Every once in a while, I see an article that contends that there’ll be no more radical, game changing innovations – just marginal improvements (or non-improvements, depending on your perspective) to things that already exist. Everything that’s going to be invented that will make a real difference has already been invented. Or, to go Ecclesiastes rather than The Economist or Technology Review, there is nothing new under the sun.
Well, never underestimate the power of capitalism to keep on keepin’ on with bold new ideas.
I give you the United Scents of America, a Hoboken-based parfumerie, that’s rolling out a “state-inspired scent collection.”
…each fragrance was created to remind the user of the places they've come from or the places they wish to be. (Source: Boston.com)
Forget collecting those fifty state quarters. Forget trying to spot all fifty license plates.
Collectors and perfume buffs will definitely be embracing this manifestation of the next new thing.
The first five states that Sasha Bertran and Samantha Sherwin have brought out scents for are New York, California, Florida, Texas, and – of course - their home state of New Jersey. These are big states, so this makes a lot of sense.
Here’s what they’re aiming for:
United Scents of America Fragrances are meant to evoke nostalgia for your home state, the state your currently live in or one that holds a special place in your heart..Our goal became to make our scents personal to the customer, not ourselves, and to remind people of where they come from. We hope our fragrances will bring people back to fond childhood memories, favorite vacations or any time in their life that they can associate to a special place. (United Scents of America)
New York, a place that does hold a special place in my heart, is a blend of:
…apple, violet, ozone, melon, cortland apple, lime zest, cyclamen & rosewood, jasmine, basil & lily, peach & kiwi.
I’m not sure how these combinations get combo’d. The USofA site lists ingredients by top, heart, and bottom – whatever that means - but I’d be curious to know how they came up with this particular mix. Apple and Cortland apple I get. Violet is a nice nostalgic touch – makes me think of WWII sweethearts meeting under the Biltmore hotel clock – he in his snappy naval uniform, she in her mouton coat, seamed nylons, snood, and wearing a spray of violets. Ozone for Ozone Park, I guess. And you gotta have zest, so lime zest works. The jasmine gets you Chinatown, the basil gets you Little Italy. As for the rest…
Where’s the taxi exhaust, the diesel fumes of Grand Central, that weird hot air smell that gusts up from the subway vents? I know, I know, I’m being a bit NYC-centric here, but where’s the smell of chestnuts roasting outside Central Park? A whiff of a Sabrett hot-dog stand? And how about the smell of money?
But who am I, a non-perfume wearer, to judge what goes into a complex state-based melange?
Mostly, the state mixes seem apt, if a bit lacking.
Florida has orange, grapefruit, ocean breeze, and key lime. But no nod to alligators, or old people.
Texas is heavy on cedar, but is missing gunpowder, saddle soap, and cattle. And bluebonnets (which are very Texas-y, but I’m just not sure they have any odor).
California is a simple mix of: fresh cut coconut, eucalyptus, and vanilla bean. How about swimming pool chlorine?
No surprise, given that Sasha and Samantha are homeys, but New Jersey seems to get it best: fresh buttered popcorn, cotton candy, caramel & coconut,vanilla extract, peach, patchouli. Don’t know what peach and vanilla have to do with it, but gotta love those hints of coconut and patchouli. (Snookie lives.) Some might argue – and I believe my sister Trish, who clued me in on this story, would be one of them – that there needs to be some element of oil refinery and turnpike in this particular mix.
While Massachusetts didn’t make the first wave, I am pleased to note that, along with Hawaii, Massachusetts is in the next batch.
We’ll be represented with a:
…mix with a rustic autumn-inspired fragrance of our own, featuring notes of cranberry, bergamot, sage, red oak, and tobacco leaf, launching later this month. (Back to Boston.com here.)
Cranberry? Check! Tobacco leaf? Check – a surprise, perhaps, to those who don’t know that shade tobacco for expensive cigars is grown in Western Mass. Red oak? Check – if they mean the smell of burning oak leaves which, alas, we’re no longer allowed to do.
“Rustic autumn” is actually an excellent choice for the Bay State. But there are a few things missing from the Massachusetts bundle. First off, if they’re doing “rustic autumn”, we have to get an apple in there somewhere. And maybe it’s too summery, but shouldn’t salt air be added? And the combined hot dog-popcorn-concrete-beer smell of Fenway Park?
Whoever said there’s no more innovation couldn’t see what was right under his nose.
Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing what gets incorporated in the brew for all 50 states. Some, I suppose, will be obvious: Kentucky will have to combine bluegrass and moonshine; Wisconsin, I’m afraid, will need some sense of dairy cow. Others will be harder: does North Dakota actually have a smell?
And if you think that having these 50 new perfumes is innovation enough, well, think again. They’re also coming out with “corresponding candles.”
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