CHOPARD PRESENTS FOUR SUMPTUOUS FRAGRANCES BASED ON A LUXURY NATURAL PHILOSOPHY
After many years of external collaborations, Chopard is establishing its own fragrance house, Chopard Parfums, leading the brand to the forefront of luxury natural perfumery. Echoing the brand’s vision as a jeweller, Chopard Parfums places natural, positive, and ethical luxury perfume-making at the heart of its inspiration as a Maison de Parfums. By taking control of its perfumery activities, Chopard aims at creating exceptional fragrances, rich of the most pristine and premium natural ingredients, in line with its journey to sustainable luxury, a project that started in 2013 at Cannes Film Festival with the launch of the High Jewellery Green Carpet Collection.
Inspired by the Arabian Gardens of Paradise, these four new high-end fragrances are a tribute to the most mythical and mystical gardens of the Orient. From the Mediterranean to the East, these legendary gardens are the expression of the Golden age of Arabian civilisation. Peaceful and secret, traversed by rivers of water, milk, and honey, they are filled with the most beautiful, sweet-smelling and colourful flowers and fruits, under the shade of majestic trees.
With the Gardens of Paradise Collection, Chopard Parfums is offering fragrance connoisseurs the quality of the highest tradition of perfumery, and during their launch in Dubai we took the opportunity to speak with Caroline Scheufele, Chopard Co President, and Patrizio Stella, CEO of Chopard Parfums, to get a greater understanding of the power of scent.
To what extent in such a fast-paced world storytelling is still important?
CAROLINE: I think it is more important than before, because the younger generation are questioning what they buy far more. They want to be more informed, so there needs to be a true story behind the product to garner their interest and touch them.
PATRIZIO: I believe it is very much important, but it must be translated in the right way. There are different elements in luxury business, one is the quality of the product itself, the second is the brand, and thirdly the story. Storytelling for us is something that is not just a marketing tool to sell the product, it has to be the true fairytale behind the creation that can help people understand more about the process and link them to the vision and dreams of the brand. It is there to enhance the story of the product.
What is the true meaning of luxury today?
CAROLINE: Luxury is a choice, so no matter what category of price, it is all about the quality and being different.
PATRIZIO: We believe that luxury is connected with quality, emotions, and being true to yourself. Luxury is a promise that we make to our customers, telling them that we will take care of them from the beginning to the end without hiding anything. It is about the substance, it needs to be rich, with the right ingredients, and the right story, whilst still remaining transparent to the customer. Simplicity is very important to us when talking about luxury, we believe that perfection is not when there is nothing else to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
What makes each of the four fragrances unique?
PATRIZIO: The four fragrances are very much unique, so despite them being a collection, they can be individual fragrances on their own. They all have one ingredient that makes them uncomplicated, and each of them tells a different story, representing a different garden.
PATRIZIO STELLA & CAROLINE SCHEUFELE WITH LARA MANSOUR SAWAYA
How would you define each fragrance?
PATRIZIO: In the case of Orange Mauresque it’s a sandy fragrance, for Jasmin Moghol it’s about sensuality, with Rose Seljuke it’s a mythical flower like the rose, and for Miel D’Arabie it’s the emotional restoration.
Tell us about the challenges you face today with fragrances?
CAROLINE: It’s a big competition with almost every brand touching the fragrance world, whether they are fashion, jewellery, or cars. So, if you want to stand out and make it, you must be different and immediately recognisable.
PATRIZIO: On the creation side we are challenged because we have placed a long-term goal on ourselves to work with natural, high-quality materials which can be complicated due to scarcity and the time needed to work with them. The other biggest challenge for us is defining ourselves in this new luxury natural perfumery segment of fragrances.
What is next in the pipeline for your fragrance sector?
CAROLINE: This line is perhaps more focused on the mature client, so we are looking to create something for the younger generation.
