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Is there any point to super cheap frags?

post #1 of 20
9/6/12 at 7:44am
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  • KSG
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for example the £5 ones from adidas shown in the link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Adidas-Deep-.../dp/B0010V9ICO

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Personally I would never touch this kind of stuff even for the gym, just wondering what everyone else thinks?
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post #2 of 20
9/6/12 at 7:46am
If there wasn't a point, they wouldn't exist, my friend.
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post #3 of 20
9/6/12 at 8:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by psychoskip View Post

If there wasn't a point, they wouldn't exist, my friend.

True
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post #4 of 20
9/6/12 at 9:26am
If it is linked with a proportional decrease in quality, I'd tend to say no.

However, if fragrances either usually more expensive or regularly manufactured at affordable costs, yet almost hidden gems in terms of quality are discounted, then it's an entirely different story and certainly not that pointless to me any longer- from a strictly personal viewpoint.
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post #5 of 20
9/6/12 at 10:11am
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  • KSG
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Agreed they are certainly two different things and the latter is very different. I was referring more to the stuff that's very cheaply made and always been super cheap from day 1 from brands that usually make cheap deodorant and the like
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Originally Posted by Ken_Russell View Post

If it is linked with a proportional decrease in quality, I'd tend to say no.

However, if fragrances either usually more expensive or regularly manufactured at affordable costs, yet almost hidden gems in terms of quality are discounted, then it's an entirely different story and certainly not that pointless to me any longer- from a strictly personal viewpoint.
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post #6 of 20
9/6/12 at 11:43am
The point is to make money.

Is there a point to buying them? Yes: enjoying them. Dirty English, Curve and Nautica Voyage are all easily found for under $20 and I think they're great. Somebody else could easily have a different list of cheapies they enjoy. If you don't like them, no worries. Don't buy them.

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Quote:
Originally Posted by KSG View Post

Agreed they are certainly two different things and the latter is very different. I was referring more to the stuff that's very cheaply made and always been super cheap from day 1 from brands that usually make cheap deodorant and the like

Still... the point of making them is to make money. The reason people buy them is because they like them. Cheap fragrances really aren't that different from cheap food. I don't like MacDonald's, but lots of other people do.
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post #7 of 20
9/6/12 at 2:27pm
I don't care for any of the Adidas fragrances, but there are some decent cheapies out there.
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post #8 of 20
9/6/12 at 3:30pm
Very little of the cost is about ingredients so there may be little or no difference in the contents of a very cheap and a normal mid-price frag. The difference is in the packaging, the marketing etc.
There are some fabulous very cheap frags - old spice whitewater is one I really enjoy, also some Stetsons and brut is still fantastic.
They mat have no prestige value and be very well known (and thus not unique) but they don't half smell good.
You won't get really high value ingredients in these frags of course but it is possible to make brilliant compositions from cheaper stuff. Some good stuff is just cheap.
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post #9 of 20
9/6/12 at 4:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by psychoskip View Post

If there wasn't a point, they wouldn't exist, my friend.

agree!
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post #10 of 20
9/6/12 at 9:52pm
Half of these fragrances smell great, they just don't have a huge price tag because they don't have the name to back up the price. Some of them lack in longevity, but at the price they sell for, you can decant.
The gym is one place where I use these cheap scents. Like I said in a previous post. I hit the gym, take a shower (or possibly skip it), and spray something cheap on, then head out and run errands. I go home if I don't have plans, shower again, and call it a night. I see no point in spraying a $90 fragrance if I intend on washing it off 4 hours later.
Also, just wanting to smell nice when guests come over. I won't spray my Pure Malt, or even my La Nuit just because I have a few friends over. But I also want to smell like SOMETHING.
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post #11 of 20
9/6/12 at 11:51pm
I smell all kinds of soaps and shampoos. Try a cheap fragrance is easy.
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post #12 of 20
9/7/12 at 12:26am
Sometimes you can get a quality frag for next to nothing (like Horizon at the dollar stores several months ago). I haven't worn any that were marketed at a really low "price point" in a very long time, though. I did buy some dollar frags to see how they compared but have yet to give them a regular wearing. I don't really have the time for "super cheapos"' any more, because my rotation is so large, though I have considered doing some layering, such as Black Walnut and Cuba Red.
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post #13 of 20
9/7/12 at 7:45am
For me there's not MUCH point. Though this isn't a hard and fast rule, I can typically smell the difference when we get to the price point occupied by "cheapies." I respect that some people find them worth it; I personally don't most of the time.
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post #14 of 20
9/7/12 at 9:19am
Purists will probably kill me, but I still love what I wore when I was 14, i.e Brut and Jovan Musk - may not be 'En Vogue' but I just personally love the smell.
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post #15 of 20
9/7/12 at 9:23am
I'd say depending on how you look at it, there's a greater point in cheap fragrances than with expensive ones. If some unknowing person wants to smell good (90%+ of the population) they're going to go to the store and pick up something cheap.

But from my view, no there's no point
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post #16 of 20
9/7/12 at 11:13am
If your nose is capable of picking up the difference between a cheap and unpleasant composition and something good and wearable, and you're experienced enough to appreciate the messages it sends you there is absolutely no reason to avoid inexpensive perfume.

If you're confident enough to wear whatever pleases you, regardless, there is no reason to avoid inexpensive perfume.

That said there's nothing wrong with a person who doesn't possess that confidence, or who doesn't wholly trust their own nose or tastes. Particularly in cases where one is new to this I would recommend steering away from trying to find gems among cheaper fragrances, but this is not the same as refusing to buy them. There are many inexpensive scents which are widely regarded as being capable of punching above their weight.

There are also a number of incredibly expensive fragrances which really are in a league of their own.
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post #17 of 20
9/7/12 at 11:28am
  • kbe
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Fragrances, as do wines, present among other choices both inexpensive gems and crushingly costly disasters. Price is only one factor among a host of factors that must be experienced and judged worthy by the individual.
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post #18 of 20
9/7/12 at 11:30am
To be honest, I agree that price doesn't equal quality, but I just haven't seen that many great fragrances that are under $20. I mean a fragrance is something you can own and wear for years. I mean, for just a little more money than an Adidas, you can get something much more wearable.
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post #19 of 20
9/7/12 at 11:37am
+1 on the Jovan musk. I still like this as much as I ever used to in the 80's. Maybe just sentimental.

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Quote:
Originally Posted by KSG View Post

for example the £5 ones from adidas shown in the link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Adidas-Deep-.../dp/B0010V9ICO

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Personally I would never touch this kind of stuff even for the gym, just wondering what everyone else thinks?

I'm almost tempted to buy it just to see. Anyone for a split? lol
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post #20 of 20
9/7/12 at 1:00pm
Of course there's a point. Lets not get caught up in perfume snobbery here. A lot of people can't afford expensive stuff, a lot of people don't prioritize fragrance. I've smelled cheapies that have been perfectly fine.

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Of course there's a point. Lets not get caught up in perfume snobbery here. A lot of people can't afford expensive stuff, a lot of people don't prioritize fragrance. I've smelled cheapies that have been perfectly fine.
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