then having a green colour incorporated in the brand will help with getting the message across.
Choosing the colour for my own brand was a difficult task as I wanted to pick colours that would represent my brand to my audience in the right way. This led me to research about the importance of colour in design as well as branding. I went back to looking at my inspiration and other perfume brands and seeing what colours they use.
Another important element to understand when deciding on a colour for a brand is making sure the meaning of it does not offend or cause any controversy. When choosing different shades or hues of colours, it is important to understand what is universally acceptable, for example, for some red may mean love or violence.
Looking at other brans led me to think about using light, fresh and bright colour to use for the different scents in my brand, for example using the combination of green and yellow for my fresh, citrus scent.
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Colour Systems
One of the most important elements about using colour in print design is knowing the colours that are shown on a computer or laptop monitor will not be the same when they will be printed on paper. The colours you see and not the colours you will get when printing, this is because monitors and printers use two different colour systems, which are RGB and CMYK. Looking at colour systems helped me to understand what the right colour system I should use for each section in my work. For instance, for my print based material, using CMYK colours are the best option for when printing print based marketing material. This can be by posters, leaflets and business cards. Whereas for digital based material, RGB colours are best to use. This includes websites, apps or digital marketing material, such as boards. Researching about the colour systems have helped me to gain a better understanding of the colours to use and where to use the right colour system.
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CMYK stands for cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink that are used when printing. Another difference between RGB and CMYK is that RGB colours use a wider colour spectrum than CMYK.
RGB colours are what is seen on screen. They are made up of small dots that contain red, green and blue, which are then combined to form any colour on a screen.
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The best way to get colours that work for both digital and print-based design is by using the Pantone Matching System. The Pantone Matching System helps to match colours that would be used for both print and digital design. Also, the Pantone Matching System makes it easier for designers to ensure there is a constant colour scheme throughout the brand.
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Colour Trends
For a design to attract the right audience, the chosen colours should work together and should work with all of the changing trends that are happening around the design. The best way to understand what colour combinations work best with a design is to create visual mood boards. These mood boards help to create a feel of the brand or design and explore which direction would be best for the brand. Creating a visual mood boards helps to visually see the changing trends and understand the initial conception ideas for the brand or design. Also, mood boards are a great way to understand any alternative routes the brand or design can go in if the initial idea does not work. Creating a mood board is all about gathering inspiration from a number of places, such as magazines, photos or paint swatches. All of these materials help to create a sense of how the brand or design would look, for example, a colour swatch that was found on a street sign can be later colour picked and experimented on. Colour trends are happening all around us, for new collections coming out in store windows to the season changing. Creating a mood board helps to reflect the way a design would look and how colours would be used in that design. For example, having various shades of green on a mood board for an environmentally friendly brand.
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Colour at the Point of Sale
Packaging design and retail design are two elements that work together. Packaging design is all about creating something that will attract the consumer and leaving them wanting more. The packaging plays a major role when it comes to the product, for example, it is the first thing the consumer will see.
Whereas retail design is all about how the store attracts its audience to a certain section of the store. Retail design links to interior design, as it is all about how the store invites consumer in. For consumers to be attracted to a product, retail designers have to create a visually inviting environment, for example having the right lighting and signage in each of the areas. The job of retail design work is to attract the audience to the product, which then the packaging should be designed in a way for the consumer to purchase the product.
Also, the product is only one part that will draw in the consumer. How the packaging is designed plays an important role if the consumer will buy the product or not. The packaging should offer a unique experience for the consumer. To achieve this, colours, textures and special effects, such as embossing or foiling are used to attract the audience in.
Packaging and retail design need to work together in order for products to sell. Adding colour to packaging design is not enough, the product itself needs a unique selling point. The products of the shelf also need to have a shelf presence, which is created by the retail design. Colour has to be used in the right to attract the audience’s attention but also get the right message across, for example, if a product should make the consumer feel calm then using lighter shades of blue would appeal to them instead of using colours such as red or black.
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Colour and Demographics
Selecting the right colour for a brand is all about knowing who the audience is and what is the message that the brand is trying to express. Colours affect consumers in different ways, for example, one person may associate red with love and another with danger. Also picking a trendy colour to represent a brand is never the answers for a brand as trends are constantly changing. Choosing the right colour for a brand always comes back to who the brand is targeting, for example, if it’s an environmentally friendly brand then using the colour green will automatically send a visual message to the consumer about what the brand’s values are and the message they are trying to send.
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5 Main Senses Sight, Hearing, Smell, Taste and Touch.
Designing is all about a brand or message to the consumer. Using the 5 main senses, which are touch, smell, speech, sight and sound, can help communicate a message to the audience. However, not many design use all 5 senses or even 3. The most common senses that are used in the design are sight, touch and sometimes sound. Researching about the 5 main senses helped me to understand how I can use more than two in my design. As I am designing and creating a perfume brand, it is important for me to understand how I can use sight, smell and touch in my work. Researching each of the sense, I have understood how I can use sight, smell and touch to work together and create a product that would appeal to my target audience. For an instant, designing a perfume bottle, which includes texture and using scented liquid in the bottle. Designing a product that uses both smell and touch will help me appeal to my audience and would create a sensory experience for them.
