Brainless

 Ever since the first small brand owners and self-taught perfumers (successfully) arise, many felt entitled to jump in and dedicate themselves to this business or the perfume creation. Well, not everyone is worthy of being a perfumer. Or a brand owner, since branding is obviously a forgotten art nowadays. The space, the creativity, the purpose, the ideas, were all based on and replaced by (brainless) fast consuming.

Imagine from Package Design Now! by Gisela Kozak and Julius Wiedemann, published by Taschen.

The fact that we allowed these people to keep their lousy work on going falls on us, the consumers. Many of us lack analytical thinking and, nowadays, with our taste being shaped by social media, the younger generations are not able to discern between good and dung. It's not their fault, since they are rooted in algorithms and grew away from logical reasoning or reflective judgement. That's where the companies swim and take advantage of. With ChatGPT as their language and various AI assistants under the arms to help them build their empire, all they need is (numbers) faces and voices - influenza - to sneak into the people's brain. And the muppets do their job. Some better than the others. (Generally) with dishonesty and without disclosing paid promotions.

(Optimistic thought), if sloppy, soulless and meaningless is their way to make a(n easy) living, they should work harder on reaching their purpose, to honor those who paved the way, or to simply just give up. 

(Realistic), but I think they couldn't care less if someone loves their products as long as they hire an influenza into poisoning as many minds as possible with their insipid waste. Their purpose is clear: short term goals and (easy earned) money into the pocket. When they reached the latter, selling to a bigger company is the last step. That's the gong that annonces more money coming in. End of story and an eternal cocktail on a virgin beach or the beginning of another chapter, because they loved how the first time went and they can't have enough.

The era of atomic projection and radioactive sillage, that's our legacy for the future generations. They'll smell we were here. 

Nowadays, the more eccentric, obscure, (incoherent), incomplete, unaesthetic, limited or inaccessible a perfume or a brand is, the more interesting it becomes. The idea of it takes you hostage until it brainwashes you into liking that product. Congratulations, you're free to go, your individual identity has drown into the collective’s. 

Don't forget, a bad composition is a bad composition and a good one is good no matter what. 

Garbage is still garbage, even blind, you can smell it. 

They don't make them like they used to is an honest complain. But the past can't be preserved if it's generationally renewed.

What Serge Lutens? Or L’Artisan? Who Annick Goutal? 

Only a few brands keep on delivering what we ask for and deserve - a good product, with a coherent concept, based on true values and well intended work, or what I like to call honest perfumery. Let's keep it alive, that's where the true meaning of perfumery and its principles lie in. 

Ah, and don't get me start on innovation in perfume, which has obviously left the building a while ago by being replaced with reformulations, “reimagined to adapt to our times”, AI or the 100’ version of the same perfumed water. At your favorite chain. Or online. Because we made sure the good ol’ local stores don't deserve their bread on the table.

(All of that makes me wonder,) is there a turning back from this black hole? Will the (majority of) consumers awake? 

Although history has proven that we don't learn from our mistakes and easily fall into others, I'm still hopeful one day consumers will back off and (re)think where to throw their (hard-earned) money at. 

Cause hope is the last to die, right?