When I was an apparel buyer we’d spend entire days in advertising meetings, pleading our case as to why our product should have that prime spot in a catalog or newspaper insert. “It’s photogenic! An attention grabber! Will drive thousands of incremental sales!”  My sleepwear department didn’t always win out, but never did I get so mad as to when I lost a coveted ad spot to the perfume buyers. “What? How are you going to sell more perfume by showing people a picture of the bottle!? You can’t sell perfume from a photo, people need to smell it!”

So when Pinrose asked me to try out their two new scents (called Wild Child and Gilded Fox) that recently launched at the Sephora – Galleria, I was excited but also a little skeptical about trying to explain to all of you how something smells and if it’s suited to your tastes. Apparently Pinrose feels the struggle too, because they’ve created an online quiz to help you determine your Pinrose signature scent. (I know what you’re thinking: It’s impossible to determine what perfume you’ll like by answering a questionnaire. But bear with me, it’s pretty cool. The quiz uses behavioral and olfactory research to correlate your preferences for color, decor, shape and sound to your scent likes and dislikes.) They’ll suggest three of their fragrances based on your answers. Then you can sample your recommendations in something called “Petal Packs” – imagine a really, really good smelling Wet Wipe. You can create your own Petal Pack or opt for their pre-set pack (20 petals for $25) … perfect for your suitcase or gym bag.

Continue reading →