I was thrilled to be able to check out the new Annick Goutal Store which just opened on June 10th. It’s the natural fragrance company’s second NYC store and so many people come in to try the scents at the fabulous fragrance counter in the center of the store that it looks like a parade of scent addicts!
There are dozens of scents to choose from although the scent Annick Goutal is probably most famous for is Petite Cherie. There is a not-so-secret scent “cult” of customers who mix two or three scents together, and who could blame them?
It’s the lovely Camille Goutal who is currently heading the new scent search team, and she travels around the world to find new and unusual herbs, flowers and woods to make into scents. I am not allowed to discuss the new line coming out in October but was able to test them at the press event I went to. Let’s just say that there will be a lot of vanilla and oud in the NYC air once these fragrances are released. There are also a couple of skincare items that smell divinely rosy, but I cannot say anymore. I have the feeling that this legendary company might be growing in the area of skincare in the coming years. The most obvious feature about the new boutique on the northeast corner of 64th and Madison is not only the beautiful lines of gold-capped bottles on the shelves and on the counter or the beautiful white exposed brick walls that gives off a homey feeling, but that the love of fragrance by the staff and customers. The staff is knowledgeable and easygoing, and you can walk in off the street and sample the fragrances to your heart’s content. Annick Goutal might be considered high end fragrances since a 2.4 ounce bottle costs about $125 and each scent is made in a limited edition, but there is no attitude whatsoever.
The staff also knows the interesting stories behind how many of the fragrances were developed, so be sure to ask a lot of snoopy questions. It would phase them!
For more info, go to www.annickgoutal.com. This legendary fragrances house also has their products sold in Neiman-Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman.
