I am not interested in items that I need to plead in advance or camp overnight to be able to purchase, and the fast-selling limited edition carousel is one of the things that turned me away from MAC as a brand. I prefer to be able to consider a purchase rather than rushing into it because if I don't do so the item will be gone. I also think this fuels the market for reselling cosmetics for daft prices on Ebay.
The launch of the new Jo Loves range from Jo Malone (the lady, not the brand) has thrown up a new variation of this restrict-availability-to-increase-desire phenomenon - there are four fragrances in the line, and a new one is launching each day this week from Monday to Thursday. Today in Selfridges London you can sniff all four fragrances, but you can only buy Pomelo. Tomorrow you would also be able to buy Green Orange & Coriander, Orange Tulle on Wednesday, and all four including Gardenia on Thursday. This seems very odd to me, and I just don't get what Selfridges or Jo Loves are trying to do with it; to me it's just a bit annoying to be able to smell a fragrance but not buy it for three days (unless you fall for Pomelo, in which case you're fine). Here are my thoughts on the fragrances from a quick spritz on some tester strips:
Pomelo - fizzy citrus, like a sweeter grapefruit
Orange Tulle - aquatic orange citrus/floral
Green Orange & Coriander - green herbal scent, some background sweetness to it
Gardenia - creamy white floral
If the descriptions sound quite straightforward, it's a reflection of my impression of the fragrances. They were all pretty but none really captured my interest; if I was going to recommend a soliflore based range at the moment it'd be Les Bohemes by Opus Oils. That being said, I liked the Gardenia the best and I think it'll be a good seller from the line after The Duchess of
What do you think of the limited edition thing? Does it increase your desire, or annoy you?
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The whole ltd. ed. thing WRECKS my head. Not least because some people are now buying items they know will sell out specifically to resell on eBay for a profit.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I'm supposed to think that's entrepreneurial? :/
I totally agree! It's bloody annoying when you have to either fight or take leave just to get a LE item which is why I don't bother anymore. Interesting and good post, one with which I agree whole-heartedly! X
ReplyDeleteThe limited edition thing drives me crazy. I tried to get one of the Xmas Suqqu sets last year but they were already sold out. Although nothing is as annoying as seeing beautiful limited edition Le Metier kaleidoscopes available in the US for very short time periods (Smoldering Embankment etc, I'll never forgive them for leaving our shores! I suppose as a selling technique it must work though as it does encourage me to spend without thinking. Clothes stores seem to be doing this even more now as well.
ReplyDeleteSaying that though, the Jo Loves thing just sounds odd. Especially when not everyone can pop into Selfridges on a daily basis.
Hi Lynnie - that's the most annoying aspect of it to me - and I blame Mac and Chanel for it. 'Rare' MAC items can go for 5 times the retail value. Madness.
ReplyDeleteHi Kenneth - thank you. The reality is there is always another nice eyeshadow that you don't have to fight to buy ;)
Hi LL - yes, imagine if you'd made a specific trip to London before Thursday to try/buy the Jo Loves stuff? Suqqu never used to sell out so quickly - I wonder if they're trying to spread the same amount of stock over the three counters?
I am craving the Pomelo!
ReplyDeleteAgree about the LE!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the descriptors of Jo Loves, I only wish they had 50 ml and 30 ml bottles, too.
I could not agree more!
ReplyDeleteAnd I refuse to have to strategise (as in calling to reserve an item before I've had a chance to have a proper look and decide whether or not I want to spend my money) or lose sleep over LE collections.
There is so much good makeup out there that I can afford to choose whom I give my custom to.
It is disheartening though when you see very respectable brands such as Suqqu give in to these practices. It has put me off buying from them and I think that instead of getting their Framefix fndt I'd been considering, I'll go with Ellis Faas instead -comparable price but much better attitude.
Brands need to get over themselves: it's only nakeup not organ donation for heavens' sake!
Nina x
"carousel" is a brilliant way to put it
ReplyDeleteI tend to stay away from limited editions whenever possible these days. I think this is reflected in my like of brands that don't really do LE. Back in my obsessed MAC days I found I would just end up with too many items I didn't like in the clamour to get them before they were sold out. I admitted the other day that the Holiday collections aren't my thing so I'm getting off the carousel until Spring ;).
