LONGEVITY ≠ QUALITY: BEHIND THE SCENES OF A PERFUME THAT “LASTS”

Is a fragrance that lasts twelve hours necessarily better than one that evolves more quickly?

No.

Longevity has become one of the main criteria used to judge contemporary perfumery. How many hours does it last? How strong is the projection? Can you still smell it the next day?

But the persistence of a fragrance depends on many factors: the volatility of the molecules used, the architecture of the formula, its concentration, the materials chosen and the techniques used to slow down or control their evaporation.

Lasting a long time is a performance. It is not a measure of quality.

IN SHORT

A very long-lasting fragrance is not necessarily richer, more expensive or more sophisticated.

Some aromatic materials are naturally extremely persistent. Some formulation technologies can also slow evaporation or modify the way molecules are released over time.

Conversely, some beautiful facets can be fleeting.

For us, the question is therefore not simply: “How long does it last?”

The real question is: what does it tell you during that time?

WHAT MAKES A FRAGRANCE LAST A LONG TIME?

A fragrance is a system in motion.

Not all the molecules within it evaporate at the same speed.

Some appear almost immediately and then disappear quickly.

Others are heavier, less volatile and remain on the skin for much longer.

The structure of a formula therefore has a major influence on its longevity.

A fragrance built around very persistent woody, musky or amber materials can naturally last a long time.

That does not mean it is better.

It simply means that its architecture favours persistence.

WHAT DO FIXATIVES DO IN A FRAGRANCE?

Perfumery has always used materials and technologies that allow perfumers to work on the volatility and longevity of a composition.

The term “fixative” covers very different realities.

Some aromatic materials naturally play a fixative role themselves.

Other systems can modify evaporation speed or the release of the most volatile components.

A study published in 2026 in Flavour and Fragrance Journal demonstrated this very clearly: in an experimental formula, adding 5% of a specific fixative system increased the retention of top notes by 94.46% and delayed the release of heart notes by 59.97%. Read the study.

This result should obviously not be generalised to all fixatives.

But it demonstrates one important thing:

changing the longevity of a fragrance also changes the way it evolves.

AMBROXAN, ISO E SUPER: GENUINE AROMATIC MATERIALS

There is one common misconception worth clearing up.

Ambroxan and Iso E Super are not simply almost odourless technical additives designed to “make a fragrance last”.

They are genuine aromatic materials.

Ambrox has a highly persistent amber, woody and musky profile. dsm-firmenich states that higher dosages can notably bring greater performance and substantivity to a formula. Source: dsm-firmenich.

Iso E Super has a woody, amber and velvety odour. IFF notably highlights its high substantivity and its ability to bring volume and subtle strength to compositions. Source: IFF.

These materials are extraordinary when they serve a creative intention.

The problem begins when performance itself becomes the project.

GOURMAND FRAGRANCES AND THE ILLUSION OF POWER

Take Ethyl Maltol.

This material has a very recognisable caramel, confectionery and candy-floss profile.

It is extremely effective at creating gourmand accords that are immediately recognisable.

Used with restraint and skill, it can be beautiful.

But when a formula relies heavily on materials that are highly recognisable, very persistent and highly diffusive, it can also become more linear.

The fragrance then gives you a great deal immediately.

A lot of sweetness.

A lot of presence.

A lot of sillage.

And sometimes less surprise.

“SODA” FRAGRANCES

That is what we sometimes call particularly demonstrative fragrances among ourselves: “soda” fragrances.

The term is not an insult.

A soda can be delicious.

It is immediate, sweet, effective and recognisable from the very first sip.

But it does not have the same ambition as a wine that evolves in the glass.

Some fragrances work in much the same way.

They give you a great deal from the very first spray.

They project.

They persist.

They seduce immediately.

Everyone is free to enjoy that.

But this power should not be confused with the richness of a composition.

And above all, a high price does not guarantee greater nuance.

THE OPPOSITE EXAMPLE: IRIS IN 1979 NEW WAVE

Now take a very different material.

Iris.

Its production process is among the longest in the perfumer’s palette. The rhizomes are cultivated for several years, then dried and aged for several more, during which time the irones responsible for its olfactory character develop.

But what interests us most about iris is not its price.

It is its facets.

Powdery.

Earthy.

Woody.

Vegetal.

Sometimes almost metallic.

In 1979 New Wave, Dominique Ropion contrasts a muted, earthy iris concrete with metallic inflections against the freshness of two mints, before sandalwood gradually takes over. Discover 1979 New Wave.

The fragrance evolves.

It does not reveal everything immediately.

And that is exactly what we are looking for.

LASTING LONGER DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN SAYING MORE

A very linear fragrance can last twelve hours.

A sublime facet may exist for only a few minutes.

Why should the first automatically be considered superior to the second?

Perfumery is an art of time.

A note appears.

Another replaces it.

A contrast emerges.

A material disappears.

A new facet appears.

If this evolution is slowed down enough, greater persistence can be achieved.

But the breathing of the formula can also change.

Sometimes that is desirable.

Sometimes it is not.

LIKE OPENING A BOTTLE OF WINE

Smelling a great fragrance is closer to opening a great wine than drinking a soda.

The first nose reveals something.

Air reveals something else.

Time transforms the whole experience again.

What seemed dominant a few minutes earlier recedes.

A new facet appears.

Then another.

A soda, by contrast, tells you immediately what it is.

It can be excellent.

But the experience is different.

IS A FRAGRANCE THAT LASTS TWELVE HOURS BETTER?

No.

Just as a powerful wine is not automatically better than a subtle one.

Longevity is one quality among many.

Projection is another.

But so is transparency.

Contrast.

Movement.

Surprise.

Evolution.

And sometimes even fleetingness.

At Les Bains Guerbois, we are therefore not trying to create the fragrance that wins the longevity competition.

We are looking for the one whose evolution is the most beautiful.

Because a fragrance is not only meant to remain on the skin.

It should also live on it.