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Touch
Touching and feeling products are ways consumers explore and experience the product. Consumers are more likely to want to and hold a product to make their own assumption of it before purchasing it. Touch is a way for the consumers to get a brand experience, whether it is the product itself, the store fixtures or the room temperature. Also feeling products are more than understanding how it feels, its understanding how the texture, weight and size feels. For example, if a woman buys lipstick she will try it on her hand first to see the texture/consistency of the lipstick and how the tube feels when she is holding it. Furthermore, secondary packaging of a product should be designed in a way that the consumer can feel the product, even if it’s a little section. For example, men’s shirts that come in plastic boxes sometimes have cut out holes so that the consumers can feel the texture of the fabric. Also, touch is another way for consumers to make a product personal by having it shaped in a way to fit a hand. For example, the perfume Elie Saab Girl of Now perfume bottle is created in a certain way that it fits perfectly in the palm of a hand. Brands can provide an instant emotional connection to a product simply through touch. Packaging should be designed in a way that gives it consumer an experience, from opening the box and taking the product out. It should involve and be fun for the consumer.
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Smell
Similar to touch, smell has a way to connect people to different things, such as a perfume to a specific memory. Smells can be used to associate consumers to certain brands, for instance, if a woman is wearing Chanel Nº5 then she is connected to that brand. Smell is one of the strongest of all of the senses as it is a way for consumers to engage with emotional experiences. This may be because there are more connections between the olfactory region of the brain and the amygdala-hippocampal complex (where emotional memories are stored) than any other of the senses. Smell is always linked to memories and emotions, which is why it is an important element in branding. Consumers are more likely to buy products with scents that appeal to them, for example looking at my perfume testing feedback, the majority of women liked floral, sweet smells than citrus smell without looking at what the brand was. As scents appeal to emotions, consumers are more likely to buy products that smell nice. Different smells link to different moods and can influence people’s behaviour. For instance, pleasant smells link to people being happier and in a better mood. Also, the quickest way to capture someone’s emotion is by scent, which will help understand the type of mood they are in.
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Speech
Speech is another sensory experience for consumers. Brands should be able to understand how to speak to their audience and communicate their message. In some cases, using booming voices and over the top typography can be one way to get the attention of the audience, however, it is not the only way. Understanding who your consumer is first and then designing a typeface and tone of voice that they understand is essential. For example for a young feminine perfume company, I would use a typeface that is simple and soft, which would be more effective for my target audience than using a bold, heavy typeface. Speech is another way to grab the consumer’s emotions as it can intrigue consumer and build stronger bonds with the brand. Brands should be able to connect to their audience without shouting and them, this will only make the audience feel inadequate and small, which will create a negative effect on the brand.
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Sight
Sight is another sensory experience that we use every day. The process of sight is a complex one as the first step is all about how light is reflected off an object and then into the eye. The outer layer of the eye, which is called the cornea, bends the light, which then passes through the pupil. The coloured part of the eye, which is called the iris works similar to how a camera would. It either gets smaller to shut the light out or opens wider to let more light in. Additionally, in design sight is one is the most dominant sense. The way an object is designed and how it looks it one of the reasons consumers will pay attention to it. Designing visually appealing objects or brands means consumers will remember the brand or product. For instance, designing a cereal brand for kids would include bright colours and animals, which are elements that appeal to children. This will not only appeal to children but also be familiar enough to help them understand the product. Sight is another way to grab the attention of the consumer as it triggers other senses is to be used. For example, when walking into a perfume shop, if the consumer likes how a perfume looks, they will pick up the bottle, which leads them to touch the product. This will then make them want to spray and test out how it smells. Just this one product makes the consumer use 3 senses. 341
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Sound
Sound is the last sensory sense and works in a complex way. Sound works in a way were it is funnelled through the external ear and then the sound waves reach the eardrum. Vibrations travel to the middle of the ear, which then travels to the brain via sensory nerves. Sound is one of the main senses that are being used every day, from listening to people speak to listening to music. Also, sound is one of the senses that are taken for granted every day and is something that affects us on a daily bases. Additionally, sound is an important sense as it helps us to communicate with each other. Hearing helps us to learn about new product or brands every day, from listening to them on TV or hearing about them from other peoples. Hearing is an important factor for when designing as it helps to communicate not only to consumers but also to people from around the world. Using sound can help to create a certain type of atmosphere, for example, whilst shopping there is always music being played as it helps to relax the consumer and make them have an pleasant time whilst shopping.
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Sensory Design
Branding and packaging design does not need to something boring and dull, it can be about creating an experience for the consumers and communicate what the brand is in a fun and exciting way. Creating an emotional connection with the target audience is a big part of knowing how well the brand is doing. Sensory design is all about creating an environment for the consumer that involves emotions, creativity and vision. Finding a design that requires personal touch reconnects the consumer to the real world, which is what creates the emotional connection to a brand. Design is the best way for brands to express themselves and bringing compelling ideas to life through design is the best way for brands to create a constant relationship between a brand and its consumers. When designing a product or brand it is important that it creates emotion, sensory experiences and purchases. Knowing the emotional and practical needs of consumers, brands can use this to create designs or products that would appeal to them, which would boost up sales.
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Brand Personality
Brand identity is all about the representation of a brands values, personality and product or service it has to offer to its consumers. A brand logos and symbols have been a way for brands to identify themselves to the public, whether it be expressed through only symbols or type, or using the combination of both elements. For example, the IBM logo is known worldwide for its distinctive shade of blue.
