Is Political Correctness Killing Perfume?
Cosmopolitan UK|November 2018

Can a fragrance be racist, misogynistic or ageist? An angry mob of consumers believes it can.IngeborgvanLotringeninvestigates how the perfume industry became silenced andscentsored and how its affecting the way we all smell.

Ingeborg Van Lotringen
Is Political Correctness Killing Perfume?
There’s a strange smell in the air. It’s innocent, cloying and pink, redolent of pre-teen girls. I smell it everywhere; in pubs and out at champagne receptions, in the supermarket, the office lift and in dimly lit bars made for seduction. I smell it on young, flirty women out at play but also on older, serious women mountaineering their way to the top of the career ladder. It is ubiquitous. There is no escape. Sniff the air and you, too, may catch the sweet, throat-catching scent drifting its way towards you. It is supposed to be uplifting, at least that’s what the marketing jargon would have you believe, but to me? It’s depressing. Because this, dear readers, is the smell of rot, eating away at one of the world’s great institutions: the perfume industry. SCENTS OF THE TIMES

So who exactly is hell-bent on smothering one of the most innovative, intriguing and, at times, controversial industries in the beauty world? To understand that you need to start at the beginning. Perfume has been around for as long as man has been wearing a loincloth and Cleopatra was dousing herself in rosemary-and-myrrh-infused ass’s milk. While its original use was basically to mask the rank smells of a sewer-less world, perfume later became something else: a luxury, a sensory embodiment of the wearer and, perhaps most crucially of all, a cultural gauge of its time.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 2018 من Cosmopolitan UK.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 2018 من Cosmopolitan UK.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من COSMOPOLITAN UK مشاهدة الكل
‘Is Three Relationships Too Many?'
Cosmopolitan UK

‘Is Three Relationships Too Many?'

With his girlfriend out of town, Jack’s* wife suggests he finds a third partner

time-read
3 mins  |
January 2019
Brave New Beauty
Cosmopolitan UK

Brave New Beauty

Is tech about to revolutionise your skincare regime and transport you into a whole new universe of beautification? Joanna Taylor isn’t always convinced…

time-read
6 mins  |
January 2019
How The Gig Economy Is Killing Millennials…
Cosmopolitan UK

How The Gig Economy Is Killing Millennials…

I put in 18-hour days. I work in the same room I sleep in. I never know when or if I’ll be paid. I go days without speaking to anyone.

time-read
10+ mins  |
April 2019
Could Your #AvoOnToast Get You Headhunted?
Cosmopolitan UK

Could Your #AvoOnToast Get You Headhunted?

Quite possibly. But you’ll have to catch the eye of a new breed of talent scout first. Here’s how…

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2019
The Robot Wars
Cosmopolitan UK

The Robot Wars

For decades, mankind has feared the day technology becomes cleverer than us. Now it’s here, and we were too busy trying to sync our Sonos to notice. Welcome to The Big Techover...

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2019
Hot-Air Health Myths... Exploded
Cosmopolitan UK

Hot-Air Health Myths... Exploded

Think you’re up to date with the basic rules of staying in shape? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you probably aren’t…

time-read
5 mins  |
March 2019
The Darkside Of BodyBuilding
Cosmopolitan UK

The Darkside Of BodyBuilding

Amateur fitness competitions have gone mainstream – but do they provide a “healthy” cover for those hiding deadly eating disorders? Former competitor Rebecca Barnes, 22, certainly thinks so.

time-read
5 mins  |
May 2019
The Stacy Dooley Effect
Cosmopolitan UK

The Stacy Dooley Effect

From the frontline to the dancefloor, Stacey Dooley defied all the odds to become TV’s golden girl. But it could have worked out very differently

time-read
8 mins  |
May 2019
Kings Of The Night
Cosmopolitan UK

Kings Of The Night

Sex, champagne and parties on tap… what could possibly go wrong? BOBBY PALMER spends the night with the most successful club promoter in London

time-read
9 mins  |
May 2019
Is Beauty A Tickıng Timebomb?
Cosmopolitan UK

Is Beauty A Tickıng Timebomb?

With their legions of fans, beauty-brand founders have exploded onto the scene – sometimes becoming celebrities in their own right. But what happens when their behaviour eclipses their products? Laura Capon investigates

time-read
10 mins  |
May 2019