How Marc Jacobs works! New York fashion designer Marc Jacobs is known for his quirky and ultra-creative approach when creating his ready-to-wear collections. There have been countless feature stories in fashion magazines and a couple documentary movies on how he approaches fashion. He frequently draws from a myriad of inspirations – from Grey Gardens to Patty Hearst to Studio 54 to antique markets. He then blends all these influences together and tailors beautifully crafted day dresses, maxi coats and pantsuits. To be honest, I never really got his vintage-looking collections until I visited his boutique in New York’s Soho District. When I saw the clothes merchandised and dozens of women trying them on, then I got it. It’s more of a laid-back lifestyle look with a tiny bit of eccentricity and a little glam. What his collections stand out from similar brands is Marc’s tailoring skills. He understands silhouette and detailing better than most.
Marc Jacobs Fall 2015 Ready-to-Wear Collection
So while Marc’s fashion process has been extensively chronicled, his fragrance creation style has not. Until now. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Lori Singer, a Coty Prestige executive in New York who works hand-in-hand with Marc creating all his luxe fragrances. She worked for many years with Calvin Klein before moving over to Marc’s brand. So she will work with the designer from the very first idea to the moment it arrives in store. This often takes 2 ½ years!
Coty’s Lori Singer
“It all starts with a name for Marc,” she says. “He can’t start talking about notes or a bottle or a theme until he has the name in his head. Once he has a name he truly loves, then we can get started. I was actually at a black tie event one evening that Marc was attending and he asked if he could speak with me. He pulled me to the side of the room and said ‘I’ve been thinking all about our next fragrance and I know exactly what I want to call it! I want to name it Decadence.” She loved the name and ran back to her iPhone and started Googling the name to see if anyone had registered the name for fragrance. (Almost every name for a perfume has been registered and trademarked so Coty has to buy that domain for every country in the world before proceeding. It is a big process for the legal department and truly the most challenging aspect of launching a scent globally today.)
What is interesting about Jacobs’ creative process is he can’t be rushed. “Marc knows what he wants but there are times when I’ll be pressing him to make a decision about say a bottle design and he’ll turn to me and say ‘I just don’t know yet. I’m sorry. I have to live with it for a little bit more.’” He’s very much in tune with what his customers want and what other scents are selling well in the market so he comes prepared to every meeting.
The idea for his latest fragrance “Decadence” came from the idea of a girl who is an extrovert and a bit of a show off. While Daisy is the sweet, girl-next-door, Decadence is a good girl playing bad as he describes her. She’s the one who will jump up on the bar at a club and dance wildly. She’s the one who wants to be noticed when she walks in the door of a party. In fact, she is the life of the party. “It also allowed us enter a more sophisticated and upscale part of the business. We knew we wanted to elevate the Marc Jacobs fragrance house so this name was the perfect way to do it.”
“A girl chooses to be decadent.” – Marc Jacobs
When Marc presented the concept of creating a bottle in the shape of one of his most iconic handbags, the Coty team gasped. This is one of the most intricate and expensive bottles they’ve ever produced. The arched cap is wrapped in green python, one of Marc’s favourite fashion accents. It has a luxe gold chain and a silky black tassle – one of the hottest accessories for Fall 2015. “It’s truly a new twist of putting perfume in your purse. It’s a purse-shaped bottle in your purse!”
“Marc was truly involved in every little detail of this project. It became something he was so incredibly passionate about,” continues Singer. “To give you one example, when we decided that the cap was going to be this emerald green python, Marc had his leather factory in Italy create a large piece of python skin for us to work with so we could model it for the colour, the design, etc. So, he had this done and it took several months. The first skin he got, he wasn’t happy with. It was the right pattern but it was the wrong colour. So he sent away for another one. So a few weeks later we met. I came to his office there was over a 10-foot piece of green python in his office. I sat with him for over two hours and watched him as he studied this piece of python and decided on the perfect square that he wanted to be put on the cap of the bottle. He was looking for the ideal colour, the scale of the print, the size, the shape, the contrast between the green and the black – all these little details. And he finally found the perfect square. He cut it out and I held on to it for dear life. Then, we at Coty worked really hard to replicate it exactly.” It took many months of very talented bottle designers to replicate the design and colour perfectly. “In the end, I came up with over 100 different versions of this snakeskin cap – some were a bit more shiny, some were a bit more matte, some were a little bit lighter, some were a little bit darker. And Marc really took the time to select the one he wanted.”
“Another fun fact is that there is over 625 miles of gold chain that was produced for this launch. But that wasn’t enough for Marc. He really challenged us to design the perfect box. And the result is a green velvet box that feels very luxurious. “For Marc, it is often about the mixture of materials – the shiny with the matte, the soft with the hard. And that is what we did with the box. You’ll see the velvet feel to the box with the gold logo and name.”
When it came to blending the fragrance, Marc insisted on over 100 versions of the scent before he got exactly what he wanted – a sultry floral with amber & vetiver notes. He worked with perfumer Annie Buzantian and Anne Gotlieb. It contains notes of Italian plum, saffron, iris, sambac jasmine, liquid amber, vetiver and papyrus wood. “Few people know that saffron is more expensive than gold. And all the ingredients we used in this perfume are amongst the most refined in elegant in perfumery today. That was very important to Marc.”
