Season of fragrances

Perfumes are popular as Christmas gifts. As a result of growing incomes, the marketing efforts of distributors and the proliferation of western culture, demand is growing. Segmentation of the perfume market is becoming noticeable in Hungary as well, though we are far behind Western Europe in this respect. According to Bernadett Rácz, from Coty Hungary Kft, leading perfume brands dictate market trends both in terms of fragrances and colours, which are also reflected in medium category products as well. The expansion of the Coty assortment follows the segmentation of the market, with the introduction of the first fragrance by Kate Moss this autumn. Apart from this, a number of fragrance versions will also be sold for limited periods of time, like the Sweet Darling by Kylie Minogue or the Night version of Intimately Beckham. A new fragrance will appear for Celine Dion fans under the name Paris Nights. Several perfumes are used in a growing number of households and brand loyalty is quite rare. The target group has become wider, with younger people starting to use perfumes and a number of products developed especially for teenagers. This is why another leading distributor, Prestige Products Hungary Kft. uses segmentation according to age as well. – Lifestyle brands like Mexx or Puma are targeted at younger age groups, while premium brands like Boss or luxury brands like Dolce Gabbana are bought mainly by the over 25 age group – says Andrea Ujvári, sales manager. Communication of lifestyle brands has become very similar to that of FMCG products, whereas strict rules apply to the communication of premium and luxury brands. This has to be approved by the fashion houses in all cases and is usually limited to PR and in-store tools. Testers are an important tool for promoting perfumes, as three quarters of purchasing decisions are made on the spot. – In hyper markets, distributors of perfumes need to provide so called safers (anti-theft devices) for the perfumes – says Anikó Radosiczky from Sarantis Kft. Innovations are very important in this market. Their appearance in the market is timed so that they become popular by the end of the year, as 40 per cent of perfume sales are generated in the Christmas season. Attractive gift boxes are used for packaging in the Christmas season which also contain another product like shower gels or body lotions.