EXCLUSIVE: Michael Kors Introduces First Fragrances Under New Licensing Deal
MILAN — A new fragrance for women and its first one for men are marking Michael Kors’ new beauty course in partnership with Italian manufacturer EuroItalia.
Simply called Michael Kors Pour Femme and Michael Kors Pour Homme, the two eaux de parfum will first launch in Italy in May, before gradually hitting international store shelves.
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The scents will telegraph the brand’s new direction and elevation in beauty with bold bottles defined by a chain-link motif — a recurrent element in Michael Kors’ fashion collections — and juices created to appeal to a global audience.
“They’re about strength and sensuality and sophistication. The scents are both glamorous and very modern with notes of patchouli, bergamot, sage, and of course, jasmine. It couldn’t be a signature Michael Kors fragrance without jasmine,” the designer told WWD.
“I wanted to take everything that we stand for at Michael Kors — glamour, luxury, modernity, sensuality, confidence, adventure, power — and bottle it. This fragrance is really the essence of Michael Kors, the essence of style,” he added.
EuroItalia’s chairman Giovanni Sgariboldi underscored the two parties worked to “review the olfactory creation project with the aim of elevating and improving the image, as well as distribution” of the brand’s scents.
The Michael Kors license passed to EuroItalia after The Estée Lauder Cos. wound down its Aramis & Designer Fragrances division in 2021, as reported. With the move, the label joined fellow Capri Holdings brand Versace in EuroItalia’s portfolio, which also includes Moschino, Dsquared2, Missoni and Brunello Cucinelli, in addition to Atkinsons 1799, Reporter, I Coloniali and Naj Oleari Beauty.
“For us, it is certainly a great added value to have such an international brand in the company, with a different vision from the labels we already manage,” said Sgariboldi, who stressed it is key not to have overlaps in the company’s portfolio.
For the past two years EuroItalia has ensured the continuity of the Michael Kors fragrance business by picking three of its existing perfumes — the Sexy Amber scent dating back to 2013, the Wonderlust fragrance introduced in 2016 and the Gorgeous one launched in 2021 — and working on enlarging their distribution, which so far has always had the U.S. as the strongest market.
Around 18 months in the making, the new edp for women features top notes of mandarin, pink peppercorn and black currant, a floral heart of jasmine and rose blossoms and a woody base blending musk and patchouli leaves with creamy vanilla.
The men’s counterpart comes with a fresher, aromatic juice mixing bergamot, pink peppercorn and lavender on top; a sea wave accord, sage and geranium in the heart; patchouli, vetiver and gray amber in the base.
Bottled in geometric flacons defined by yellow gold and silver chain-link hardware and caps, respectively, both fragrances for women’s and men’s will be available in three sizes: 100-ml., 50-ml. and 30-ml. Scented shower gels and body lotions will flank the perfumes, with the men’s offering also including a deodorant stick.
In Italy, the 100-ml. formats will retail in selective perfumeries at 125 euros and 119 euros for the women’s and men’s fragrances, respectively. After the launch in the domestic market, EuroItalia will distribute the scents in Europe from June and in the U.S., South America and Australia starting at the end of August. Rollout in the rest of the world will gradually follow, including in the duty-free channel.
“The distribution will be global within 12 months from the launch,” said Sgariboldi, who is still considering some exclusive deals for international markets. The overall goal is to reach 5,000 doors worldwide in the first year after launch. The executive also projected that the two fragrances would generate sales of around $31 million by the end of 2024.
The U.S. is still considered the country where the scents will perform best, given the level of brand awareness there for Michael Kors’ beauty business, but Sgariboldi also pointed to Canada, South America and Europe as markets where he expects the edps to resonate.
Digital and traditional media investments, as well as in-store activations, will support the launch, adding to a strong advertising campaign fronted by Irina Shayk and Jon Kortajarena, who will embody the jet-setters who have always been Kors’ muses.
“This fragrance was designed to give you the power to take on the world today and live your life to the fullest, and no one embodies that spirit more than Irina and Jon,” said Kors about tapping the two top models. “They are always up for an adventure, they have a magnetism to them that I think everyone can feel, and they exude confidence in every situation. That energy and confidence is exactly what I want everyone to have when they’re wearing these fragrances.”
Photographed by Lachlan Bailey, in the images Shayk and Kortajarena appear on a private yacht hugging each other or holding the flacons, with the Miami skyline at sunset at their backs. A short video directed by Minka Farthing-Kohl will offer more glimpses of their glamorous day and chemistry, further building on the jet-set narrative in the city.
“Irina and Jon were electric together on the set, and when the camera stopped rolling they kept us all laughing,” recalled Kors of shooting the campaign. “And then the setting — a private yacht overlooking Miami — was the perfect match. I love contradictions, so places that give you the energy and sophistication of the city with the escape and sensuality of sea and sun are heaven.”
As reported, after Michael Kors’ big launch EuroItalia’s agenda for the year will also see the introduction of a new fragrance for Dsquared2, scheduled for early September. The Italian beauty company, which generated 690 million euros in sales in 2022, is estimated to have broken a new revenue record last year, growing more than 24 percent to surpass 857 million euros in sales.
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