Fragrance Trends 2024: Sweet Is Out and Genderless Scents Are In

Elizabeth Denton
·4 min read

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I’ve always wanted to be that cool girl who wears men’s cologne instead of its floral “women’s” counterpart. But so many scents were just too heavy for me, too smoky and woody. Gucci’s new Guilty Elixir de Parfum Pour Homme changed all that. The Italian luxury house recently rolled out two new fragrances — or elixirs — made “Pour Homme” and “Pour Femme” but I can easily see any gender wearing both. That idea of “fragrance for all” will continue into 2024.

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But first, let’s go back to the Y2K era. The original Gucci Guilty came out in 2010 and quickly became a cult classic. Women loved theirs (even Lindsey Lohan expressed her love at the time) but the men’s fragrance was especially ground-breaking because it had florals — something generally only reserved for typically feminine scents. “The original was very innovative because I wanted to create a floral for men,” senior perfumer Jacques Huclier told StyleCaster. “So I work from orange flower, orange blossom…I work with beautiful Italian lemon with pink pepper with beautiful lavender from France and very vibrant wood as a patchouli. Patchouli for me it’s like a heart beating. It gives a lot of vibration, life, to the fragrance.”

The new “elixirs” are more intense, bolder, and more concentrated. But they still have a nod to the cult scents of the 2010s. “The idea was to keep the core DNA of Gucci Guilty, but reinterpret the same idea in another direction,” said renowned perfumer Quentin Bisch. “And so orange flower was key, actually as well. I kept these elements and I complemented with leathery facets and the idea was to become an elixir so to become even bolder, more intense, and playing on higher concentration.”

Image: Gucci.
Image: Gucci.

Men’s Guilty Elixir de Parfum Spray, 2 oz.

$183

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I’m not an expert when it comes to fragrance. That’s why I was stoked to speak to the best of the best perfumers. I understand now why I’m so drawn to Gucci’s Guilty Elixir de Parfum Pour Homme. It’s that floral scent that isn’t too overwhelming (with patchouli for sex appeal) and feels naturally unisex without trying so hard. In fact, the brand isn’t pushing the scents as unisex — there is a For Her and For Him — but even the ad campaign starring Elliot Page, A$AP Rocky, and Julia Garner, is all about not submitting to gender rules. It’s the future of fragrance.

But that doesn’t mean Gucci Gulity Elixir de Parfum Pour Femme is overly feminine. It has a more feminine feel, for sure, but still within that same space where truly anyone could wear it. “The line is all about flower and sensuality,” said Natalie Gracia-Cetto, the French perfumer who developed the new Pour Femme. “In the beginning it was more lilac flower with musky notes…now with the elixir it’s more Wisteria combined with vanilla absolute and tonka bean.” Gracia-Cetto calls the new scent “mysterious and spicy,” and “an evolution towards intensity.”

“We all have a masculine part and a feminine part. And then when you accept that, then you’re open to a new spirit,” she adds.

gucci guilty
Image: Gucci.

GUCCI Guilty Elixir de Parfum Pour Femme, 2 oz.

$175

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That’s why all folks of all genders are choosing what fragrance speaks to them, regardless of what the packaging says. In Europe, the perfumers see other fragrance trends blooming, sure to make their way to the U.S. Gracia-Cetto notes a shift from the overly sweet gourmand scents. “When you combine gourmand notes with woods then you can have very new experiences,” she said of the new iterations.

“A new trend is probably to have some fragrances genderless,” Huclier added. “A man can wear a women’s fragrance and women can wear men’s fragrance. It’s less separated than before. Before, the global woman’s fragrances were very floral.” He cited the new Gucci Guilty scents as an example. They’re different enough (which is why there are two) without being the overly feminine or masculine fragrances our parents wore.

2024 is off to a good start.

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