A brands logo can become memorable and can convey many different meanings. The logo by itself can act as a symbol of what the company represents and is the most important visual elements of portraying what brands want its consumers to feel. Many more brands are finding ways to design their logos with their consumers in mind, for example, a logo can be ascetically pleasing yet have no human communication, whereas a logo that has been designed in a way that communicates to its audience will be appreciated.
Having such a unique logo becomes a visual identity for the company. Also having a well-known logo printed on products immediately conveys the message of high quality and respectability to the consumers. It makes the consumers feel safe and comfortable, as they are familiar with the brand already, simply by seeing the brand identity.
Brands have become more flexible and dynamic in order to bring a new meaning for the consumer to understand them. By becoming more personal, brands are expressing their message in an emotional way that their consumers would be comfortable with and understand. Emotional logos are a way for brands to connect and communicate the personality of the brand to their audience. It is all about connecting on a personal note.
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The success of a brand identity is how flexible is it to change. It is all about creating an identity that changes with its audience and still connects to them. Brand identity still needs to communicate a brands culture and message throughout the changes. The logo of a brand should be able to fit in with the changes that are happening and reflect the company for what they are, for example, Apple’s logo is simple and business-driven yet it still has kept up the with times changing.
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Typography
Certain typefaces can be used to decode the typographic message on a subliminal level, creating meaning that would otherwise need to be explained, for example, a handwritten typeface conveys the message of approachable and personal. Choosing the right typeface for a brand is an essential part it the type of message a brand wants to communicate, for example, the magazine Vogue, implies a classic elegance and sophistication with its Bodoni serif type. Also, brands may create their own typeface to create a strong corporate identity. Typefaces have been designed to help differentiate brands from one another and what their message is. Similar to colour, a type can either make or break a brand. Type is a powerful tool to help brands communicate who they are to the audience. Furthermore, typography is a way for not only brands but also consumers themselves to send a message to the world and communicate their emotions and aspirations. Choosing the right typeface can help to communicate a powerful message that sometimes images or long statements cannot.
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Psychology in Branding
It is important to understand when designing for a brand to have the consumer in mind. Understanding the consumer and their needs helps to create a brand to their needs. Also, whenever designing a brand, it is important to understand why to create that said brand, for example when creating a perfume brand, what will that new brand give to the consumer. Every day we see thousands of brands, so it is important to create a brand that will stand out from the crowd. Brand psychology is all about how people think and how brands encourage people to think. To understand different brands and their values, it starts with how brands affect their audiences, emotionally and psychologically. Brand identity is all about how brands want to be seen by their audience and what effects they want their audience to have. For example, Chanel wants its audience to feel sophisticated, elegant and fashionable, all of which can be seen clearly in their brand.
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Brand Psychology and brand marks
Logos play a big part in understanding a brand and message it is trying to perceive to the audience. Graphic elements, such as logos, colours, typography and patterns all play an important role when it comes to reflecting the values and psychology of the brand as well as the intended audience. However, it is important to understand that the different graphic elements mean different things to different consumers, for example for some the colour red may mean love and warmth, but also it may be anger and blood for others. It is important to get the graphic marks right as they are the first element of the brand that consumer see. Each of the graphic marks should reflect the brand in one way or another whether it be the colours, typeface or patterns used through out the brand. The relationship between brand psychology and brand marks is finding the emotional connection between the brand and the consumer.
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Understanding consumer needs
One of the best ways to understand if a design is working or not is by creating many prototypes. Designing prototypes will help understand the needs and desires of the audience. By creating prototypes of packaging designs, helps to not only test products on the audience, but also helps to get a better understanding of what needs to be improved, for example, if the colours of typeface work with the concept of the brand. Also, creating prototypes of a product can help understand how consumers behave with the product and if it will be successful.
As a designer, it is important for me to create as many prototypes as I can in all different sizes, colours and material. For my perfume bottles, I experimented with different size of bottles, ranging from square, circle, small and big ones. I then went onto experiment with different materials, which lead me to find using glass the best material as it created a shine that plastic did not when sandblasting the design. From then on I experimented with using different colours either in liquid form or the actual bottle. After creating these prototypes, I showed them to my target audience and gathered feedback. This is where I understood my target audience’s need and what elements worked in each prototype.
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Brand Psychology in spaces
With design becoming physical, it is important to understand how both consumers and the products interact with different spaces. It is important to create a space that allows the audience to have a positive experience with the brand or object, for example when walking into a retail store, the interior should be welcoming and comforting. This will allow the consumer to feel at ease and want to shop around. Also, to understand the consumer’s experience whilst shopping, it is important to create a certain atmosphere that reflex the brand. When designing for spaces, the graphic elements, such a printed or digital boards and signage should not only invite the consumer in but also reflect the brand. For example, when walking into World Duty-Free the perfume stands all reflect the individual perfume brands. Such as Elie Saab is gold, feminine and shiny, which instantly reminds consumers of the brand. All of these elements can create a powerful psychological on the consumer as it reflects the brand’s identity in a visual and compelling way.
