Job Interviews, and "Professional" Fragrances

[MarquisdeSod]

So I was interviewing for a position in my company and a candidate arrived wearing one of the Givenchy Plays, I think original since I didn't smell the prominent chocolate note in Play Intense...Anyways, I started thinking, "unprofessional, clubkid." I dunno, I mean obviously it won't have any bearing on the outcome, but I walked away thinking gourmands and sweet scents just don't give off an air of professionalism. I mean it's one thing when you're in a club trying to cut through the heat, BO and competing scents, but in a workplace, smelling sugary seems to send the wrong message.

Anyone else have shared or differing perspectives? I mean I may be off base, I don't know, but I do know the impression I got just wasn't positive. And it isn't that I'm a gourmand hater, I actually love my A*Men, Hanae Mori, etc. but I dunno, for a professional environment, gourmands seem to be the aromatic equivalent of wearing a loud patterned club shirt to the office.

[Picard]

I wear Pure Havane to work

[change1]

If I was the candidate I would wear one of the following fragrance....

Chanel Platinum Egoiste

Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentree or the EDT

Guerlain Vetiver

[lovingthealien]

Sweet can also be quite professional as well - Troisieme Homme, Jaipur Homme, and Heritage all come to mind.

[JiveHippo]

I agree, a gourmand is not appropriate for a job interview. If i was going to wear anything it would be something light and inoffensive like Mugler Cologne or Prada Amber.

[Ete]

I wore TdH to my last interview, needless to say I got the job

[change1]

Now if i was the interviewer, I would wear one of these fragrance....

YSL Kouros

Muscs Kublai Khan

10 sprays of Joop

[del]

+1 on TdH.

However, I also wear gourmand and other sweet scents to work. Rochas Man, A*Men, Play Intense to name a few. I guess if you can carry it confidently, then wear it.

[JiveHippo]

Now if i was the interviewer, I would wear one of these fragrance....

YSL Kouros

Muscs Kublai Khan

10 sprays of Joop

Lol that'll let em know who's boss!

[Jridgen]

I wear all sorts of frags to the office, but tone it down for interviews/meetings...

Interview
+1 Terre d'Hermes
Mugler Cologne
+1 Platinum Egoiste

Meetings
MI/Silver Mountain Water
Guerlain Homme L'eau
Dior Homme Sport
L'Instant Extreme

[>BOOMER<]

I think Gourmands are fine at the office or work, AFTER you get the job and know the people. For interviews (I have interviewed many people in my career) I always appreciated a person intent on a strong 1st impression or no impression as far as a fragrance. Of course this could be many frags but an example would be Gucci Pour Homme and going light on the trigger. Actually, in an interview it doesn't hurt to not wear anything. It can be a distraction for the interviewer and maybe not a good one. Be smart.

[MysteryBuff40]

Best not to wear any fragrance at a job interview. What are the chances that you interview with someone who is a fragrance lover and who happens to like the fragrance you're wearing and thinks it's office appropriate - a 10,000 to 1 lottery shot? Why take the risk of being considered unprofessional?

[hedonist222]

Anyone else have shared or differing perspectives? I mean I may be off base, I don't know, but I do know the impression I got just wasn't positive.

I think you are off base and a taking it a tad bit too seriously.

I mean if he had sprayed overtly then any perfume would be a nuisance but a couple of reserved gourmand sprays are acceptable IMO.

[MJM_77]

Creed Original Vetiver sounds good to me.

[KMF]

I wouldn't wear a fragrance to a job interview. Even something most would consider light and harmless might not seem that way to the person doing the interviewing. The job market is difficult / competitive enough as it is. Don't give a company another reason to not hire you.

Once you're in the position for a while, then you can't experiment with certain scents.

[CaliDude]

If I had an interview, I would wear my favorite fragrance. And that's Creed Silver Mountain Water.

[pbjguy]

I have had job offers wearing Platinum Egoiste - light in application though.

[L'Incandescent]

I don't wear any fragrance to interviews. (It's practically the only time that I don't wear a fragrance.) My rough cost-benefit analysis goes like this: the interviewer might find your fragrance off-putting, or even nauseating. This can happen even with "safe scents." If that happens, the interviewer is left with a strong negative impression. The potential downside is very big. The benefit, if there is any at all, would be tiny. It's just not worth the risk, IMO.
If I were to wear a fragrance, though, it wouldn't be a gourmand.

[Renard]

I think Rive Gauche PH will settle down any interviewer and make them think you are solid and steady.

[hednic]

I think it depends on the environment where one works.

[starshipvelcro]

TdH sounds good to me too, also Gucci PH 2

[chili_willi]

And it isn't that I'm a gourmand hater, I actually love my A*Men, Hanae Mori, etc.

Hanae Mori is a gourmand?! I am such a noob. That stuff smells like powdered flowers to me. I gotta get my sniffer tuned up.

[xiuxia]

Hanae Mori is a gourmand?! I am such a noob. That stuff smells like powdered flowers to me. I gotta get my sniffer tuned up.

Vanilla and lemon in front and some people get chocolate in the basenotes.

I know what you mean, though.

