By Silvia Manzoni. Cover image: Jerôme Epinette’s line of fragrances.
On November 13, there was a long line in front of the Selfridges store in London. People were queuing up to purchase Harry Styles’ perfumes, which went out of stock within minutes. The pop star idolised by Gen Z launched three fragrances (Bright, hot; Closeness; Rivulets) under his genderless cosmetic brand Pleasing, which already has skincare products and nail polishes has a secret and precious name, Jerôme Epinette.
Bright, hot has notes of amber, butter and cedar. The second, Closeness, is woody and musky, with an extract of Australian pink pepper and cardamom. Rivulets is a fresh, ambery floral fragrance with a top note of ambrette seeds combined with lemon and Madagascar black pepper. A few weeks earlier, it was the turn of another much-followed VIP, Victoria Beckham, to present her first perfumes. Based on her personal memories, each of these three fragrances distils notes from a particular time in her own life and projects them into our collective memory. Euphoric Portofino ‘97 evokes Victoria’s first romantic getaway with her husband David, while opulent Suite 302 recalls their whirlwind trips to Paris, and revitalising San Ysidro Drive embodies the time spent in California.
Jerome Epinette, the perfumer that every star desires
Besides the fact that they are unisex, and they both bear the name of a planetary star, these two collections have one more thing in common – their creator. He is a young French perfumer who has become a favourite of the stars in just a few years. His name is Jerôme Epinette, and he lives in New York. After earning a Master’s degree in Biochemistry from Burgundy University in Dijon, France, Epinette attended the Grasse Institute of Perfumery. In 2003, he joined Robertet, a leading fragrance and flavour company, and was part of the team that launched the New York Creative Center in 2006.
Before working on fragrances for Harry Styles and Victoria Beckham, he had already created God is a Woman and Thank U by Ariana Grande, but also the sensual Let’s Stay in Bed and Very Sexy Now by Victoria’s Secret and, above all, the fashionable fragrances by Byredo, including the best-selling Bal d’Afrique – which Victoria herself is known to wear – and Gypsy Water that Rosie Huntington-Whitlry and Sienna Miller love so much.
The reason why celebrities love his fragrances
What makes this nose’s creativity so irresistible?
“He is an extraordinary alchemist, with a unique talent – Victoria Beckham explains – Jérôme Epinette channels the emotional olfactory imprints of his partners and translates their most personal memories into spellbinding fragrances”.
He is admired for his ability to fuse modern techniques with adventurous daring and traditional artisanal craftsmanship. He is also renowned for his commitment to exploring cutting-edge methods, sustainability and responsibly sourced ingredients. Jerôme has a talent for creating olfactory portraits of precious moments and emotions through his compositions. He establishes a relationship of trust and mutual respect with his celebrity clients. For instance, about collaborating with Ariana Grande, he said: «As soon as I started working closely with her, I knew about what she likes and what could be relevant for her and her brand”. This very personalised and sensitive approach is one of the parfumeur’s strengths, as he gives importance to every detail and even uses moodboards to get as close as possible to his customers’ expectations. In terms of ingredients, two of his favourites, as the Fragrantica website explains, are “patchouli and santal wood”, which he combines in different ways to create a unique olfactory experience.
