SUNG’S FOREVER SLATED FOR FALL
Byline: Soren Larson
NEW YORK — Riviera Concepts will introduce a new Alfred Sung fragrance in mid-October with the expectation that it will soon vie for the top spot in the designer’s fragrance stable.
Called Forever, the new scent could eventually edge out the designer’s top volume fragrance — the original Sung women’s scent, launched in 1986 — which reportedly had a volume of $12 million at wholesale last year.
According to David Nugent, president of Riviera, Sung’s fragrance licensee, “We will ship between $7 million and $10 million [of Forever] in our first year in the U.S. and Canada. Sung will still be the top in the Riviera group, but I’m sure Forever has the potential to reach that level fairly soon.”
While the designer’s fragrances Sung Homme, Sung Spa and Sung are in between 1,200 and 1,700 doors, Forever will be introduced with a more limited distribution of 750.
“The backbone of the distribution will be Federated,” Nugent said. “We’ll also be in Dillard’s and Nordstrom and some other bits and pieces.”
“We’re going to be a little tighter with this one,” he added. “These days, with the crowded market, you’ve got to be special to the retailer. You have to bring something to the party.”
The Forever distribution could be expanded in two years or so, Nugent said, but he added, “I’m not big enough to do a CK One even if I’d thought of it.”
Nugent would not reveal Forever’s advertising budget, saying it was still subject to change. But he did say the product will be advertised in November and December issues of fashion and lifestyle magazines, including Elle, Vogue and Vanity Fair.
Riviera will distribute “between 15 and 20 million scented impressions” in the print campaign, as well as through direct mail.
Nugent noted that the minimalist design of Forever’s packaging and its light, clear scent reflect Alfred Sung’s fashion direction.
“As he’s changed and matured, so have his fragrances,” he said of the designer. “I think what he did in 1986 still stands up, but now he has different facets.
“The packaging [of Forever] is pure Alfred — he played with it but in the end came back to the simplicity. The pale green and the pewter and silver we used are very much him. And there’s a simplicity of design in the scent itself.”
According to Sung, the new fragrance is targeted at the same customer who buys his apparel, whom the designer described as “a modern, sophisticated woman.”
“We kept the bottle and the packaging extremely simple, with a feeling of purity,” he said. “The clothing is also extremely simple and caters to a sophisticated audience. And the fragrance is nice and light — I don’t like strong, heavy scents.”
The new product will be introduced with three fragrance items: a 1-oz. perfume for $95, a 2.5-oz. eau de parfum for $48 and a 1-oz. version for $30.
The smallest size will be a limited time offer; its price tag will go up to $35 on Jan. 1.
In addition, the Forever collection will include a 6.8-oz. body cream for $48, a 6.8-oz. body lotion for $35 and a 3.4-oz. soap for $15.
Forever was created by Dragoco using a technology called Aura-scent, in which odors that occur in nature are duplicated, Nugent said.
“It’s hard to recreate the scent of water running over the rocks,” he said. “But they came up with a new accord called River Rock.”
The running water theme will also come into play in stores. Riviera will attempt to install a display with water running over rocks at its counters as part of Forever’s launch promotion schedule.
“We’re trying to introduce theater in retailing at the point-of-sale,” Nugent said.