Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Choose women's perfume for your business

Women's perfumes generally fit into six categories: florals, which are from flowers; orientals, which have a more spicy fragrance; citrus scents, which project a tangy aroma; chypres, which have an earthy, sweet aroma; greens, which include sharp, grassy notes; and fougeres, which include a combination of fresh herbs and mossy ferns. Top selling women's perfumes can be found in each category. Men also often wear fougere fragrances.

I recommend: If you can't smell the perfume in person, a perfume's description will let you know its type. BigDiscount.com now offers a wholesale division. They will provide you with newsletters, low freight charges, no minimum order amount and access to over 6,000 products. FragranceNet.com highlights bestsellers and new arrivals in perfumes on their women's perfume page, and also offers over 11,000 beauty products. Cosmopolitan Cosmetics Inc. is one of the top five distributors of fragrance in the United States, and they work with specialty shops as well as retailers.

Take advantage of female and male customers when promoting fragrances

Whether a man is buying women's perfume for the holidays or a birthday, or a woman is choosing men's cologne, customers often want to be assisted in selecting a product. Choose two or three top brands of women's perfume and men's cologne you want your staff to highlight with customers, whether the brands are domestic or imported.

I recommend: A 2 Z Perfumes, Inc. prides itself on customer service. A New York based company, they sell European as well as domestic products and can easily help you with your women's perfume and men's cologne needs. Universal Perfumes & Cosmetics Inc., a top distributor also based in New York, carries over 100 designer brands, from Chanel to Versace.

To keep your fragrance products current, stock new arrivals

In order to keep up with the trends, make sure your store carries a selection of new arrivals.

I recommend: In addition to checking with your distributor or wholesaler, The Fragrance Foundation offers annual FiFi awards for top fragrances of the year and is an international source for the cultural and historical aspects of fragrance. CosmeticIndustry.com can help keep you in the know with its directory of beauty magazines and zines.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Consider adding an assortment of related fragrance products, such as scented lotions and soaps.
• •  When assisting customers, identify a perfume's three notes (top, middle and base) since a customer will only smell the top notes when first testing a product and the middle and base notes are what give a perfume its body.