Derek Lam Launches Fragrance Line and It’s So NYC

This goes without saying, but I LOVE MY CITY! From the dirty sidewalks, the exclusive designer shops in Soho, the melting pot that is Harlem, right down to the Gossip Girl streets of the Upper East Side – everything about this town is inspiring! When I heard that Derek Lam was to launch a fragrance line – I hoped that it would have the NYC feel that mirrored his collection. Naturally, I was intrigued as to what the story would be behind launching this fragrance collection because this wasn’t just one fragrance – it’s ten fragrances. For those of us who have worked in beauty or at the very least are knowledgeable about the challenges of a multi-fragrance launch, you know that all of the elements have to work together telling a cohesive story or at the very least incite an emotion that transports you effortlessly from one scent to the next. Fragrance is, after all – an emotional experience.

For this collection, the story is told using ten short films each depicting a unique NYC story real or imagined happening right outside 10 Crosby. The cobblestone street right outside 10 Crosby is home to many high end designer shops and Derek Lam uses the address of his shop to paint the scenes for what will soon become an iconic fragrance brand. What’s more is that the brand discovered a way to introduce customers to all ten scents in a sort of trial fragrance collection.

From L to R:

Silent St.: White Musks.
Looking Glass: Chinese Magnolia, Tonka Bean Madagascar
Hi-Fi: Pink Peony, French Narcisse
Drunk On Youth: Crisp Apple, Honeysuckle
Afloat: White Mimosa, Orris
Rain Day: Neroli Tunisia, Vetiver Haiti
Something Wild: Cedarwood, Vanilla Bean Madagascar
Ellipsis: Australian Sandalwood, Jasmine
Blackout: Osmanthus, Chai Tea Essence
2am Kiss: Salty Wood, Crystalized Amber

Each vial is 10ml and the set retails for $95 at Sephora. That’s like less than $10 each! If you’re the type of person who’s choice of scent changes with your mood, this is is the set for you. You basically have two 50ml bottles for less than the price of one. Are you winning or are you winning? My favorites from the collection are Looking Glass, Something Wild, Blackout and 2am Kiss. I would categorize these four scents as the more intense scents in the collection.

Image Source: s.yimg.com

I couldn’t legitimately finish this post without talking about the packaging. It’s minimalist with just enough of color to break up the white space making each scent easy to identify. This is very much in line with his current collection which can be viewed here.

The short films that were created for each of the scents launches today and can be viewed here.