Hello, Fragrant Friend 👋,

Something exciting is happening—our very first fragrance, shaped by the community, is about to come to life.

Here’s how it works: We’re bringing together fragrance lovers, storytellers, and curious minds to help shape a scent from the ground up. This isn’t just about revealing the perfumer—it’s about sharing ideas, inspirations, and personal connections to fragrance.

The theme of this first creation is Reflection—a concept open to interpretation through scent, memory, and emotion.

How You Can Join:

📅 March 6th
⏰ 8 PM (CET)
📍 Online (1-hour call)

If you sign up, you can contribute actively by sharing personal experiences, scent memories, and even specific fragrance notes that embody Reflection. Or you can simply listen in and enjoy the creative process unfolding.

🎁 As a thank-you, selected contributors will receive a bottle of the final creation and be credited as part of the creative team.

Not everyone has accepted their invite yet, so there’s still room!

🔗 Link to the Call: https://riverside.fm/studio/scently-speaking---kickoff-call?t=198897c86c0a4bfb228c

🗓️ Contents of this Issue

1. Note Worthy: AI Perfumery, L’Oréal Shopping, and Kayali Reborn 🛒 🤑 

2. Strictly Independent: Idiem Lux 🇫🇷 🇱🇹 🇪🇦

3. QUIZ: Botanical Doppelgängers 🎲

4. Scent MythBusters: Pheromone Perfumes Make You Instantly Irresistible 😍 

Note-Worthy 🔎🌸

• #AIINPERFUMERY: As AI transforms fragrance creation, brands like Tom Ford and Givaudan are embracing algorithm-driven scent design. Tools like Carto and Everyhuman optimises ingredient selection, sustainability, and personalisation, but some fear AI could dilute the artistry of perfumery. While AI enhances efficiency and transparency, experts agree the human nose remains irreplaceable, ensuring creativity isn’t lost to data.

• #L'ORÉALFRAGRANCEPLAY: L’Oréal continues expanding its fragrance empire with strategic investments in Amouage and Borntostandout. The beauty giant is exploring a minority stake in Amouage, valuing the Omani luxury house at over €3 billion, while its BOLD VC fund backs Borntostandout, a rising K-beauty fragrance disruptor. With an invest-and-build approach, L’Oréal secures access to niche innovation and global expansion, reinforcing its dominance in luxury perfumery.

• #KAYALIREBORN: Huda Beauty sells Kayali to co-founder Mona Kattan and General Atlantic, marking a shift to independent ownership. The deal, which also enables Huda Beauty to buy back TSG Consumer’s stake, positions Kayali for global expansion while Huda Beauty returns to full founder’s control.

Strictly Independent 🎨 🌟 

Idiem Lux is an artistic experiment where hand-painted bottles give fragrance a visual soul. Created by Ineta (@perfumographer)—one of Scently Speaking’s first supporters—this France-based fragrance aficionado merges her love for perfumery and painting. Using natural materials like sand, rust powder, and algae, each bottle becomes a one-of-a-kind artwork, inspired by the scent it holds—a true fusion of craft and creativity.

Idiem Lux 🇫🇷 🇱🇹 🇪🇦

QUIZ 🎲 

Scent MythBusters 🎭️ 

The Reality Check 🛑

Let’s separate fact from fiction: humans don’t have a functioning vomeronasal organ—the sensory system animals use to detect pheromones. While some fragrances include androstadienone (a steroid derived from pig testes, commonly used in boar mating rituals), its effects are minimal. A 2023 Nature study found that it can slightly influence mood—but only in small, enclosed spaces (think a crowded subway, not a candlelit dinner).

And then there’s hexadecanal, a molecule linked to subconscious stress signalling in humans. It’s a real pheromone—but it degrades within minutes in alcohol-based perfumes, making it completely useless in a fragrance bottle.

How the Pheromone Myth Took Hold

A Misinterpreted Discovery

The craze traces back to a 1971 Time magazine article that misinterpreted biochemist David Berliner’s research on skin-derived compounds. Cosmetic brands seized the moment, using pig-derived androstenones as "human attractants"—despite Berliner himself clarifying they have zero proven effect on human behavior.

Why the Myth Persists

Brands love pheromones for the same reason they love synthetic oud: they’re cheap and easy to market. Androstadienone costs a fraction of natural absolutes, making it a convenient “scientific” ingredient for seduction perfumes.

The Science of Attraction: Context Over Chemistry

Your Scent Is in the Setting

Fragrance perception is highly situational. A 2024 study found that the same perfume was rated as “alluring” in a dimly lit bar but “overpowering” in an office. Attraction is shaped more by environment and mood than by mystery molecules.

The Placebo Effect in Action

A staggering 78% of reported “pheromone perfume success stories” are due to placebo effects. When you believe a scent makes you more attractive, you act more confidently—and confidence, not chemical trickery, is what actually turns heads.

Final Verdict: Busted 💥

No synthetic pheromone is doing the heavy lifting for you. Androstadienone barely shifts mood in an elevator, let alone sparks instant attraction. Hexadecanal? Too unstable to survive a perfume bottle.

Want a real attraction booster? Skip the pig hormones. A well-crafted scent, a bit of charisma, and a perfectly timed cocktail will take you much further.