Whether it’s the bright, fresh scent of Italian bergamot, neroli blossom and fresh vetiver, or the energising, fruity blend of cherry, red apple and amber: these are fragrance profiles that you would imagine finding in perfume, rather than in men’s deodorants.
Yet specialist brands such as Salt + Stone, Native, AKT, Each & Every and Cremo are repositioning deodorant as a fine fragrance essential.
The trend moves the category on from traditional men’s products, where scent would be limited to single word descriptions such as ‘fresh’ or ‘cool’, and the promise of a ‘masculine scent’.
The personal care space has seen the elevation of everyday essentials to more sensorial, ritual- based self care rituals, from body sprays to cleansers.
And in deodorants and antiperspirants, this is working particularly well as a way to engage male consumers and encourage them to trade up to more premium products.
At Each and Every, which recently relaunched its gender-neutral deodorants, positioning its collection as foundational fragrance, nearly three in ten of its customers are men, and this number continues to grow, says founder and CEO Lauren Lovelady.
“We’ve definitely seen growing interest from male consumers, particularly as more men become intentional about their grooming routines and seek out products with premium, long lasting scents. Our Alone Time (Cedar & Vanilla) and Day Dream (Citrus & Vetiver) scents are particularly popular, likely because they balance warmth and freshness in a way that appeals to a broad range of preferences.”