PATRIZIO: This is a major launch which is being introduced all over the world progressively. The Gardens of Paradise is really the starting point, and we chose Dubai to launch it first because it is a place that is fundamental to the fragrances. The idea is to stay very selective with its placement.
As you are inspired by colours, can we look forward to other jewel coloured bottles in the future?
CAROLINE: Certainly, I think the most obvious colour that we would use next would be red, inspired by the ruby.
Can we expect to see a wider range of related products released in the future?
PATRIZIO: The project started from the creative side rather than the retail side. Which means that if things follow in the path of the brand, we could be interested in going anywhere to create more complimentary products.
What are the common codes that you are ensuring you keep between the fragrance and the Maison?
CAROLINE: First of all, being as creative in the world of fragrances as we are with watches and jewellery. Next is sustainability, as we are the first brand in the world to really push forward the ethical aspect, which I think really contributes to the fragrance as it makes the smell different. The sustainable side is more complicated due to the ingredients, and this requires extra precision which is in line with our watch and jewellery making.
Tell us about the story behind the design of the bottle?
CAROLINE: The base of the bottle is from the bottle I designed for the very first fragrance that we launched, Happy Diamonds, which was the beginning of the fragrances in 1995. We were talking about the bottle in brainstorming meetings and I showed this previous design which is also inspired by an emerald cut diamond.
Among the fragrances, do you have a favourite?
CAROLINE: It would be the Miel D’Arabie.
Do you have any regrets when it comes to the timeline of Chopard Fragrances?
CAROLINE: I would have preferred to have done this a couple of years ago!
CAROLINE SCHEUFELE
What are your highlights for 2018 with jewellery and watches?
CAROLINE: Happy Sport, one of the first watches I designed is celebrating 25 years, and we also have a large collection of 71 pieces in the red-carpet book to present in Cannes.
What can we look forward to seeing on the red-carpet in Cannes?
CAROLINE: There will be a lot of colours, as I can’t stop myself when it comes to colour!
Can you share with us what you still looking to achieve with the jewellery sector?
CAROLINE: The Happy Hearts line is very successful, and we are extending this as it is very popular with the younger generation.
How challenging is it to speak to the mature client, whilst still attracting the millennials?
CAROLINE: It is about choosing the right media for both levels, so we need to make sure that we advertise each product in the right manner in order to reach the right customer. The younger products are placed across digital platforms, whereas the high jewellery is in print.
When you are designing, do you have a specific idea in mind, or do things come together as you design?
CAROLINE: If it is red-carpet, it is often centred around an unusual or rare gemstone, and this is what inspires me. With the younger lines I start with a white sheet of paper and it can be troubling, whereas with watches, you have a movement in the middle and you have to respect this, designing around it.
What is your favourite stone?
CAROLINE: Diamond.
What is your perfect ‘me-time’?
CAROLINE: Relaxing with good music.
What do you hate the most?
CAROLINE: Bad moods.
Are you currently reading a book?
CAROLINE: I am reading, ‘Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House’, which I think a lot of people are reading at the moment! It is not something I would usually read, but it is out of curiosity.
What is the one thing you wouldn’t leave the house without?
CAROLINE: If I travel, a pair of jeans. But funnily enough on this trip to Dubai I packed two left shoes by mistake!
What do you promise yourself and Chopard for the future?
CAROLINE: I promise myself to do more of the things that I want to do, including sports as last year was a marathon but without sports, and spend some more time with my parents, together with having fun. For Chopard I want to create a better red-carpet collection than before, working as hard as I can.
PATRIZIO: To myself I also promise to do more of the things that I like and listen more to the people around me. To Chopard, I want to give plenty of time to maintain the brand DNA, so that in the future it is even more true to itself.
You are one of the few companies that is still family owned, how does that serve you?
CAROLINE: It is a certain freedom that we have, but also a big responsibility.
If there is one thing that you would like to see Chopard achieve in the future, what would it be?
CAROLINE: Being a success with the fragrances.
By Lara Mansour Sawaya
