Luxury French beauty house Guerlain has launched Mon Guerlain, a major new feminine fragrance, with actress and film director Angelina Jolie as the face.
The Moodie Davitt Report was the sole travel retail media present at the top-secret launch event held at Guerlain’s Orphin factory in January, a story embargoed until now.
Mon Guerlain, available in 15ml (travel retail-exclusive), 30ml, 50ml and 100ml, will be launched worldwide (including travel retail) on 1 March.
Speaking at the launch event, Guerlain President & CEO Laurent Boillot underlined the house’s global ambitions for the fragrance. He said that the company has an international vision for the launch and is targeting “full expansion of the globe”. Without divulging numbers, Boillot revealed that Guerlain had “never invested so much in a fragrance launch”.
“We are going to speak to so many consumers in the world who don’t even know who we are,” said Boillot.
Mon Guerlain, referred to as code name ‘G17’ during development, is said to represent a portrait of women today and “accomplished femininity”. The perfume is described by Guerlain as “an invisible tattoo on skin”.
“This new accord invites us to move beyond the divide and ambiguity of masculine and feminine, because it works to reconcile genres” – Delphine Jelk, co-creator of Mon Guerlain
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0O6g4LZaQI
[Click to watch the Mon Guerlain promotional video which was set in Provence, France]
The fragrance, created by Guerlain Master Perfumer Thierry Wasser, features the signature tahitensis vanilla note found in other Guerlain fragrances such as Shalimar, Habit Rouge and Jicky. Carla lavender, often considered a masculine note, infuses tahitensis vanilla with freshness and purity. Other notes include sambac jasmine, which links vanilla to lavender, and santalium album sandalwood.
Delphine Jelk, co-creator of Mon Guerlain, said: “This new accord invites us to move beyond the divide and ambiguity of masculine and feminine, because it works to reconcile genres. This is exactly what gives Guerlain its power and modernity.”
“Mon Guerlain is a fragrance for women who defy categorisation, who embrace all that life brings and all sides of themselves, who are comfortable in their own skin and whose guiding spirit is to be true to themselves and to live a life of use to others,” said Guerlain.
Mon Guerlain is housed in a modern version of the 1908 quadrilobe bottle which was created by Baccarat. The top lines have been sharpened and a gold ring has been added. The understated bottle is similar to that of an alchemist and owes it name of ‘quadrilobe’ to its stopper, which resembles four lobes. Guerlain said it did not want the bottle to be ‘gimmicky’ so created a simple flacon with no label.
The Mon Guerlain line also comprises a shower gel, body lotion and scented candle.
Actress and film director Angelina Jolie is fronting the Mon Guerlain campaign. The Guerlain-Jolie partnership began in December 2015 when Boillot travelled to Cambodia, where Jolie was directing her film First They Killed My Father. Jolie’s connection with Guerlain started many years ago from when her mother wore a Guerlain powder.
Mon Guerlain’s advertising film is set in Provence, France, where Carla lavender is grown and harvested. The ad visual features Jolie in dark shadow, with her back tattoos visible – linking to the idea of Mon Guerlain as an invisible tattoo.
