Two years after the release of a debut fragrance from luxury shoe label Jimmy Choo, Inter Parfums is has released a second scent, entitled Flash. The brand's co-creative directors Sandra Choi (Choo's niece) and Simon Holloway talk to CosmeticNews about their plans to build a successful beauty business.
Tell me about the inspiration for Flash.
SH: We looked back through the history of Jimmy Choo advertising, which has always featured images of fashion rather than just the shoes. The image of a woman going out was one that came up frequently in our imagery, so we decided to take that to an exaggerated place with this ad campaign through the suggestion of the paparazzi and trying to capture an exuberant, self-indulgent attitude. Even the product itself, from the fragrance to the bottle, embodies the Jimmy Choo DNA. Glitter is one of our most important materials, and this features heavily in the packaging. The bottle also looks like a retro paparazzi flash bulb, while the violet colour also evokes that spirit.
Are you aiming to capture a new audience with the fragrance?
SC: The first fragrance very much set the tone for who we are. Having done that well, we decided to explore other aspects of the brand. If you look at our products within the brand, you'll see that we're very diverse. This is how we want our fragrances to be.
SH: We wanted Flash to be about a different mood to the first fragrance. The first scent was about the heart of Jimmy Choo, but Flash is about having a different type of experience.
Where does fragrance sit within the Jimmy Choo brand?
SC: Jimmy Choo has always been about dressing up and fragrance is another party of this idea.
SH: It takes up another space in the Jimmy Choo wardrobe. As we move more seriously into the beauty world we want to build on what we started with the first fragrance. The packaging on the edp featured snakeskin and Venetian glass, whereas this is a step further into something more sparkly and crystalline. It addresses a different emotion within the Jimmy Choo woman.
What are your plans for the brand now that [former founder] Tamara Mellon has left?
SC: What we have built so far is just the beginning so I look forward to carrying that on. We've set the tone for the company and going forward, I'd like to focus more strongly on fashion. It will be about focusing on design integrity, innovation and newness to bring back a sense of creativity into the brand. On top of that, the glamour aspect of the brand will continue to grow very organically.
In which markets are you seeing the most growth?
SC: Everyone is talking about the growth of Far East and that's definitely our experience. America is also very strong for us as well as emerging markets. When our debut fragrance launched for example, Poland was one of our most successful markets.
SH: It's important to note that Jimmy Choo is still quite a young brand. Our footprint is quite global but we have a small presence in a lot of these areas. We're currently very strong in the UK, in the US and Europe, but still see huge potential for further growth in Europe, the US and Japan.
What are your expectations for the launch of Flash?
SC: The fragrance has given us an anchor to explore different types of scents that respond to different moods. The goal is to continue to find ways to do things differently.
SH: This is the third step for us; we launched the edp first, followed by the edt, and now we have Flash. It's been a steady introduction of products so looking ahead, the sky's the limit.
