Serge Lutens

Serge Lutens is one of the very big names in the world of perfume. Since 2000, the self-taught perfumer, who describes himself as an author, has been designing very characterful and high-quality perfumes under his brand Parfums-Beauté Serge Lutens and the associated brand Serge Lutens Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido. But long before that, the multi-talented designer and artist Serge Lutens was a household name in the fashion world. His journey from small circumstances with severely limited real options to absolute creative freedom and artistic self-realization is impressive: At 14, Serge Lutens, born in Lille in 1942, took up an apprenticeship as a hairdresser, impressing as he did with what was then unusual, revolutionary-looking women's hairstyles in a bob style with a shaved-out neck. In 1962, he moved to Paris and was hired by Vogue as chief designer in hair, makeup, and jewelry. In 1967 he moved to Dior and created a makeup line there. He worked on beauty from every possible artistic direction: as a hairstylist, makeup and fashion designer, photographer, short film director, image and advertising consultant - and beginning as a perfumer. In 1980, he joined Shiseido to design the entire image of its beauty range. In 1982, he designed his first perfume, "Nombre Noir," on behalf of Shiseido. The Parisian Salons du Palais Royal, which he designed, are a perfume store in a completely designed house full of luxury, pleasure, and sensory seduction, full of sumptuous furnishings and precious details. Since the millennium, Serge Lutens has worked exclusively as a perfumer in his own right. The designer and all-round artist, who now lives in Marrakech, specializes in what is closest to his heart. His perfumes are perceived as idiosyncratic, often bulky and "not easy." Nevertheless, he has set milestones in perfume fashion with some of his fragrances and his brand is flourishing profitably. He himself seems to care little about the market success of his fragrances. What is important to him is to follow unrestricted and consistently individual inspiration and to formulate his personal memories, experiences and feelings in the language of fragrance.