The Evolution of Fragrance Modeling {The 5th Sense in the News}

The New York Times has investigated the practice of fragrance modeling in department stores. Deemed overly aggressive a technique by customers and experts alike, there has been a rethink of the model of the barrage of fragrance-spritzers awaiting you that you are more than ready to dodge upon entering the perfume aisles. If you've ever felt like you might be food to sea-swarming sharks awaiting to earn a commission on a sale, here's your new guide to cruising the fragrance counters knowing other people are feeling your pain. It's also probably a relief for fragrance models themselves -- you can read our series: Confessions of an Ex-Fragrance Model (4 parts) to get their viewpoint on their job....

"The sheer number of fragrance debuts these days has created consumer confusion and a glut of demonstrators on the floor. “It got out of hand, the number of spritzers,” said Judy Galloway, a managing partner at G-group market research. In March at a Fragrance Foundation trends forecast, she told attendees, “Sales associates need to turn away from being product pushers to product advisers.”

Read more in Fragrance Spritzers Hold Their Fire

See also Confessions of an Ex-Fragrance Model