[jasonx]

So I was interviewing for a position in my company and a candidate arrived wearing one of the Givenchy Plays, I think original since I didn't smell the prominent chocolate note in Play Intense...Anyways, I started thinking, "unprofessional, clubkid." I dunno, I mean obviously it won't have any bearing on the outcome, but I walked away thinking gourmands and sweet scents just don't give off an air of professionalism. I mean it's one thing when you're in a club trying to cut through the heat, BO and competing scents, but in a workplace, smelling sugary seems to send the wrong message.

Anyone else have shared or differing perspectives? I mean I may be off base, I don't know, but I do know the impression I got just wasn't positive. And it isn't that I'm a gourmand hater, I actually love my A*Men, Hanae Mori, etc. but I dunno, for a professional environment, gourmands seem to be the aromatic equivalent of wearing a loud patterned club shirt to the office.

Live and let live man, don't hate. I wear everything in my wardrobe to work from soapy to heavy floral

[Primrose]

Use Derby. Understated elegance that means business.

Try not to go for anything gourmand or too aquatic.

[Gerard_Butler]

I can see Gucci PH 2 working really well with job interviews and professional settings.

[indianwells]

Nothing. Zero. Zilch. I cannot see how wearing a fragrance can gain you an advantage in an interview scenario. I can see very real disadvantages however.

[LloydLlewellyn]

IMHO saying that a person shouldn't wear a gourmand to a job interview is just following a stereotype, namely the one that he's not a formal guy. People tend to associate woody scents with masculinity, but the truth is that gourmands are so extended already that this impression just doesn't fit reality anymore. Just my two cents.

[dollars&scents]

I wouldn't wear a fragrance to a job interview. Even something most would consider light and harmless might not seem that way to the person doing the interviewing. The job market is difficult / competitive enough as it is. Don't give a company another reason to not hire you.

Once you're in the position for a while, then you can't experiment with certain scents.

I tend to agree ... if you must, something very light ond inoffensive ...

[Merely]

I would tend to agree that gourmand aren't perfectly appropriate for work or for interviews, though doubtless some people can get away with it. Scent, too, is secondary to the person's other qualities - industriousness, intelligence, etc - which hopefully makes their fragrance somewhat irrelevant. Still, I see little wrong with semi-gourmands - gourmandish, but inedible, as some things are. Like Caron's Nuit de Noel extrait, say.

Regarding professional fragrances, I was amused to note recently, when in a shop that caters for the most part to the barristers and judges of my city (most of what they sell is legal regalia, wigs, etc), that they sell the Trumper line, keeping no other set of fragrances other in stock. Apparently they sell them to their intended clientèle often, and Trumper is a perennial favourite of barristers here. I asked from curiosity what were their best sellers, and apparently Portugal and Malborough are the most favoured, and after those two the evanescent non-scent of Limes.

[d4N13L]

I wore TdH to my last interview, needless to say I got the job

I wore Terre Parfum for my last interview too.
I rejected the job, as my actual job covered the offer.

[Merely]

As an afterthought to my earlier post, I think the most appropriate thing to wear to a job interview, if one is going to wear anything at all, is a fleeting eau de cologne, of good enough quality (no lingering white musks in the base) to not seem ostentatiously eau-ish. Guerlain's Cologne du Parfumeur would be a good choice, as given a few hours it will fade to a pleasant and unobjectionable skin-scent. The ne plus ultra choice, however, would be Chanel's Les Exclusifs eau de cologne.

[Duke Hunt]

First fragrances which come to mind for job interviews are:

Terre D'Hermes
Egoiste
Sycomore

[bonsai]

I do wear anything I feel like wearing at my workplace.

However, for a job interview I would either go scentless or put on a relatively cold, professional scent, most probably a cyphre. And needles to say I would apply it very lightly. I also don't think that a gourmand is an appropriate choice for a job interview.

[teemas]

Agreed that gourmand shouldnt be used for an interview. But its definitely ok when youre already working there. For interview, i can picture TdH for sure.

[gido]

if you want to come across as solid, wear something conservative and classic, like eau sauvage or guerlain vetiver (more discrete, especially in the top notes). and most importantly, don't wear too much of it. people should only smell it when they enter your personal space, if mature professionalism is your concern. a leather can be great too, but only in even smaller dosage.

if your job environment is formal i'd go for a chypre in any case. fougeres are very classic masculine too, but tend to speak in a more casual tone.

gourmand certainly aren't the best choice in many professional environments, unless you're in the horeca business. ;)

[MrAndySais]

By wearing "Play" he told you that he has no taste, integrity, charcacter, style, or whatsoever.

The assumption "stupid club kid" was spot on, I would have called security and thrown him out!

If he had worn a nice niche fragrance I would have hired him immediately!

[Duke Hunt]

By wearing "Play" he told you that he has no taste, integrity, charcacter, style, or whatsoever.

The assumption "stupid club kid" was spot on, I would have called security and thrown him out!

If he had worn a nice niche fragrance I would have hired him immediately!

LOL! Says the man who's number one fragrance is Joop! (Just kidding........)

[teemas]

By wearing "Play" he told you that he has no taste, integrity, charcacter, style, or whatsoever.

