Genie in a bottle

IF SUCCESS had a scent it would be Chanel No 5.

The legendary French perfume, which celebrates its 90th birthday next month, remains an olfactory symbol of ‘the good life’ with a bottle reportedly selling every 30 seconds. In retail terms, that translates as $100 million a year, rendering it the top-selling fragrance of all time. Whether its creator, designer Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel envisaged such iconic status for her eponymous brand is a mystery, much like the heady top notes which have come to define No 5. That being said, its unilateral sway over generations of women is unique. So just what is it that makes a petite square flacon so utterly irresistible?

Call it a mood, numerology or just good timing but Coco Chanel’s No 5 debut was a first in a myriad of ways. Much like her boyish aesthetic liberated in designs such as the bouclé cardigan and little black dress, Chanel felt it was time to capture the free spirit of the 1920s in a bottle. At a time when fragrance adhered to the polarities of ‘respectable’ garden flowers and provocative ‘demi-monde’ musk, Mademoiselle Coco’s endeavour to reconcile such opposites resulted in one truly evocative signature scent with the help of master perfumer Ernest Beaux.

The deliberately elusive and unique nature of the scent can be attributed to the pioneering use of aldehydes, or chemical scent notes, a breakthrough which according to Irish Examiner beauty editor Kirstie McDermott, “rewrote the scent menu”. She adds: “It’s hard to appreciate how earth-shattering No 5 is now but its composition was revolutionary.”

In fact, this scientific precision parlayed itself into the marketing of the scent — both its name and shape. No 5 had arcane associations for the young Coco who spent her formative years in a Cistercian convent at Aubazine. The Catholic order, which placed a curious premium on numerology, held the number five to have mystic meaning; not to mention the Cistus five-petal rose after which the order was named. Likewise, the young designer continued to venerate this number by showing her dress collections on the fifth day of the fifth month each year — a ritual which she kept when presented in 1920 with small glass vials of scent numbered 1-5 and 20-24, for her assessment. She chose the fifth vial and the tradition remained.

Much like her unstudied, fuss-free designs, Chanel sought to remedy the outré belle époque aesthetic inherent in the crystal perfume bottles of the time. Clinical and masculine (rumoured to have been modelled on her lover’s whiskey decanter) the No 5 bottle became a homage to minimalism in its sparse silhouette and typography. It wasn’t until 1924, however, when the design was squared off to its current shape, one which has lent itself to the pop culture iconography of Andy Warhol’s silk screens and an installation in the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

Aside from its potent visual and redolent qualities, its real sway lies in its democratic appeal. Much like the LBD which catered to socialites and working class alike, the accessible price points of its purse-size containers resonated with women across all social strata who aspired to ‘la belle vie’.

Co-director of the PR Boutique Cathy Cowan explains. “I think the success of the fragrance has been down to an extremely clever and evolving branding campaign. From the very beginning, Chanel No 5 was positioned as an aspirational luxury product for women, which has since become a true symbol of femininity and status.”

It was initially word-of-mouth that promoted the modern mix of ylang ylang, neroli, May rose grasse jasmine, sandalwood and vanilla with the first solo advertisement of No 5 appearing in the New York Times 14 years later in 1934. Chanel’s clever decision to market a pocket-size bottle in 1934 to military post exchanges, meant the scent became symbolic of romance from one soldier to his sweetheart — a savvy decision which resulted in not having to advertise in the tighter economic times of the 40s.

This quixotic lure carried over into the 70s, when the brand pulled out of the mainstream and remarketed itself with a series of television ads that would embody the Sphinx-like spirit of its modern muse.

From French actress Catherine Deneuve’s ‘Share the Fantasy’ spot (1979) directed by Ridley Scott; to Audrey Tatou’s star-crossed love on the Orient Express (2009); not to mention Nicole Kidman escaping the paparazzi with her beau clad in Chanel couture and $42m worth of jewels; such advertisements represented the female fantasy — a world apart from the male gaze. It’s impact? Immense.

“Chanel No 5 has always been more about the woman,” says Cowan. “The brand has been clever in promoting its female fans who embody this ethos with muses such as Audrey Tautou, Nicole Kidman and Vanessa Paradis, all of whom are admired for their mystique; not forgetting Marilyn Monroe who once said the only thing she wore to bed was Chanel No 5.”

Indeed, such evocative imagery has accrued generations of adherents, all of whom subscribe to its enigmatic female-centricity. With an estimated 600 new fragrances introduced onto the market yearly, this is no mean feat. In keeping with its trend-setting yet timeless appeal, Chanel No 5 has not missed a beat with lighter more adherent siblings such as Eau Premier aimed at the youth market and cousins Coco, Coco Mademoiselle, Allure, Chance and No 19 increasing its attendant reach.

Cultural artefact, aspirational lodestone and beauty must-have, Chanel No 5 has become, without doubt, the uncrowned eighth wonder of the (fashion)) world. The bottle may say 90 but its heart says ‘la belle fille’. The secret is in the scent.