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Niche Fragrances?

post #1 of 19
10/11/10 at 6:20pm
Thread Starter 
I've never owned a niche fragrance before, and was looking at getting one, some kind of Creed or Bond No. 9. I've no idea where to find them though. I've looked for them around department stores, not really expecting to find anything, but more or less, hoping. Are there any stores you can buy them at? Or can they only be purchased online?

Any help is much appreciated.
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post #2 of 19
10/11/10 at 6:27pm
Not sure about shipping, but www.theperfumedcourt.com is a great place to pick up some samples/decants.

Quite a few Creeds and Bonds are available on retail sites like Amazon. I seem to recall seeing some Creeds on Overstock.com, too.
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post #3 of 19
10/11/10 at 6:33pm
Do you have a Saks Fifth Ave. or Neiman Marcus near you? Both around me have Creed and Tom Ford, and Saks has Bond No. 9. Perfumedcourt is a great suggestion as well for finding samples
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post #4 of 19
10/11/10 at 6:41pm
You're in Toronto right? We have several big sources... Do some searching since there are a few big threads on Toronto hot spots.

The short answer is yes, they're around. Mostly in Yorkville. Check Holt Renfrew, Harry Rosen (redundant), Noor, Pir, and some boutiques on Bloor like L'Occitane, Guerlain, Hermes, and Chanel.

PS - let me know if you want to meet up or something to do the tour.
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post #5 of 19
10/11/10 at 7:01pm
Thread Starter 
Thank you! That's the answer I've been looking for!
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post #6 of 19
10/11/10 at 9:13pm
If you go shopping at a department store, I'd say start with a Tom Ford. I am loving Italian Cypress lately. Not super niche, but then neither are Creed and Bond.
Some Niemans stores also carry Serge Lutens. I like Amber Sultan best from them, and it sort of reeks of "getting into" niche.

If you want to order something more niche online, I recommend looking into Parfums de Nicolai, Amouage, and Histoires de Parfum. You can sample these from Luckyscent and Perfumed Court.
Some of my faves from these lines, which I think are good to start with are are New York from Nicolai, Ciel Man , Silver Cologne, and Dia Man from Amouage, and Casanova 1725 from HdP.
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post #7 of 19
10/11/10 at 9:17pm
Yes, Holt Renfrew has good choices
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post #8 of 19
10/11/10 at 9:22pm
One quick tip
try before you buy, in the world on niche fragrances, blind buys are financial ruin!
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post #9 of 19
10/11/10 at 9:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hasupk@gmail.com View Post

One quick tip
try before you buy, in the world on niche fragrances, blind buys are financial ruin!

Whatever this man said
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post #10 of 19
10/11/10 at 10:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DeepSilence View Post

Whatever this man said

i agree, go to saks, neiman marcus,etc get plenty of diff samples most are friendly. I would say check out creed , tom ford, serge lutens and frederic malle.
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post #11 of 19
10/11/10 at 10:56pm
I suggest getting vintage "80s power frags" now, while the prices are still low in many cases. The problem is that even if they are still around, they are often reformulated into something not worth owning most of the time. For me, niche is about simple, "natural" frags that focus on a small number of notes, whereas the "power frags" were considerably more complex. If you like simple, then I can understand your desire for certain niche frags, but I haven't found a complex niche frag that I thought was worth the money. Be sure that you really want it before spending the money!
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post #12 of 19
10/11/10 at 11:40pm
Two great places to start are Lucky Scent (Los Angeles) and Aedes de Venustas (New York), both have websites with excellent descriptions of niche scents. You can also order samples from them, or from The Perfumed Court.
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post #13 of 19
10/12/10 at 12:25am
It's hard to imagine a more helpful reply than Master-Classter's, and the other responses have also been valuable. All I have to add is that the main thread on fragrance shopping in Toronto is here...

(Note that the shopping threads tend to run for several years -- it's good to read one all the way through in case some info at the top is out-of-date.)
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post #14 of 19
10/12/10 at 1:10am
Holt Renfrew has Creeds and Bonds, Andrews has bonds. Both have other niche brands as well. To be honest for your first niche purchase, I'd get something more unique than creeds and bonds. Try Serge Lutens at Andrews or Tom ford at Holt Renfrew/Harry Rosen.

And as Master-claster mentioned, several stores that sell Niche in Toronto, unfortunately all located in Yorkville
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post #15 of 19
10/12/10 at 9:14pm
Ah, Andrews! I keep forgetting about them (they're a high end women's clothing store, so it's not like I otherwise would go in there).
I believe they have Amouage and a few bonds, maybe some Serge too?

Pir - an odd mix of frags, terribly laid out and incomplete sets. Mark Buxton, some Etro, some old random L'Artisan, some random MPG's.
Noor - Everything from Santa Maria Novella, to L'Artisan, Comme Des Garcons, L'eau Italie, Delrae, Dyptique (and candles), and launching soon - Heeley (I think).
Holt's - all the mainstream designer stuff, plus Tom Ford, Bond #9, MALLE!!! (new), across the way is the Chanel area (tres cool), Kilian, Lalique, etc... Don't forget to check downstairs for the men's stuff. There are some random goodies like Boise 1920, Art of Shaving (if you're into that sort of thing), and more.
Harry's - mostly mainstream stuff, but they do have the Tom Ford line and are quite generous. Check for Adam, a tall handsome nice guy. On the second floor they store the flacons incase you want 4ml samples.

Along bloor - Guerlain is worth checking out. Chanel, well holt's has the exclusive line anyway. Hermes is always nice. There's a Winners in the big building there and they have some random frags on teh second floor.
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post #16 of 19
10/12/10 at 11:06pm
Wow, Noor is going to have Heeley? awesome awesome. Any idea when?

Oh and Andrews does Have the full Serge Lutens line (export line that is), but I warn you, they don't hold much stock, and they don't get restock often, due to issues with the supplier according to the SA. So, grab a bottle while you can, 110 CAD is a good deal on a lutens bottle.
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post #17 of 19
10/12/10 at 11:58pm
Take your time, ask for samples, try not to buy anything your first day. Don't get impulsive - if you like something, you'll know where to get it. Test the fragrance on your skin for at least 4 hours before considering buying it. Take a pen with you to write the fragrance name on the paper tester strips.

The 1oz Creeds (their smallest bottle) are a good size to consider - relatively affordable and by the time you're done you'll want to buy a bottle of something else. They'll try to upsell you the 2.5, resist the urge.

Take Master-Classter up on his offer, I would have really benefited if someone with experience had started me off.
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post #18 of 19
10/13/10 at 12:51am
My favorite niche brand is Frederic Malle if only for the diversity. If you're considering an "investment fragrance" you should certainly check it out, esp. the Big Three: Carnal Flower, Musc Ravageur, and Geranium Pour Monsieur. Can anyone tell Bodom where he can find it in Toronto?
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post #19 of 19
10/13/10 at 11:56am
^^ Yep, Holt's has Malle

Ekove - I believe they're getting Heeley in sometime in the next month or so. I was just there a week or two ago and they were talking about it coming in.
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