Chanel No. 5 is one of the biggest perfumes in all of history. What’s its lure? Is it the name, the legend, the marketing, the juice? Take a look at the illustrious past and present of Chanel No. 5 to understand what people love about Chanel perfumes and what other aspiring best-seller perfumes can learn from this marvel.
Chanel No. 5 was selected by designer Coco Chanel from perfumer Ernest Beaux’s lab. Drawn by its unique character, Coco said she wanted to release a perfume that was completely different from naturalfloral perfumes. The perfume was supposed to make women smell like women, not like a flower. Indeed, compared to the regular slew of perfumes in the 1920s, Chanel No. 5 debuted as a wild synthetic romp.
What made Chanel No. 5 completely unique was the profusion of aldehydes, which are molecules that are responsible for the sparkling character that reaches high towards a citrus-like composition and descends down into a tinny, metallic quality. Today, Chanel No. 5 is advertised as an abstract perfume, the first modern perfume, made completely with synthetic chemicals.But there are a few hidden secrets that Chanel hides about its most magical, longest selling perfume.
Chanel No. 5, behind the dazzling sheen of aldehydes, presents a soft floral mix. Whatever Coco said about Chanel No. 5 can’t be taken for complete face value. Ernest Beaux added a dash of soft rose notes. And some scent pyramids actually go as far as to attribute more than one flower—including jasmine, lily, ylang ylang and neroli—to this scent. And to ground the sparkling combination of citrus and florals, Chanel No. 5 includes favorites like oakmoss, amber, vanilla and patchouli. Perfume critic Chandler Burr explains that the result of this avant garde blending make Chanel No. 5 smell “like a bank of white-hot searchlights washing the powdered stars at a movie premier in Cannes on a dry summer night.”
Another secret behind this market dominating perfume is that there are many formulas circulating. If you’re like me, and you think that Chanel No. 5 smells a little different every time you smell it, you’ll be surprised to find that there’s actually a rhyme and reason behind all of your confusion. Luca Turin points out in an NZZ Folio essay that there are currently 3 types of Chanel No. 5 at large. Chanel No. 5 Parfum, says Turin, is “the 1921 original, and smells fresh as paint and changed from day 1.” Eau de Toilette under the same name, is “all soft and peachy, a fifties mom in a fur coat coming to tuck you in bed before going to the theatre.” Turin goes on to completely dismiss the Eau de Parfum formula, calling it “an eighties lapse of judgment.” So if you’ve smelled one Chanel No. 5 and didn’t enjoy it, Chanel ensures that there’s a Chanel No. 5 out there that’ll suit your style.
Beyond its legendary birth and its chameleon like character, Chanel No. 5 has been bolstered over the years by its star-studded marketing. In the 1950s, Chanel No. 5 was most infamously said to be the only thing that Marilyn Monroe wore to bed. After the dreamy-eyed blonde, Catherine Deneuve, Nicole Kidman, and Audrey Tautou were all featured alongside this famous fragrance. Also through short-form story-telling, the glory Chanel No. 5 and its association with these glittering women has been immortalized on film by talented film directors.Above all, Chanel No. 5 was released and marketed with Chanel’s image in mind. Coco Chanel always said that elegance was defined by simplicity. Accordingly, Chanel No. 5, captured in a simple stylized flacon, presents sleek drops of sheer elegance and remains absolutely stylish in every era. Each time Chanel No. 5 is marketed the stark simplicity is always emphasized. The beauty of Chanel No. 5 is that it brings out the glamour in every women with such a simple concept—sparkling aldehydes.
Chanel No. 5 remains legendary, and women often wonder who has worn Chanel No. 5 before them. It’s a celebration of femininity, when you think of it, because it seems that at some point in every woman’s life, a dab Chanel No. 5 has been splashed.