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Taxonomy
Taxonomy is a system used to organise everything around us. It is a system based on hierarchy, which group’s together things such as animate objects, inanimate objects, places, events to help us get a better understanding of them. For example, animals are placed into many different groups, which then helps us to understand them, from mammals, reptiles and vertebrates. These groups are based in similarities the objects have and the natural relationship they have to one another, for instance, it can be as simple as supermarket brands that are similar to one another in price. Also, Taxonomy is an important element to use as it not only helps to organise information but also it helps to create a structure. Taxonomy can be used to track which perfume brands are the best sellers to animal behaviours. With this information and structure, taxonomy makes it easier to create and design content that would appeal to that group, whether it be an animal or person.
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Taxonomy in Branding
Taxonomy in branding is a useful tool as it helps to organise and balance different brand elements. Taxonomy in branding can help to not only understand what can benefit the brand but also how the brand can appeal to the consumer. Also, taxonomy in branding can help break down the different elements that are in the brand, from the brand values/history to the services the brand has to offer. When used in branding, taxonomy includes important categories of that brand. For example, for a fragrance brand taxonomy helps to group feminine and masculine scents, which can be further grouped into different scents and smells, such as floral, citrus and oriental.
As a brand grows and expands so do the taxonomy, which is why using taxonomy, helps to put everything in order. Taxonomy helps to simplify and organise brands, which then helps consumers to understand brands and their products. By sorting out brands into different categories, it makes it simpler for other companies to see who their competition is, for example, for brands such as Dolce & Gabbana, Giorgio Armani and Gucci it is important for them to know who their competitors are and where are they placed in the market.
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Power of Packaging Product packaging
Packaging holds the power for the product to be recognized and purchased by consumers. Whether it’s in-store or online, there are millions of packaging designs that are all trying to capture consumer’s attention. Each product is packaged to not only keep the content safe and secure but also attract the target audience, for example, whilst walking down the cereal aisle of a store there are hundreds of cereal products lined waiting to be picked.
Product packaging is the element that can be as creative and unique as possible. Packaging should represent what the product is and the brand for the consumers. Product packaging is used as the number one selling tool for brands as it is not only used to represent the product but also the brand values and visual expression. Brands and designers have to create packaging that will appeal to consumers in the first 7 seconds, which will make the decision of whether the product is worth their time or not.
One of the most important aspects of packaging design understands how to design packaging that only functional but also looks good and appeals to the target audience. This comes down to how the packaging is designed and the power that it has, for example, is it the colours or the different shapes that attract the consumers.
The first 7 seconds are crucial for designers, as they need to design packaging that represents the brand and content, as well as including key information. As well as the first having the 7 seconds to gain the attention of the target audience, the decision to purchase a product is also based on their personal preferences, such as colours, smells, and shapes. With all of these factors, it is crucial for product packaging to be attractive, practical and cost-effective as well as environmentally friendly to help to produce consumer sales. 365
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Power of Packaging
Additionally, most purchases are driven by consumer’s emotions and how they would feel when they have brought the product. For instance, when purchasing perfume, the packaging should attract the attention of the consumer, which will lead them to smell the scent and then purchasing it. Fragrances, as well as other products, rely on using different senses to see of a product is work buying. However, it all starts will whether the packaging of the product is appealing or not. When designing packaging, it is important to consider designing for more than one sense, such as using different textures, smells, sounds or tastes. Whilst designing packaging for my fragrance bottles, it was important for me to combine using more than one sense. This led me to experiment with sandblasting my logo onto the glass bottles, which created a different type of texture. This led me to think about how I can create packaging that was visually appealing and unique, which led me to experiment with using different coloured liquid in for my four fragrance scents.
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Graphic Elements
Graphic elements, such as colour, shape, typography and brand assets all play a major role in packaging. These elements have a significant effect on whether a consumer purchases a product or not. Choosing the right colour, shape and type should not only reflect the product but the brand. Luxury brands such as Dior is a great example as they are recognised by the typeface and brand logo they use in all of their products. Furthermore, Dior is well known for using golden, shiny, sparkly colours for their most popular fragrance, J’ADORE. Yet the brand designs different fragrances that looked younger and chic to appeal to another type audience, however, they still manage to make it look luxuriousness and sophisticated. Also, with many factors of the packaging world changing, it is important to keep up with these changes. One major change in being environmentally friendly packaging. This element in packaging is becoming more popular and affects the way consumers purchasing behaviour. Most people now look at the packaging to see if it can be recycled or if the packaging itself is made from recycled material. Another element in packaging that plays a major role in purchasing is social media and personalisation. These elements have influenced consumers into whether the product is worth their time into researching to even their money. This type of packaging has changed the packaging industry from being a box that keeps the product safe and secure, to becoming a marketing tool for companies/bands. 369
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Storytelling in Packaging
Storytelling in packaging design is becoming more and more popular as it is being used as a marketing technique to reach a wider audience in the most genuine way possible. Telling the brand story through packaging is another way for brands to create their own identity visually and contextually. Storytelling is used in packaging design to create a connection with the product and brand as it creates a longer journey for the product and brand together. For instance, Chanel No5 was created in 1921 and is still being produced today. The story of the product and brand can be seen through the change in its packaging design.
Also, storytelling has become a communication tool as it uses user-friendly language and visually shows the change in the brand, both good and bad. Telling a story through packaging design builds a stronger relationship between a consumer and the brand as it expresses the brand’s journey clearly. Consumers trust products and brands that they know about or have heard of, which is why many brands use storytelling packaging techniques to attract their audience. For example, the Starbucks logo has changed through time as well as their values of becoming more eco-friendly, which is an element that consumers are attracted to.
