A couple of months back I went to the Jo Malone press launch for India at The Amanbagh in Rajasthan. There were flowers, scented candles, fragrances, pretty much everything you can expect and more, for a dream launch by a group such as Estee Lauder. But Jo Malone goes beyond fancy launches (although a touch of luxury never hurts).
I have been to many fancy launches and then some. But after the romance fades, you’re left with an average product and average expert quotes despite all the brouhaha. But Jo Malone was different both in terms of the product and the experts.
I’ve been using their fragrances for a couple of years now. Fig & Cassis used to be my favourite ( unfortunate that it’s being discontinued), followed closely by Mimosa & Cardamom. What I love about Jo Malone is the simplicity in their packaging and ingredients.
Their colognes are pretty much made of what is stated on the label. Red Roses is Bulgarian rose with a touch of green notes such as lemon and mint, which gives it that sensation of freshness you get from a blooming rose petal. Mimosa & Cardamom contains one other note — Tonka bean, which grounds a fragrance that could otherwise have been too airy. When I wear it I think of a warm summer afternoon spent under the gauzy canopy of a four poster bed. Imaginative, I know. Even the notes I hate, I tend to enjoy with JML. I detest marine fragrances, but somehow I found the Wood Sage & Sea Salt Body Creme strangely appealing.
How is it possible to pick up the simplest ingredients and transform them into something so sophisticated? It’s because the brand is supported by a solid team of experts. There’s Celine Roux-Alezais, their executive director, global product development. With the elegance of a Frenchwoman and the open heart of a true artist, her vulnerability is what helps her create beautiful fragrances from the heart.
Debbie Wild, their freelance global style director told us about a time when Celine came running into the office after a weekend picking blackberries, fingers stained with the juice, insisting that they needed to create a blackberry scent then and there. And so, their ‘Blackberry & Bay’ cologne was born. What an usual combination right? Berry and bay leaf.
Debbie herself is quite experienced in the skincare industry, having worked for Clinique before joining JML. At this point I must talk about the Jo Malone Vitamin E skin care range. I don’t think it would be available in India but their Vitamin E Eye Cream is probably one of the best under eye treatments for wrinkles.
Then there’s Wandjina Glasheen Brown, VP Global Creative, who’s from the Parson’s School of Design in New York. She’s responsible for the creatives that go with the fragrances. So while Celine creates, Wandjina ideates. Beyond the degrees and job description, Wandjina really loves to dress. She could be mod in the afternoon; and then turbaned, in a floor-length sheath, like a young Vivienne Westwood, in the evening.
The point that I’m trying to make is that Jo Malone is a brand with weight. The launch, of course, was spectacular (kudos to Joanna Huang, their PR manager who pulled it off while she was running a temperature). But beyond that, their colognes are outstanding and their experts have real depth.
A fortnightly column to remind you about all things skin deep
