What does your fragrance say about you?

The male fragrance market is big business with literally hundreds of brands to choose from so when contemplating a fragrance, it’s no good just picking any old bottle off the display shelf. What you should be doing is thinking carefully as to how your scent is going to represent you.

As with your clothes, shoes and wardrobe in general, your fragrance says a lot about you so it’s important to get it right. Your fragrance can have an enormous effect on how people perceive you and how they react to you so it’s worth spending some time selecting a fragrance that fits in with your persona and sense of individual style.

It’s a primitive thing…

Wearing top quality fragrance will give you confidence, which in turn will give you an increased sense of your own attractiveness. If you start to believe you are more attractive, others will believe it too. Fragrance can be pretty primitive in that respect.

It is a fact that women prefer men who wear a fragrance because they find it more attractive. Going back to caveman times, woman chose a mate using a variety of factors and smell was one of the most important. Still to this day women unwittingly rely on their sense of smell when choosing a partner even if they are unaware of it. Women naturally have a heightened sense of smell and are specifically tuned in to male pheromones. In that respect, scent to women is more important than it is to men.

Making a connection

So strong is our sense of smell that it can trigger memories much more vividly than our sight or touch can because it connects so strongly with our emotions. For example, if your mother has always used the same perfume then it would be almost impossible to smell that perfume and not immediately be reminded of being in your mother’s company.

It’s well known that smell will take you back to times and places in your memory and can trigger off a variety of emotions and feelings. This is why fragrance plays a unique part in the way we remember things.

Create the right image

As we all know, you only get one chance to create a good first impression so if you want to come across as a well-groomed, confident sort of guy then wearing a great fragrance is really going to help.

If clothes maketh the man then his fragrance will serve to confirm that positive first impression. Even away from the world of dating your scent is important. Whether in business, interview situations or any other scenario where you are meeting people that you want to impress, your scent will make a lasting impression, so make sure it’s a good one.

What type of man are you?

One thing to bear in mind is that the same fragrance will not necessarily smell exactly the same on every person. This is because it may react slightly differently on your skin than someone else’s when it mixes with your natural scent. So give some consideration to the type of man you are as this will influence your choice of fragrance. Are you the sporty type, a young professional, a man’s man or an urbanite? Whatever category you believe you fall into; the fragrance you choose should be representative of that image.

Who would have thought that choosing a fragrance could be so complex?!

Are you looking for a niche fragrance this Christmas?

Whether you’re a male or female reading this blog then the chances are at some point you have received fragrance for Christmas or have given it as a gift. The chances are that the fragrance was also ‘designer’. There is no doubt that whether you’re a man or a woman you will be influenced by advertising when it comes to fragrance, either through television or magazines. You will also be influenced by celebrity endorsement, brand association and packaging. That is why designer brands do so well this time of year and, thanks to their huge marketing budgets, that’s unlikely to change.

However, if you’re the type of person who likes to be different and is looking for something a bit more niche this Christmas rather than the usual designer brand, then please read on….

First of all, when it comes to fragrance, do you know the difference between designer and niche?

Designer is what you will see everywhere this Christmas and these fragrances will be made by high profile companies such as Chanel, Armani, Burberry, the list goes on. However, it doesn’t matter how ‘high-end’ or ‘designer’ the brand might be, there’s no getting away from the fact that these fragrances, on the whole, are mass produced and meant for mass consumption. In other words, they are made for a wide audience and they tend to play on the safe side i.e. the fragrance will be nice, perfectly acceptable and not provoke any strong reactions. You should also bear in mind that although you may be paying a premium price for designer fragrance, they do tend to be made from cheaper materials to save on costs and enable mass production.

Niche fragrances are different. They will not be household names. Instead, they will be known by a selective audience who follows the industry more closely than most. These fragrances tend to be made by independent fragrance specialists and are designed for the more discerning customer who wants to be bolder and more individual in the statement they make. Niche fragrances tend to be painstakingly created by specialists who are passionate about the industry and time will be taken to choose the right ingredients to create the impact that they want. It is true that these fragrances will not always have the universal appeal of designer fragrances but they will appeal to those people who don’t like to run with the crowd and prefer to create their own style.