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Also, an important aspect of storytelling in is finding the right combination of colour, image, and typography to use in packaging. These elements should express to the consumer about what the product is and help them to understand what it is. Storytelling in packaging is used to invite the consumer in and make them understand the values of the brand and what the brand represents. By using visual storytelling in the packaging can help to expand the brand and open it up to new opportunities.
The aspect of storytelling was something that I always wanted to incorporate in any of my designs. I wanted to share my brand story through my packaging design, which is why it was important for me to look into storytelling in packaging. Also, I wanted to create and design a brand to help my audience know who I really am as a designer and have a positive impact, which is why the idea of incorporating my brand story in my packaging was something I wanted to do. I did this by using a crafty technique of sandblasting my logo on my perfume bottles. The technique linked to me working with my hands and being a craft creative, which is something that I have always been and enjoyed.
Additionally, storytelling in packaging design can have an emotional effect on consumers as it can make them have an emotional connection to the product. By having a packaging design, which includes some sort of story, it invites the consumer in and makes them want to know more about either the product or brand. The storytelling element of the packaging design reflects the brand’s values, promises and beliefs, which are emotions that we humans take seriously.
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FINAL OUTCOME
Project Proposal Final Outcome
The outcome for this project is a perfume brand that is targeted at young women. The outcome will be a window display, which showcases four different scented perfume bottles. Brand guidelines will be created and designed to reflect the values and beliefs of the brand. The brand guidelines for this brand will lay out a set of rules that others will have to follow whenever using this brand. Also, the brand guidelines will include the different graphic elements of the brand, such as logos, colour palette, patterns and typography. Also, the decision for this project outcome was based on my own career aspirations and what I enjoy creating. The reason I have chosen to create a perfume brand for young women is that I saw a gap in the market for a luxury perfume brand for young women that make them feel empowered without breaking the bank. This project is all about exploring new ways the graphics industry can include more craft-based techniques into product packaging. The inspiration for this project came from previous projects that I have created using different techniques, such as laser cutting or screen-printing. Additionally, I want to create a brand that portrays young women as their real selves, while still trying to found out who they are it should be fun, young and free, yet still is classy, elegant and chic. 376
Target Audience
The audience for this project is 18 to 25 young females. I chose this target audience as I fall into the age bracket and I can get a lot of information and opinions from people that I know about perfumes. After I figured out who my target audience was, I created a perfume questionnaire that asked general questions about perfume, such as why do you wear perfume and where do you buy your perfume from. These questions helped me to understand my target audience further and made me get a real sense of who they were and what they liked and disliked. By uncovering who my audience is, brought me one step closer to creating a successful brand. Getting a good understanding of what they need, like and who they are made it easier for me to create a brand that would attract the audience’s attention and keep it on the brand. Choosing a target audience that I am comfortable with is a positive aspect of this project as I can ask them questions freely and ask their opinion throughout the whole process.
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Aims and Objects
The idea is to create a perfume brand that is targeted at young women between the ages of 18-25. Also, it is about designing and creating packaging design for the perfume brand to explore and showcase craft-based techniques. The main aim of this project is to create a professional outcome that engages the target audience. Researching and prototyping should play a major part in this project, as it will help give direction to the project and inspire how the outcome will look. The final outcome should be a product and brand that fills the gap in the fragrance market. My personal aims for this project is to explore and experiment with using different techniques to create packaging design. Also, at the end of this project, I want to be able to know what sector of the graphic design industry I would want to work in, whether it may be packaging, branding or product design.
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Context
Even though I am creating a perfume brand for young women, which seems quite basic. My brand is more than a perfume brand, I have looked into how perfume makes people feel and why perfume is more than a scent. This project reflects the importance of packaging design and what the psychological affect it has on consumers and how colour theory fits into our daily decisions. The research for this project has been oriented towards understanding the power of packaging and how important packaging design is in any industry, such as food, clothes and fragrances. Additionally, even though the out is a window display, which showcases the perfume bottles, it still reflects the packaging of the perfume bottles and is an important part of the packaging in general. Throughout this project, I have research about the history of packaging, branding and the perfume industry, which has helped me to understand how each section got to where it is today. Whilst I have never created packaging for a brand before, I have understood that I enjoy creating objects using different techniques. The knowledge that I have gained through this project has helped me to create a brand that reflects what I am passionate about as well as appeal to its audience.
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Sandblasting
After hitting a dead end for my packaging designs for my perfume box, I thought about the whole packaging idea and went in a different direction, which was designing packaging for the perfume bottles themselves. This led me to experiment with using vinyl stickers, however that did not look professional enough. This led to experimenting with using the sandblasting to create a textured surface on the glass bottles. After many prototypes and experimentations, I finally created a packaging design that was professional looking. By having redirected my final outcome into creating packaging for the bottles using the sandblaster, I stuck to my values on using different techniques to create packaging. Having researched bottle designs for perfumes and looked at the history of perfumes, I understood that many perfumes bottles looked the same and had the same texture. This made me think about how using the sandblaster in my project would be creating something unique and different for the fragrance industry.
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What is Sandblasting?
