By Maia Oakley
Balmain Beauty/ Richard Pierce
Iconic Parisian fashion house Balmain has made its official return to the luxury fragrance market with the launch of Les Éternals de Balmain, a carefully crafted collection of eight unique scents. This new venture, curated by creative director Olivier Rousteing and licensed by Estée Lauder, epitomises the label’s blend of heritage and contemporary vision. It marks a significant milestone as Balmain returns to the world of beauty.
Rousteing, who has led Balmain since 2011, has long envisioned a return to fragrance, viewing it as the final facet of the brand yet to be explored. His interest in perfume is rooted in childhood memories of classic scents worn by the women in his family, such as Chanel No. 5 and Guerlain’s Shalimar, making this a deeply nostalgic and inspired project for Rousteing. This passion, coupled with his desire to honour Balmain’s history, has culminated in a collection that bridges the past and present.
The Les Éternals de Balmain collection offers a harmonious blend of old and new, divided into four distinct olfactive families - musk, amber, floral, and woody. Each scent captures a unique sense of identity and self-expression. Half of the collection’s fragrances are reimagined classics - Ivoire, Ébène, Vent Vert, and Carbone have been updated for a modern, inclusive era. The new creations - Bronze, Rouge, Sel d’Ambre and Bleu Infini - are designed to evoke specific emotions and memories.
Balmain Beauty/ Richard Pierce
Rousteing approached the complex art of perfumery with humility, attending a top fragrance school in Paris to develop from scratch his skills in olfactory design. Determined to preserve Mr. Pierre Balmain’s legacy, he meticulously composed a timeless and diverse collection, describing the perfumes as “eight different personalities,” each with “a strong story.” Rousteing’s homage to the house’s DNA extends beyond the fragrances themselves to the bottle design, which incorporates elements from Balmain’s first-ever perfume bottle from 1946. The bottles feature an elongated shape and striped pattern, adorned with the brand’s signature black and gold colour palette. Crafted to be both refillable and recyclable, these bottles reflect Balmain’s heritage while embracing sustainability.
Balmain taps into the evolving luxury perfume market, where consumers increasingly seek multiple fragrances to pair with unique experiences. The collection responds to this demand with high quality scents that hold personal significance and distinction. Priced at $300 for a 50ml bottle, the Les Éternals de Balmain collection is now available online and at select Balmain boutiques and luxury retailers, with wider distribution planned for the coming year.
Rousteing views this journey as more than just a new chapter for Balmain: “It’s so important - the communication between fashion and beauty - because the future is going to be beauty.” He embraces this new era, relishing the escapism and self-discovery that comes with creating fragrances. With Les Éternals de Balmain, Rousteing has brought his long-held vision to life and charted a new course for Balmain’s future in luxury beauty.
Comments