Thierry Wasser Named New Guerlain In-House Perfumer {Fragrance News}
In an interesting twist of events, Guerlain have announced that they have hired perfumer Thierry Wasser to be the exclusive in-house nose starting in June for the venerable institution which was established in 1828. This move is part of a trend of recapturing the identity and standing of a traditional perfume house by employing a nose who is more or less absolutely exclusive to it and whose creations in principle bear a common signature thereby reinforcing the image of the brand. Guerlain being owned by luxury group LVMH, an in-house nose is also probably felt to add to the representation of exclusivity conveyed by the brand name, like for example Demachy for Dior also owned by LVMH. It can be a very positive development from the point of view of perfume creation in the sense that it can encourage a perfumer to take more risks instead of having to compete immediately with other perfumers for a brief.
Guerlain since its founding has had members of five generations of the Guerlain family at its helm until its incorporation into the LVMH group in 1994. Jean-Paul Guerlain is the last nose from the Guerlain dynasty to preside over the destinies of the brand. Officially retired, he continues to officiate (see his latest Figue-Iris) and according to Cosmetics News will guide Wasser's steps as he moves into his new role while Sylvaine Delacourte will collaborate closely with him as artistic director......
Under Jean-Paul Guerlain's tenure only Champs-Elysées was created by an external nose in an attempt to submit the then in-house nose to an objective blind test. At the time in 1996 Jean-Paul Guerlain saw the brief go to Olivier Cresp. Perfumer Mathilde Laurent seemed be a pretendant to the job for a time but then she left to work as in-house nose for Cartier.
Thierry Wasser has composed for Guerlain in the past with fragrances like Iris Ganache and Quand Vient La Pluie. He also produced a body of work for the prestige fragrance market (Dior Addict) including in two popular segments, the youth market (Diesel Fuel for Life for Her and Armani Diamonds) and the celebrity one (Kylie Minogue perfumes). No doubt, his expertise in these areas will bring a touch of youth to Guerlain who have been interested in reaching out to a new generation of younger women since Insolence.
Via Cosmetics News - Images: Queen-Pigletta ; Madame Figaro
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