Sandblasting is a method used on glass to create a textured and milky-white surface. The process of sandblasting is all about blasting solid particles of sand onto a surface at a high speed using compressed air or steam, which leaves the glass with a peppery like texture. This technique is often confused with etching onto glass, which creates a similar texture, however that technique uses a laser-cutting machine instead. Sandblasting on glass is used to obscure the view through the glass, however, the method still allows light to be beamed through. Also, sandblasting is a great way to create patterns and designs, by creating a template or mask over the areas, which you do not want to sandblast. This was the method that I used when sandblasting my brand logo onto the glass bottles. To print the ‘Lumi’ onto the glass bottles, I printed out my brand logo stickers onto vinyl stickers and then stuck them onto glass bottles. Once the glass bottles were sandblasted, I then removed the stickers, which left the area of the sticker smooth and shiny.
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CONCLUSION
Conclusion
This project has had its ups and downs just like any other. I have learnt about the graphic design industry as well as what area of the industry I would want to work in which would be either packaging or production design. This project has taught me about branding, researching correctly, and being patient about creating the final outcome. Before this project, I always wanted to get on with designing the outcome first and doing all of the academic parts of the project after, however, this project has helped me to balance out the designing and researching parts of a project. Throughout this project, I have been refining and exploring new graphic design skills, such as typography, grids, image/format and craft. I have understood the importance of each of these sections in a project, for instance, when creating my research book and brand guidelines, it was extremely important to use a grid as it helped to create hierarchy and structure throughout the book.
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Typography
Typography has never been one of my strong suits, which is why the typography workshop that we did at the start of this project helped as it made me understand how to set text on a page and the importance of font choices. The type I used for both my research book and brand guidelines are the same, as I wanted there to be a flow and consistency throughout the project. Magazines such as ‘Kinfolk’, ‘Cereal’ and ‘Lodestars Anthology’ were my inspirations for this project. I wanted my research book and brand guidelines look professional, neat and crisp. This led me to choose fonts that fit those criteria, which were ‘Bodoni 72b Book’ for the headings and ‘Garamond’ for the body text. Using these types faces added a mixture between traditional and modern type.
Furthermore, one aspect of text that I struggled with and still do is kerning and tracking. I cannot seem to find the right balance. However, after speaking with people in my class and help from the workshop, I understood how I could use the process of kerning and tracking. For my logo design, the typeface that I started off with was ‘Oranienbaum’. I found this typeface whilst researching typography for my brand. After much experimentation with type and research, I picked this typeface as it went well with the wording of my brand. ‘Oranienbaum’ was a font that has a traditional look to it with a modern twist, which is something I wanted my brand to reflect. After experimenting with kerning and tracking for my brand name ‘Lumi’, I found the right balance between both. This can be seen through my experimentation in my research journal.
Also, from the workshop, I learnt the importance of kerning, tracking, leading and line length, all of which I struggled with. For my research book and brand guidelines, I used leading to help me create a distance between each line of text, which helped the text to read easy. Additionally, I learnt the importance of line length, for example, shorter line lengths helped with legibility and created a professional look.
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Use of Grid
Images
Before starting this degree I never used grids in my work, however, after experimenting and creating a number of books I have understood how important it is to use grids whenever designing. The grid that I used in my research book and brand guideline was a ‘5X5’ grid. Using an odd number for a grid system made it easier for me to spread out elements of my work on a page to create a layout that is clear to navigate. Also, having an odd number grid system was something I learnt in 2nd year as it created a middle column and row to place work.
A lesson that I have learnt throughout this degree is taking photographs of every workshop, experiment and process. For this project, I took photographs of the process from the first workshop, to the experiments I have created. However, one element that I learnt in second year was how to search for high res images and how to make high res images myself. Most of the images that I have gotten from other places such as for my case studies are all of the brand’s websites. With each image that I used in my research book and brand guideline, I would export the page in high quality PDF and see how it would look. Even though this was a long process, it helped me to know what images where oh high quality to use.
My main source of inspiration for laying out my work was the ‘Lodestars Anthology’. It was a magazine that I fell in love with for its type, imagery and grid system. One layout that I was inspired by was using two columns of text with a gap grown down the middle of the columns. This layout was something that I used throughout my research book. Additionally, I am still learning how to be flexible when using a grid and creating layouts that look graphically appealing. For me to overcome this, I will be getting inspiration from a number of other sources and collected different types of magazines that use a number of grid systems.
Whenever I would use my own images, I would try and make the backgrounds the same as each section, for example, for one set of experiments the background would be yellow and blue. This helped to create a visual grouping. However, one issue that I came across was when I would use images in my research book and brand guidelines that were exported from an Illustrator file. The images would become pixelated, which led me to ask an IT technician for assistant and they helped me understand what the problem was. The issue with the file was changing the output resolution.
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Quality of Finish
Format
One thing my tutor always said to me was “remember the quality of finish”. This saying stuck with me throughout this project and helped me to remember every time I would design an element for my brand to design it in the high quality, whether it was the logo, research book or outcome. I have always struggled with creating my outcomes to a professional standard, however, it was this year that I became confident in my work and myself as a designer that my work reflects that. To help me overcome my issue on attention to detail and quality of finish, I created a plan of everything that I needed to created and set deadlines for myself. These deadlines helped me to keep on top of my work and left enough time at the end of the day to work on my designs.
