Fergalicious

Campaign 18 catalog

In Campaign 18, I had to promote Fergie’s new fragrance called “Outspoken Intense” and I was a little hesitant about getting a few demo bottles to sell to my customers.  I’m not the biggest fan of her, especially after the last Super Bowl halftime show, and her appearance in the photo spread for the catalog makes her look like some scary witch.  From a guy’s point of view, she looks “sweaty and gross” and wonders why she would be the spokesperson for a fragrance when she “doesn’t look like she smells good.”

I agree, if I was going to buy a fragrance because of a celebrity brand, she is not one I buy from based on the name.  In the fragrance business, the celebrity endorser may be the one to attract attention to a new scent, but the scent is what sells itself.

To promote Outspoken Intense by Fergie, I do an informal blind study.  Every day I spritz on a different perfume to see if certain ones are noticed or complemented.  Sometimes I tell my friends to smell my wrists to get their opinion, and I generally get good reviews (the “bad” ones are merely just a difference in fragrance tastes).

I asked the male friend that disliked Fergie as a performer to take a whiff of the fragrance I just put on minutes before.  I asked him if it was a fragrance he would get a future girlfriend, and he told me it was really nice and asked which one it was.  Now it’s time to picture the shock on his face when I told him the “sweaty and gross” endorser was Fergie.  He thought I was lying to him, but he judged the catalog by its cover.

The question is, did this fragrance fit its marketing?  I can see why Avon chose Fergie to do a second fragrance.  The original Outspoken by Fergie is Avon’s best-selling fragrance launch ever.  In fact, on May 25, Fergie won the 2011 FiFi Award for New Celebrity Fragrance of the Year.  Avon must have done something right for the blend of iced berry laced with tuberose and black leather to receive this prestigious award from the Fragrance Foundation.

Here is what Laurent Le Guernec, Senior Perfumer, said about Outspoken Intense: “In the original fragrance, there was a rebellious and a highly contrasted blend.  I wanted to expand on this signature idea in Fergie Intense.  I began exploring an even more exaggerated feminine approach, with bright colorful fruits and daring floral absolutes.  I was inspired by the magnetic beauty and vibrant sensuality of Fergie herself…the different facets of her powerful femininity was my inspiration.”

Features of Outspoken Intense by Fergie:

Alluring Top Notes: Succulent blackberry, shining star fruit and luscious kumquat

Bold Mid Notes: Vibrant purple passionflower, lush gardenia and velvety orange flower petals

Intense Base Notes: Sensual musks wrapped in white amber and blonde cedar

When and where should you wear this?  You’re heading out to a club with your girls and want to stand out from the rest of the bar-hoppers.  You’re a performer and need a fragrance that lasts through the last song on your set list.  Or, perhaps, you want to spice up your night a little bit.

When I’m choosing my Eau de Parfum du jour, I sometimes hesitate about wearing Outspoken Intense.  But when I spritz it on, I remember just how good it smells!  If you want something dramatic and intense, this is the fragrance for you!