Guerlain's rise to fame

The perfume industry represents a market of over 26 billion euros in 2019. Several world-renowned brands compete in the market, and each has its own identity and value. Guerlain is one of the most recognized because of its history and aspirations. The history of the brand began in 1828 in Paris, when Pierre-François-Pascal Guerlain, perfumer, and chemist, opened his first boutique at 42 Rue de Rivoli.

Success of Guerlain

Guerlain has a family history through 5 generations of perfumers. First, Pierre-François-Pascal created the “Eau de Cologne Impériale” for Empress Eugenie, on the occasion of her marriage to Emperor Napoleon III, and had the bottle decorated with 69 bees, symbols of the Empire. Thanks to this fragrance, Pierre-François-Pascal Gerlain became the patented Perfumer of His Majesty.

Guerlain's success is not limited to that, throughout the years and eras, mythical perfumes, each with their own story, have told stories and transported emotions to consumers, like “Terracotta”, “La petite robe noire”, “L’heure bleue”, “Mon Guerlain”, “Shalimar”, “Ambre Eternel”, and so many others. Guerlain's success is not new, and the brand keeps on reinventing itself to continue their success.

Guerlain's values

The unmistakable symbol of the House of Guerlain is the bee. The bee for the brand represents a promise of luxury, dream, resurrection, and eternity. This symbol is also linked to the Napoleonic era.

One of the unavoidable values of the brand is also the exploration put at the center of its history. The brand never stops innovating, renewing its know-how and always showing synergy. Guerlain surrounds itself with the best craftsmen and works with people who have a strong team spirit, a strong ambition and a wide-open mind and creation that allows them to achieve results close to perfection.

The transmission of emotions is a key point to allow the success of the brand.

Art of the bottle

Guerlain's perfume bottles also tell their story and stick to the brand's values. Almost all the bottles of the Guerlain collections and especially the flagship perfumes of the brand such as "Eau de Cologne Impériale" are endowed with the alveoli of bees.

In 2020, the artist Germanier enters in collaboration with Guerlain and revisits the "bee bottle" to create an exceptional collaboration between art and sustainable commitment to create an Upcycling approach. His approach is simple, the upcycling of textile waste destined for destruction, glass beads that we bury because we cannot burn them. Thanks to this process, he gives a whole new perspective to the mythical bottle. This strategic choice seems to succeed wonderfully to the house Guerlain.

Inspiring stories of Guerlain

Guerlain's perfumes were born through several events and during walks in France that moved the creator. It was then that he decided to launch himself into perfumes.

One of the first flagship perfume of the brand "Shalimar" was born of a love story between an Indian emperor and Princess Mumtaz Mahal in 1925. From the influence of this story and these people was born an oriental perfume that has remained engraved in the history of iconic perfumes of Guerlain. Thus, the course of events and nature have greatly inspired Pierre-François-Pascal Guerlain. In his creations, he integrated the artistic side to make his products unique. The house of Guerlain is one of the oldest houses in the world today.

Thanks to their history, their values, their symbol, and their identity, Guerlain's perfumes have been able to build a real identity with consumers. Their strategic orientation through the work of the bottle or their storytelling make them remain dynamic and sales year after year do not run out of steam.