The formats for my research book and brand guideline are both similar to one another in terms of layout, size and binding. In previous projects, I have experimented with different size books and binding techniques, however, I have always loved the square A4 size. Within binding, I have always enjoyed binding and creating my own books, however, for this project want my book to look professional, which is why I chose to perfect bind. Also, as the magazine ‘Lodestars Anthology’ was my main source of inspiration for the format for my research, all of their magazines are square shaped, which was something that stood out for me. In my first year of university, I used Blurb printers to get my book printed. However, the quality of the print was awful. I was apprehensive about sending my research book to be printed off. However, to over overcome this issue I research many places that print books both in hard/soft covers and have many paper types. I ordered many paper samples from about 7 printing companies around the UK. Getting paper samples helped me understand the quality the paper. Also, having emailed printing companies, I got ask questions, such as timing and setting up the document for printing. I felt more comfortable with using Mixam to print out my book as they sent over many paper samples for me to choose from and where very friendly.
Additionally, I have always been excited about the creating side of a project, from creating experiments to designing the final outcome. For this project, I wanted not only my outcome to look professional, but also my experiments. For this to happen, I spent time paying attention to the little details, such as measuring the glass bottles exactly for me to print out and stick the vinyl stickers on. Also, I created labels for the bottom of the perfume bottles, which is an element that is on professional perfume bottles. I wanted all of my outcomes to be the best that I could make them, which is why I spent time and attention on each element.
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Personal Reflection
When I started this project, I never knew where the idea would lead me, however, I always knew I wanted to created and design something that I have never done before. If I wanted to achieve that, it meant stepping outside of my comfort zone and throwing myself into the deep end. The idea started off as quite broad and basic, however, the more I research and gathered inspired I started to create my own path for the brand. Whilst researching the history of perfume, I found a lot of information on the meaning behind perfume and what it means to people. For example, perfume was used as a luxury item and was used in ceremonies. This led me to research the history behind both branding and packaging and finding out more depth information, such as packaging was seen as something to hold objects in, however now it has evolved into being used as a marketing tool. Additionally, the more I dove into researching for my project, the more I wanted my brand to be much more than a perfume brand. I wanted my perfume brand to reflect femininity, power and elegance, as well as being playful and intelligent. All of which I was inspired by researching luxury fragrance brands, such as Elie Saab, Chanel and Dolce & Gabbana. Before this project, I never liked researching or interviewing people. However, by picking a topic that I enjoy and comfortable with made it fun and enjoyable for me to research and find as much information as possible about brands, packaging designs and design theories. 388
Relating outcome to Industry Practice
Theories and Inspiration
Creating packaging for a perfume brand was something that I did not imagine I would be creating for my final major project. I always thought I would be creating something that would be linked to editorial design or marketing materials, however, after finding myself as a designer, I would not have it any other way. My final outcome showcases how craft-based design can be combined with packaging design. Whenever I have designed anything for this degree, I have always tried to find a way to bring in a craft like element in my designs, whether it is using a sandblaster to create sand like texture in glass perfume bottles.
Alongside this project, I was writing my critical reflection, which helped me on some of my design decision. The critical reflection was about how gender is represented through packaging, which made me research about different brand and theories, such as psychology in branding. For instance, when choosing what colours to have in my brand, I started researching colour theory and colour psychology. By looking into these theories, I was able to understand the meaning behind the colours I chose, for instance, the colour yellow represents, warmth and happiness, whereas pink represents femininity love all of which I wanted to express in my brand.
Additionally, there are areas in my outcome that relate to the fragrance packaging world, such as having the perfume bottles made from glass and having a feminine style logo to represent the gender of the perfume bottle. Also. by having the bottles placed onto a wooden box to make it look like a window display links to the whole concept of my brand luxury yet affordable. However, there are elements to my outcome that do not relate to industry practice, such as the glass being textured. Whilst researching women’s perfume bottles, most of the bottle designs included different shapes or colours but not adding texture to them. However, I am hoping that by having texture glass will make my perfume bottles sand out from the crowd in a good way.
Also, by researching brand such as Marc Jacobs, Chanel and Dior, all of which have created popular fragrances that my target audience use helped me to pick out elements from the brands and try and incorporate them into my brand. An example of this would be using colours liquid in my perfume bottles in a similar way Marc Jacobs does for their daisy collection. Furthermore, by looking at other brands, it helped me to understand what elements of the brand my target audience was attracted to. Before doing in-depth research for brands, I created a questionnaire to help me understand the types of brands my target audience liked, from there I researched those brands and understood visually what makes them stand out.
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What I want to Achieve?
Throughout this project my final outcome changed, it went from being a packaging box for my perfume to be a window display that showcased the perfumes. However, my main idea that I wanted to achieve was to create a luxury yet affordable perfume brand for young women between the ages of 18 and 25 years old. I feel that I have achieved my goal and what I set out to do, either through the ideas outcome change. One of the reasons why I meet my aims and goals was because every time I designed anything for my brand, I got my feedback from my target audience. Throughout the process, I was in contact with my target market and would ask them what designs worked well and which ones need improving. For instance, whilst deciding on the colours for my scent, I asked my target audience on which colour combination they thought represented the different scents, such as musky and citrus. Whilst creating my brand, outcome and research, I had the main pieces of inspiration in my head throughout the process. For the research book, it was the ‘Lodestars Anthology’ magazine that I had next to me through the process so I could always look back at layouts and graphic elements. Whereas for my perfume brand and bottle design, my main inspiration from day one was Elie Saab Girl of Now perfume. The colour, typeface and the whole brand, in general, was my main inspiration, which helped me set my goals. I wanted to create a brand that reflects femininity in a young and fun way, which is something I have achieved.