The assumption "stupid club kid" was spot on, I would have called security and thrown him out!

If he had worn a nice niche fragrance I would have hired him immediately!

Hahahahha!! But i guess it still depends. If he is younger than 25, there could be a reason why he is into Play. In the past before I knew about BN, i had only Chanel Allure Homme and Armani Code. He probably only has one hence the decision to use Play. I am just giving him a benefit of doubt

[Marais]

Give the kid a break, at least he was making an effort to smell nice. There aren't many folk who analyse their fragrance choices to the extent we do and I wouldn't knock points off 'cos he was wearing something you don't like (I might make an exception for Quorum, however ).

[wilz]

Some good suggestions above... +1 to TdH and Platinum Egoiste.
-1 to Pure Havane...or any sorts of gourmand! ..as mentioned, feels a bit playful and unprofessional

My personal favourite though, is Grey Vetiver. I think I've mentioned that before. It portrays a confident personality.
I lightly applied Grey Vetiver in my last interview and I got the job.
Never over apply for an interview!

[jclaxton78]

If you really want the job, don't wear anything to the interview. Too much of a risk. Once you get the job, Boss Number One is the definition of "professional" smelling without resorting to the authoritative vibes of fragrances like Obsession and Aramis.

[SmelltheGlove]

I wouldn't (and haven't) wear anything to a job interview.

Too many people claim hypersensitivity to scents of all kinds these days.

Plus the interviewer might not like what you're wearing, no matter how inoffensive you may think it is

[Dorje123]

I agree with all the posters that say wearing no frag is better for an interview.

[JustinL611]

Never wear fragrance to an interview. You don't know how it will react with the interviewer, they could be allergic to the ingredients, or it may remind them of something not pleasant. If you do wear something, wear it after you've gotten hired.

[vbs]

I agree, don't take anything potentially offensive to a job interview. Fragrance, attitude, clothes, hair, food scents, anything. Avoid eating anything with onions or broccoli or beans for 24h before the appointment. Don't wear any clothes with primary colors (what if they're colorblind?) or garish patterns. In fact, don't wear any clothing at all... they might find your fashion choices to be unprofessional. Shave yourself from head to toe, and exfoliate until your skin is almost off (what if they're allergic to dust, dust indoors is mostly composed of dead skin cells!). Shower with soap, then shower again to wash off any fragrance that was in the soap, skin scrub, or shaving cream you used.

You'll show up naked, hairless, and bleeding... but you won't have any perfumes or allergens or fashion choices to leave a bad impression! Sure to get the job for being so inoffensive!

Really, though... when you go to a job interview, be yourself. Just make sure you present your best self. I'd say that includes a light application of a fragrance, if fragrance is part of your style. Think "smell like I am clean and professional" not "smell like I am amber and leather and oud and musk". They shouldn't have to sit and suffer your perfume when they're sitting across a desk from you, but when you lean in for that handshake, they should have a chance to catch a faint whiff. If someone crosses you off their list for that, you probably don't want to work there anyway.

[PWJ]

Use Derby. Understated elegance that means business.

Try not to go for anything gourmand or too aquatic.

What do you mean by "too aquatic"?

[PWJ]

Double post.

[PWJ]

To say that you shouldn't wear any fragrance seems a bit extreme. I concur with vbs, just be yourself and wear what you like, but apply lightly (1-2 sprays) and avoid heavy, sweet, gourmand type fragrances. Stick with fresh and clean.

I work in a business environment - you rarely smell people - only close up, usually in the morning. Men predominantly wear the dreaded sport fragrances - citrus, aquatic, soapy.

[PWJ]

The only time I wouldn't wear a fragrance is at a funeral. I always get a bit uneasy when people here discuss the fragrance they had at some funeral..

[M.David]

If I was the candidate I would wear one of the following fragrance....

Chanel Platinum Egoiste

Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentree or the EDT

Guerlain Vetiver

+ 1

[Buysblind]

Just don't.

[fragranceman88]

All of the masculine Chanel citrusy scents

[heperd]

I dont think anyone really care unless it is way way too much and choking out the interview. Most people see frags as part of getting dressed up nice and dont really think much about it for 2 seconds after they spray it on.

The interviewer will think the same thing unless they are a psychopath and start saying "Oh no way we are hiring the guy wearing the playful gourmand, I mean if was a lighter Creed or one of the classic Guerlains then he would have a chance but......."

[Indaco]

For conferences (or interviews) I'd go with something pleasant but not too unconventional. I've used Sycomore, TdH, Villoresi Uomo and the two Mark Birley scents before.

On any random day in the office, I can wear what I want.

[ohhmygod]

1 x Habit Rouge EDP.

[colognejunkie2000]

I wore Dior Homme to my most recent interview.

[CHSeifert]

I wore TdH to my last interview, needless to say I got the job

And of course ONLY because the interviewer thought you had good taste since you wore TDH

[Hasupk@gmail.com]

When it comes to interviews your best either

1) wearing nothing
2) wearing a STRICTLY clean scent

when I say clean I mean something like Puro Lino

[pluran]

If I'm doing the interviewing: On a guy, preferably none. On a girl, sparingly.