On that note, let me introduce you to Gruhme Original and Gruhme No.14

Is being called a metrosexual an insult?

When it comes to being labelled as a metrosexual then there’s usually no shades of grey to what people think, they’re pretty black and white in their opinions on this matter. In my research for this I came across a forum discussing this exact topic and here’s a flavour of some of the responses to the question ‘is being called a metrosexual an insult?

‘Yeah.
If I were a guy, I’d be pretty offended’

‘Yes, it’s another made up label‘

‘nah, just a synonym for vain.’

‘No. I think it just means you like to shop and to look good.’

‘Not really. I bet you probably understand a lot more about women than other straight guys.
And yes, I’m stereotyping.’

‘What the hell is metrosexual?’

As you would expect on a forum, there were some pretty offensive remarks too with the usual morons linking metrosexuals with homosexuals and making derogatory observations. However, what the forum did reveal is that there’s still a bit on unrest out there by certain quarters of the population when a man decides to spruce himself up a bit. Having said that, this forum was back in 2011 and things have changed since then. It would be interesting to see what a new forum on the subject would say.

What is a metrosexual?

It was the British journalist Mark Simpson who first coined the phrase ‘metrosexual’ back in 1994, referring to an urban male of any sexual orientation who spends time and money on their appearance, cultivates an aesthetic lifestyle and is highly fashion conscious. He is the type of guy who might have adorned the pages of Esquire, GQ or The Face back in the eighties but now he’s everywhere and he likes to shop…

So what do you think about that?

Mark Simpson’s definition of a ‘metrosexual’ clearly labelled them as a consumer group that could be targeted by particular luxury brands and there’s no doubt that certain brands have done very well out of them. Brands such as Burberry, Michael Kors and Coach have brand strategies aimed at ‘metrosexuals’ and grooming products such as ‘Nivea for Men’ have clearly defined objectives to penetrate the ‘metrosexual market’.

Another view….

The rise of the ‘metrosexual has also inspired many humorous observations about the way they behave. Here’s the Urban Dictionary’s take on metrosexuality:

You might be “metrosexual” if:

  1. You just can’t walk past a Banana Republic store without making a purchase.
  2. You own 20 pairs of shoes, half a dozen pairs of sunglasses, just as many watches and you carry a man-purse.
  3. You see a stylist instead of a barber, because barbers don’t do highlights.
  4. You can make her lamb shanks and risotto for dinner and Eggs Benedict for breakfast… all from scratch.
  5. You only wear Calvin Klein boxer-briefs.
  6. You shave more than just your face. You also exfoliate and moisturize.
  7. You would never, ever own a pickup truck.
  8.  You can’t imagine a day without hair styling products.
  9. You’d rather drink wine than beer… but you’ll find out what estate and vintage first.
  10. Despite being flattered (even proud) that gay guys hit on you, you still find the thought of actually getting intimate with another man truly repulsive.

The personification of the metrosexual

When you ask people to think about a metrosexual who is in the public eye then most people usually think about David Beckham. In many ways David Beckham personifies what metrosexuality is all about. His penchant for style, plethora of hair styles and his highly-groomed look bear all the hallmarks of the metrosexual and brands fall over themselves to be linked with him and have the Beckham seal of approval on their products. Women love him and men would like to be like him so in many ways he occupies that coveted position of being someone who is admired by both sexes – a marketers dream!

Other celebrities who regularly get listed in the top metrosexual lists include Jake Gyllenhall, Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp and Hugh Jackman. It’s not really a bad list to be associated with really. I think most men wouldn’t mind being in that company.

The fact is, metrosexuality has become mainstream. There’s nothing unusual about men wanting to look good, buy nice clothes and be well presented. Surely, it’s what every discerning male should aspire to be like?

What do you think? It would be interesting to see if views are still divided on metrosexuality or have we become more accepting? Please share your thoughts here.