Why perfume sillage is dominating 2024s fragrance mood
The fragrance industry shows no signs of slowing down. Expecting to generate £47.3 billion in revenue in 2024 – a 2.75% annual increase from 2023 – the beauty category is entering its forth consecutive year of growth, and so is the ever-enthusiastic fragrance community that follows alongside (with #perfumetiktok currently amassing over one million views and engagement). Equally echoing the applaudable expansion has been the projection of fragrance trends and the obsession with our own personal scent.
Pheromone perfumes, skin scents, nostalgic 90s' vanilla, ‘it’ girl fragrances, and perfumes destined for compliments are all interlinked with how our aroma lingers in the air for others to enjoy – or for our own comfort or pleasure.
“Scents no longer live under the dominion of celebrity ventures and duty-free aisles. They must be personal, bespoke,” explains Olivia Houghton, The Future Laboratory’s deputy creative foresight editor within the 2024 forecast. “Fragrances will soon be able to mimic the DNA of individual consumers; when used, the scents will align with their emotional states.” Scent, emotion, and memory intertwine, making perfume undeniably personal, and central to this is what's known in the fragrance world as sillage.
What is perfume sillage?
Pronounced 'see-yahzh', “sillage is an olfactive imprint for the person who wears it,” says renowned perfumer Emilie Bouge. Defined as the scent trail left behind, it is – as Olfactive O Fragrance’s founder, Olivia da Costa explains, “your scent fingerprint, your unspoken, silent message, the mark you leave on those around you without saying a word”. Thanks to the intimate and emotive direction in which fragrance is going, sillage has become today's most crucial factor when considering a purchase. But what does it look like within a fragrance?
According to Bouge, it is “the lasting part of the fragrance; the result of a perfect balance with dry-down notes and, of course, the quality of the ingredients used”. Take Trudon’s Vixi, blending sandalwood from Nepal and the synthetic molecule ambroxan which is known for its sillage projection (– see Maison Francis Kurkdjian's Baccarat Rouge 540 for evidence); the beautiful dry musk wraps around one’s scent DNA to reveal a woody, fresh yet aromatic trail.
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The markers of sillage success
Perfecting a scent’s sillage is an art; striking the right balance avoids it being overpowering or sickly. “Two characteristics of the fragrance are important – the fragrance structure and the fragrance signature,” explains master perfumer at dsm-firmenich, Honorine Blanc. “Focused on the notes, a well-constructed fragrance ensures great sillage while the signature creates a unique character to the fragrance offering its memorability factor. For example, fragrances such as Gucci Flora Gorgeous Gardenia or Valentino Born in Roma were so successful because of their pleasurable and unforgettable sillage,” she adds.
Both these floral scents boast notes of jasmine yet push addictively sweet and fruity notes for a lasting impression. Another great example here is Maison Crivelli’s Hibiscus Mahajad, a creation between perfumer Quentin Bisch and Crivelli Founder Thibaud Crivelli. “We focused on bringing together the raw materials and my memory of a gemstone market – the heat, the ochre walls and resting between two stalls served with a fresh yet sweet infusion made from rose, hibiscus petals and sweetened with cinnamon, mint and vanilla,” he says.
A fragrance’s notes are also a clear marker of sillage success; experts put it down to two approaches. One is ensuring notes with projection sit within the fragrance formula. “Woody, musky and amber notes are very substantive,” highlights Bouge. Whereas de Costa finds natural base notes such as “patchouli, amber, vanilla, labdanum, ambrette or the thick white florals such as tuberose, jasmine and philadelphus notes” do the trick.
That includes fragrances such as BDK’s Vaneille Leather, Olfactive O’s Skin Extrait de Parfum, Contes de Parfums’ Dubai and Armani’s Indigo Tanzanite as influential scent players. The second approach is much more personal and subjective. “More than a specific note, the combination and contrast of ingredients and their unique quality plays a key role in sillage and how it interacts on someone’s skin.
Materials such as musks and woods, which often play a significant role in crafting a nice sillage, can sometimes get absorbed by the skin if there is no contrast,” says Blanc. Therefore, if you’re approaching sillage through the secondary approach, focusing on heightening sillage in your collection is key.
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How to heighten a perfume's sillage
For Bouge, this looks like spraying your perfume in strategic points. “When you spritz at the back of your hair, you increase the projection when you move. The same can be said for your wrists or around your neck.” You can also consider fragrance layering, which De Costa finds equally significant. “If you anchor your fragrance in natural skin-like notes, you can layer a contrasting fragrance on top completely dictated by your mood or personality for that day.” Some favourites include Byredo Blanche, Phlur Missing Person and the iconic Escentric Molecules 01, all perfect anchoring scents to build upon.
So, why does this all feel so 2024? Between TikTok’s obsession with smelling tremendous and the internally emotive connection we now have associated with fragrance, Sillage is the thread that runs throughout, setting the fragrance mood for this year. “Sillage can be our spokesperson, and as our fragrance ID, it can convey how we feel and play with it,” adds Blanc. We’re ready to assume a strong and unforgettable presence for ourselves or others.
Discover more fragrances with renowned sillage:
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