Jennifer Aniston has a new fragrance – her third, Near Dusk - launching at Kohl’s, which means we get a full rundown of her favourite scents. Jasmine! Men’s sweat! Nectarines!
The way celebrities talk about their little cash cow projects, like fragrances, has always cracked me up. No one can smell coconut water. (Apparently one of Jen’s favourite scents.) The smell of sweat is repulsive, that’s why it is widely expected that people use antiperspirant or deodorant. What is a sweet pink pepper? You would think they are all trained perfumeries who spend months concocting complicated potions.
Here’s how it actually goes: perfume is a huge money maker (a beauty executive once told me that the mark-up ranges from 60-100% a bottle). Brands are constantly churning out new formulas, so it’s simply a matter of finding a celebrity willing to endorse it and a bottle that will stand out on the shelves. You pay for some advertising and get an article like this in PEOPLE (in exchange for something down the line, maybe a nice shopping or vacation photo) and you are in business.
As for the advertisement – well this is some piss poor art direction. Her face is contoured within an inch of its life. Her hair looks like a wig. Why is she on the beach if the fragrance is supposed to be for nighttime (which she says in the PEOPLE article)? The floating perfume bottle pasted on the side looks like an overeager marketing intern slapped it on there. I get that Kohl’s is supposed to be affordable and mass market, but this just looks cheap.
It’s called Near Dusk, so they should have shot it inside, maybe Jen with her hair up (shocking, I know) at a vanity (with a bed reflected in the mirror), with minimal makeup, spritzing on her perfume before she starts her evening. I probably put more thought into this scenario than the marketing team did for Near Dusk.
If Jen wants to chip away at lifestyle – and judging by her endorsements, she does – she needs to be more discerning. She’s done SmartWater, Aveeno, has a hairline, Living Proof, and now a trio of perfumes. So what’s next? Two things that Jenifer Aniston never changes: her hair and her jeans, so I say a denim line. But please spend some money on a proper art director first.
