A blog post called "One Direction Obsession" by Brenna Phelan, a manager and fragrance industry analyst for The NPD Group, looks at the continuing trend of celebrity-associated fragrances and how they are engaging with consumers, as exemplified by the recent rash of young pop stars launching fragrances and the young fans that are drawn to them.
Phelan notes that her 15-year-old cousin Maeve is "obsessed" with the Brit boy band One Direction, and she's certainly not alone. "Teenage girls all over the world are wild for One Direction. They are eager to get their hands on any merchandise that is associated with the band," Phelan writes. "With that in mind, it is safe to assume that One Direction’s debut fragrance, Our Moment, will do well when it hits stores later this summer.
She continues, "The success of other teen idol brands like Someday (Justin Bieber) may be the best indication of how One Direction’s brand may fare. The launch of Someday in June 2011 was highly anticipated among Bieber’s many loyal teen followers. Someday was the No. 1 brand launch in 2011. To put this in perspective, in the second, third and fourth weeks of sales, Someday exceeded the No. 1 women’s brand, Coco Mademoiselle. That is no small feat.
"What Someday, and possibly One Direction['s Our Moment], illustrate is the power of celebrity or more importantly, the right celebrity. Celebrity names and/or faces are a great way to target specific demographics. And targeting an enthusiastic teen demographic may be a smart way to go, since 80A% of teen girls say they wear fragrance," Phelan notes.
And she concludes that developing those relationships early is important. "Ultimately, engaging consumers at a young age is good for all of us in the fragrance industry," she writes.