ReplyDeleteI'm torn. While I share your annoyance at having to essentially buy blind / half-sniffed and have also washed my hands of the MAC limited-edition frenzy (and the last Jo Malone tea collection), I also bagged both the Suqqu sets this year (ordered in advance, asked my dad to pick them up for me on the day of release).
ReplyDeleteThen again, I remember pre-ordering Suqqu sets and limited edition quads two years ago as well so it doesn't surprise me exactly. Having just returned from Japan, where there were testers and preorder forms for all the (usually highly sought-after and sold-out-within-a-day-or-two-of-release) holiday sets from various brands, I do think differences in consumer culture also play a role. In the last few years, beauty has become much more mainstream in the UK/US I think, and more competition for the shiny and exclusive comes part and parcel.
I don't think it's fair to view small product runs as inevitably a cynical hype-creating ploy / ebay diversion. Suqqu (for example) is a very niche brand with very limited distribution. Likewise, I'm personally happy to wait months for the Fyrinnae to be up and functioning while I'm online because the products are worth it to me.
We can always opt out and vote with our pocketbooks.
I'm a big Jo Malone fan but it is weird to release one perfume per day. There are gimmicks that work but this one is just annoying and I reckon they would sell more perfumes if they all launched on the same day.
ReplyDeleteHello Kate - it's an interesting point, that maybe the willingness to reserve or not is based on cultural changes. I think that blogs and other online information does help to drive the pre-release excitement, and I've been as much a part of that as anyone else.
ReplyDeleteI have been buying Suqqu for about 4 years now though, and a couple of years ago it wasn't so hard to get hold of the limited edition kits - I had no problem getting hold of the Holiday 2008 kit.
I do wonder if Suqqu is now spreading itself thinner with the three counters and online availability - which is good for those outside of London, I suppose.
Thank you for the thoughtful comment, and I'll look forward to reading your thoughts on the kits :)
I think that I must be a very shallow person because I love LE and the excitement of it all, the fizz of anticipation, the delight when I get something that I have wanted. But I can take it or leave it - ie no good worrying over Suqqu in previous years as it wasn't available to me within a 10 mile radius and now, well they all look a bit too cool for school at the makeup counter. No I like to hear about the latest squeeze, do my bit of research and get into it when all the fuss has died down a bit - I still haven't read Captain Corelli's Mandolin or flown on a plane - but I did dash around all of 2 branches of Boots to get to a Nanoblur. Sorry essay as per. x
ReplyDeleteI refuse to buy into the whole LE craze. I want to make a thoughtful, considered purchase, not end up with a bunch of makeup I never use because I felt forced to get it before it was gone. Also, what if I love it? I won't be able to buy it again, so what's the point. Sales. Sales and mass hysteria are the point.
ReplyDeleteI'm quite particular about my LE purchases. When something new comes out and I've seen the previews and think I will find something I like, I do go check it out. However, if it's sold out by the time I make it to the counter, I figure it's not meant to be. I don't have them hold items for me. As a matter of fact, I don't even get SA's to call around to try to locate items for me. As has been stated before, there are plenty of other beautiful things out there to buy. :)
ReplyDeleteAh... when I read this post the first time I didn't bother to comment since my thoughts were already put across by the other ladies, but after seeing one of those sets already on ebay I got so infuriated!!!
ReplyDeleteI've been buying SUQQU since they debuted in Selfriges and I never had any problems getting a Xmas LE coffret if I went to the counter in the first 2-3 weeks after release but this time my heart sank when I saw your post, I didn't even know they were already released (they usually call me, not this year) and they're sold out already?!?!
I'm happy SUQQU is getting the recognition it deserves and to be honest, they always had a large chunk of their collections being LE, but part of me feels that if now I have to commit to buy (and beg to be able to) without even seeing it then I can't really be bothered... That's what drove me away from MAC. Oh and that Jo Malone thing is just idiotic, why wouldn't you sell to an interested customer and force them to go there the next day?? does not compute.
PS the good thing with the SUQQU Xmas sets is that they always release similar combinations of golden or rosy taupes so I'm al right with previous years sets - sour grapes and all that ;-)