Atelier Cologne’s latest launches were made with a curious customer in mind.
Husband-and-wife team Christophe Cervasel and Sylvie Ganter have added two new scents to their niche fragrance label’s expanding purview, both of them particularly unique due to what Ganter described as the“obscure” ingredients of which each are comprised.
Both Camelia Intrepide, which skews feminine, and Emeraude Agar, the more masculine of the two — Ganter maintains its scents are made to be worn by either gender — are part of the Cologne Métal collection, bringing the tally of the brand’s total fragrances up to 35.
Camelia Intrepide will be introduced first in September, going into all channels of Atelier Cologne’s distribution both bricks-and-mortar and online — its own retail stores, Sephora, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman. Emeraude Agar will follow in October as a Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus exclusive. The launch of the two fragrances will be a global one, with 400 doors in total, including 175 doors in America. The U.S. is a dense market for Atelier Cologne due to its availability in Sephora, president and partner Gerard Camme told WWD.
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The bottles are available in two sizes, a 200 ml., which retails for $325, and a 100 ml. for $250. At Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus, the fragrance will be sold exclusively as a box set containing a 30 ml. with the 200-ml. size for $350. The 30-ml. size will be sold in Atelier’s stores and in its web site, plus Sephora.
Camelia Intrepide is made with a heart of camellia leaves. The camellia flower does not have a smell, but the leaves are used to make green tea, and once distilled, result in a scent that is more green than floral. The fragrance is brightened by top notes of lemon and bergamot, and the base is made of white leather, amber and Turkish rose absolue. Emeraude Agar has a heart of geranium, Turkish rose absolue and eucalyptus, but a base of the Malaysian oud agarwood, santal mysore and gaiac wood gives the fragrance its masculine edge. Its top notes are bergamot, angelica and black pepper.
Each of the Atelier Cologne scents are made with a background story in mind. Camelia Intrepide was inspired by the daring nature of female aviator Amelia Earhart. “She’s bold, she’s not a flowery girl, she’s very assertive,” said Ganter of her “Camelia girl.” Emeraude Agar is Camelia Intrepide’s masculine counterpart. Ganter described the scent is “magnetic, bold in a different way [and] intrepid in thought—maybe a writer.” Natural agar wood, said Ganter, is almost impossible to procure, but she noted the brand was able to get ahold of it via Robertet, which produced the two fragrances. Jerome Epinette was the nose for both.
Ganter declined to discuss figures, but industry sources estimate the size of the overall business, including its 35 fragrances, could amount to $55 million to $60 million annually at wholesale net.