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Critical Thinking
With every project, there are elements that went right but also a space for improvement. For this project, there are elements that look amazing, such as the sandblasted bottles and the whole brand. At first, I pictured my outcome completely differently, however, I am pleased with the way it turned out. After experimenting on different shapes, materials and colours, I now know using glass was the best material for my perfume bottles.
Furthermore, for my research book, I feel as though I have not found my own style yet. I have changed the layout for my research many times throughout this project where it got to the point where I ran out of time. An example of this is not being creative with my layouts. When I create a book I did not know how to layout content on my page. However, after gathering inspiration from a number of sources, both physical and digital. I found a layout that I was comfortable working with. Yet there is stillroom for improvement, which is something I will be working on by experimenting with designing different layouts.
Also, if I had not experimented using different materials and shapes, I would have spent the whole project asking my self “what if...” However, there is still space for improvement for my final outcome, such as not only creating one size fragrance, but using different size bottles to create a contrast. Also, I would like to have branched out further and experimented with creating products for my brand, such as hand cream, body scrub or body lotion. I feel as though after I created my outcome there was still so much more I could create with my brand.
Every time I have designed a book, I haven’t found the balance between too much and too little, for example, I have used different colours for each page in my research book, which is something I was unsure about. However, after speaking and showing my work to people in my class, they suggested using one colour for each of my sections. This would still add colour to my research book but also look professional and not childish. One aspect that I feel that I have improved on is my research. I have learnt to love research and finding out new things about subjects. This has helped me throughout this project, for example when research about the history of perfumes. However, I feel as though there was still more research that I could have done for this project. Research is an on-going task.
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Who am I as a Designer?
Throughout this year, I feel as though I have slowly been finding myself as a designer. From the first project creating flower patterns with the laser cutter to creating packaging for a drinks company, I feel as though they helped create a way for my final project. I have always known I have enjoyed creating designing with my hands rather than digitally, which is why this project helped me to understand this is who I am. The first 2 years of this degree, I was in limbo and trying to figure out who I was and what my opinion was about design. This project has made me form an opinion about design, which is there is still an area for design to be crafty yet still look professional. This project has made me understand the importance of using different techniques besides digital in graphic design as they make much of an impact as digital does on the industry. Across the three years of my degree, I have learnt many skills, which I have used throughout this project, from researching to experimenting to printing and creating my final outcome. I feel as though my final outcomes have become more professional looking as I have myself developed as a designer. Going through the process of trial and error in this project has allowed me to sharpen my skills as a designer as well as completing my final major project, which has allowed me to explore who I am as a designer whilst bringing in my own personal touch to what I create.
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Depth of Analysis
This project has taught me so much about how to research, what to research and what to write about. Because I chose a topic that I was familiar with and enjoyed, it helped when I have to research and write an analysis for each section. For example, I enjoyed learning about the different theories such as colour theory, the power of packaging and storytelling in packaging. whilst researching these different theories, I liked that fact that I could have my own opinion on them as well as link them to my project. An example of this is when I speak about storytelling packaging. I have always loved how brands represent or create a story for their product. I feel as though it creates a more personal feeling to it, which is something I have wanted to incorporate in my own brand. From a young age, I have struggled with writing, however, after having written essay and my dissertation as well as my critical reflection, I found the confidence in own writing. Even though I know I sometimes can go overboard with the amount of information I write. I always think with research, nothing is ever too much. The more research that I have done for this project the more in-depth and better understanding I have, which then is shown through my design work. Whenever I have research for this project, I have always asked myself ‘Why’, which is another lesson I have taken away from both my Contextual studies tutor Jess and my design tutor Tom. I always have to link back my research to the question “why am I doing this?”. This helps me to understand why I have chosen to research that topic as well as have my own opinion on it.
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phy [Accessed 28 Nov. 2018]. - The Perfume Society. (n.d.). ChloĂŠ - The Perfume Society. [online] Available at: https://perfumesociety.org/perfume-house/ chloe/ [Accessed 22 Apr. 2019]. - The Perfume Society. (n.d.). Elie Saab - The Perfume Society. [online]
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[Accessed 17 Dec. 2018]. - Thomas, G. (n.d.). Untitled Document. [online] Edgemi.org. Available at: http://www.edgemi.org/thomas1.shtml [Accessed 5 Jan. 2019]. - Thorpe, J. (2015). The Ancient History Of Perfume. [online] Bustle. Available at: https://www.bustle.com/articles/101182-thestrange-history-of-perfume-from-ancient-roman-foot-fragrance-tonapoleons-cologne [Accessed 21 Mar. 2019].
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List of Illustartions
Field of Study - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-projectlumi/womens-beauty-packagingbrands/
Focus - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/ main-focus/ History - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/ history/
History of French perfumes - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/finalmajor-project-lumi/french-perfumes/ Branding - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/ perfume-brand/
Packaging - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/ perfume-brand/
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History of packaging - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/history-of-packaging/
Perfume - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/perfume/
Bottle - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/ perfume/
Fashion and Fragrance - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/finalmajor-project-lumi/perfume-brand/
Case Studies - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-major-project-lumi/case-studies/
Literary Review - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/Akharay/final-majorproject-lumi/literary-review/
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