Its first Philippine boutique might have set the world record for opening-day sales, running out of some popular colognes in the process. But worry not—Jo Malone in Greenbelt is ready and well stocked for the holiday demand, said brand manager Camille Flores-Oloan.
The famed London perfumer, which is a popular gifting brand, rolls out its limited-edition Christmas collections in especially designed packaging: you won’t be seeing the signature black grosgrain ribbon this season, but instead find cream-colored boxes neatly tied with green velvet ribbons, complementing the print inside the boxes.
One of the limited sets, the Christmas Cracker, has a small bottle of Blackberry & Bay Cologne, a tub of Peony & Blush Suede Body Crème, and a little bottle of Lime Basil & Mandarin Hand Wash. At P2,800, it’s one of the most affordable of the gift boxes.
There’s also the Christmas Ornament—English Pear & Freesia Cologne (9 ml) with Nectarine Blossom Honey Body Crème (15 ml)—neatly wrapped in a little box designed to hang on a tree (P2,000).
If you’ve always wanted to take home your favorite scents, but found the full-size bottles too much of a splurge, now may be your chance to gift yourself a sampling of five of the brand’s most popular colognes: the Cologne Collection (P6,280), with a 9-ml bottle each of Lime Basil & Mandarin, Pomegranate Noir, English Pear & Freesia, Peony & Blush Suede and Wood Sage & Sea Salt Cologne.
The collection is also your perfect opportunity to experiment with Jo Malone’s concept of “Fragrance Combining.” Each is the ideal size to slip into your makeup kit, or for traveling.
Wood Sage & Sea Salt and Pomegranate Noir each has a limited gifting set, containing a 30-ml cologne, 100-ml body and hand wash, as well as a 50-ml body crème (both P6,280). The Bath and Body Collection (P4,100) has a 50-ml Orange Blossom Body Crème, 50-g Blackberry & Bay Bath Soap and 100-ml Lime Basil & Mandarin Shower Oil.
There are also holiday home scents in the form of candles and room sprays. There’s the Roasted Chestnut Deluxe Candle (P10,700/600 g) and Pine & Eucalyptus (P3,570/200 g; P25,000/2.5 kg). A Scented Travel Candle Collection has 60 g each of Blackberry & Bay, Roasted Chestnut and Pine & Eucalyptus (P5,350).
‘Fragrance stylist’
When you’d rather get a gift right and don’t want to risk buying someone a wrong scent, schedule them—and yourself—for a complimentary session with a “fragrance stylist” at the Greenbelt 5 boutique.
Store manager Kryz Bacunawa and her team can guide you in your choice, based on your preferences and personality. They can also teach you about the art of fragrance combining or layering. It takes about 15-20 minutes.
“That thing that you like when you first spray on a cologne? That’s just the top note, and may last only about 15 minutes,” Bacunawa explains. “If you really want to know what it smells like in the long run, wait for about an hour when it settles. We advise those who come here to spray on what they like, go around the mall and come back. By then they’ll know if the fragrance suits them and if they really like it.”
It’s not unusual to meet customers who end up falling in love with certain fragrances or fragrance combinations they thought they wouldn’t even like, she says. But consultation always starts with what the client is comfortable with.
Since Jo Malone colognes are unisex, even the floral ones tend to appeal to their male customers.
Jo Malone’s Manila store set a new record in October when it nearly doubled South Korea’s opening-day sales at P2.2 million. The high demand had shoppers on panic mode as some of the bestsellers—Blackberry & Bay, and Nectarine Blossom & Honey, two well-loved fruity scents—sold out on the first day. Flores-Oloan said they had anticipated an even greater demand for the gift-giving season, so they had prepared.
Jo Malone is an Estée Lauder brand. The boutique in Greenbelt is in partnership with Suyen Corp. (Bench Group).