So what is it like working closely with Marc? “He definitely knows what he wants. He knows where he wants to take his brand and he gives this all a lot of thought. He knew he wanted another fragrance pillar under the Marc Jacobs brand and it just took him some time to wrap his head around what he wanted. When he came up with the name Decadence, he was sure it was right. Other designers don’t work that way. They may start with an idea or a bottle and develop a scent from there. With Marc, it is the name and the concept first. In terms of fragrance notes, he’s pretty open. He listens to the perfumers. He was looking for the warmer, more sensual notes for this particular scent. He smells notes and tells us what he likes and doesn’t and why.” Singer says Marc is very present in meetings. “When you meet with Marc, he comes to work and he’s very engaged and interested about the project. He’s very available.”
The giveaway: I gave away a bottle of Decadence to one lucky reader. Congrats to Belinda from Canada. We drew her name from all those who commented below.
Marc Jacobs Decadence is available in Canada at Hudson’s Bay stores and thebay.com
117 Comments
Roberta Platten
September 24, 2015 at 11:42 pmThe concept of the bottle is pure perfection. Its great to know he spends this much time picking out fragrances as his designs in clothing etc.plattenroberta
Liberty
September 24, 2015 at 10:59 pmHe surely is a person that strives for perfection. The detail is so elegant and pleasing to the eyes. Love the concept.
Angelehm
September 24, 2015 at 8:48 pmMarc Jacobs concept of Decadence is in itself gloriously decadent Oui? Oh the Box! The Emerald Bottle or the 100 versions of the scent , the 625 miles of gold chain, the silken tassel… Marc is a perfectionist after my own heart! The blissfully decadent package beckons to me as much as the precious liquid with in. Be still my heart! “Decadence is a good girl playing bad”~Marc Jacobs…thats a perfect description of Moi xx @angelehm
Leeley
September 24, 2015 at 4:07 pmSi le nom Décadence est la première inspirartion du createur ,alors pourquoi pas ,je serais curieuse de découvrir cette explosion de senteur .
Sur twitter @leeley80
Corinne Magdelon
September 24, 2015 at 2:25 pmBonjour et merci à vous!!! Je trouve le theme decadence genial , et parfait pour ce flacon ! J’adore
merci à vous
Twitter : @ magdeloncorinne
denise
September 24, 2015 at 1:45 pmso cool he went through so many to find the perfect blend!
I do know how expensive saffron is–I grow my own! If you look at my twitter picture, you will see my saffron! In fact, it should be blooming and ready to harvest in a few weeks.
@momof3boysj
Retina
September 24, 2015 at 1:14 pmI really like the passion he has put in it. I know how he felt to make sure its not trademarked. #perfume perfect
I’d love to try it!
laura
September 24, 2015 at 6:22 ami didn’t know he was so passionate and into it. it’s really cool that he put so much effort and time to make this perfume perfect. it’s on an higher lever compared to Daisy or the other perfumes.
i’d love to try it!
@laura_cannas
Gloria Walshver
September 24, 2015 at 5:47 amAmazing thought for a name you came to be.
Melissa de la croix
September 24, 2015 at 2:01 amThis is so interesting and it makes so much sense to start with the name, I never thought it would work like that. I love the description of the decadent women idea behind it. It’s a nice change from the usual good girl fragrances.
@Mel_delaCroix
Gabriella L.
September 24, 2015 at 1:17 amThat bottle looks fabulous! And the name of the fragrance says it all! I read about it on Fragrantica and I’m sure it smells wonderful! I love plum, amber and jasmin sambac in fragrances!
Liz G
September 24, 2015 at 12:56 amI thought this was pretty fascinating. I knew that the names of his fragrances were important and personal to him, but I didn’t realize that he conceptualized around the name. I think he nailed it with this. The bottle is to die for and the notes sound perfect for a fall launch. @goldmeteor
Brittany
September 24, 2015 at 12:25 amI find it inspiring how Marc Jacobs takes his time in making perfumes. The name sounds mature; the bottle is feminine, yet elegant. And the perfume sounds like it would have a warm, fruity, spiced scent with in a hint of musk. I would to try this perfume as I am a big fan of the Marc Jacobs perfume line. @britt_marsh20
Maryna
September 23, 2015 at 9:23 pmThis a special bottle!!!
Erin
September 23, 2015 at 9:19 pmI thought that the part about the python skin was very interesting and how it took several months and over 100 different versions of this snakeskin cap to come up with the final concept. Talk about dedication and, of course, decadence 🙂
Colleen Boudreau
September 23, 2015 at 8:27 pmGreat concept!
@collifornia
Gil Segev
September 23, 2015 at 8:10 pmThanks for the amazing giveaway, Dave! I think Decadence’s story, and all of Marc’s fragrances, really, are so inspiring and playful. He is one creative powerhouse! @GSIProductions
Brigitte I.
September 23, 2015 at 7:42 pmI love the perfection of the box with the gold chain, the green velvet used for the box, and the overall eye-catching design. And I am sure the inside is as great as the outside 🙂
Connie peixoto
September 23, 2015 at 7:36 pmVery interesting story @conniepeixoto
Heather Sibley
September 23, 2015 at 5:05 pmI love the notes and the bottle is amazing! @sibley_h
Moyra McNeill
September 23, 2015 at 4:55 pmI love the ingredients, iris, amber, vetiver, I can just imagine the clean yet svultry notes, the box looks so boho chic.
Pacita
September 23, 2015 at 4:11 pmThis is one of a kind.@pacitaadriano
karen c
September 23, 2015 at 3:16 pmvery nice
Mary W
September 23, 2015 at 3:13 pmGreat marketing idea. Pretty color green he chose. The perfume hits all the right notes for me! @cowladydeland
Josie
September 23, 2015 at 3:12 pmI love the concept and the bottle is amazing!
@lattesplease