Marketing Olfattivo: perché è importante contare sul potere dell’Olfatto per il tuo Brand.
Tempo di lettura: 9 minuti
A multi-faceted activity - Rosa vaia has opened a multifaceted venue for the celebration of perfume from a to z
A passion for fragrances
Rosa Vaia is Master Perfumer and sole owner of the company Vieffe NoseLab, located in the idyllic surroundings of the Park of the Partenio near Naples. She is always on the outlook for new ideas to create unique, beguiling and sophisticated fragrances. As from this year, she is also sharing her extensive knowledge and skills with the students of the Italian Perfumery Institute, where she holds a course on niche perfumery, from creation to production and distribution.
EXPORT MAGAZINE: You have recently opened the Vieffe NoseLab, half-way between a demonstration laboratory and a production plant; how did this project come into being?
ROSA VAIA: During the pandemic, during the long walks in the open air with my family in the Park of the Partenio, in the province of
Avellino, I noticed some abandoned buildings, a former industrial estate in the park, which had been vacated after an insolvency. I saw in these ruins the potential to do something I had been thinking about for some time, a small laboratory that summarized all the production phases of fragrance and which would allow me to work directly on creativity with clients, for prototypes and small batches. This site, located in a panoramic point with a view over the Gulf of Naples, inspired me for the idea of the Noselab. After an attentive study of the constraints, and with quite a few problems, I bought it and transformed it into a production site with a reduced impact and zero emissions.
EM: How did you study the environmental, part and what do you do in the Noselab?
RV: One of the criticalities deriving from the location in the Park is represented by the emissions of alcohol, which we have annulled thanks to a system of hoods; in addition, we have a very meticulous fire prevention plan. We worked very hard to avoid any type of emission and all rejects are also treated and put back into production; special attention is also paid to waste management, Concerning the buildings, there has been no increase in volume, nor do we plan any for the future. In addition, the roads and logistics are commensurate to the very reduced volume of a soft plant, which does not have large daily loads and seldom heavy vehicles. The access road that leaves from the municipal roads has stayed the same in beaten earth, along which I have planted autochthonous trees typical of the park, including aromatic plants of the Mediterranean maquis, buying the young plants from regional forestry nurseries. This green path, which is accompanied by the species of wild herbs and shrubs already present, enhances the access and at the same time reduces the impact of the traffic linked to the site’s activity; it is also a prelude to the building’s panoramic terrace, which has been turned into a hanging garden for decorative and educational purposes, with the botanical species from which the raw materials for perfumery are obtained. We have created a very sustainable chain of supply, as local as possible, to work with a reduced impact, slowly and in part still by hand and of the highest quality. The aim of Vieffe Noselab is creativity and education. It is a meeting place for clients curious to know the production processes of olfactory creation, up to bottling. The packaging can be designed and developed contextually with the fragrance thanks to the samples in the showroom and support of the graphic artist. Lastly, the educational area allows bringing professionals, enthusiasts, sales personnel and students of cosmetology closer to our world.
RV: One of the criticalities deriving from the location in the Park is represented by the emissions of alcohol, which we have annulled thanks to a system of hoods; in addition, we have a very meticulous fire prevention plan. We worked very hard to avoid any type of emission and all rejects are also treated and put back into production; special attention is also paid to waste management, Concerning the buildings, there has been no increase in volume, nor do we plan any for the future. In addition, the roads and logistics are commensurate to the very reduced volume of a soft plant, which does not have large daily loads and seldom heavy vehicles. The access road that leaves from the municipal roads has stayed the same in beaten earth, along which I have planted autochthonous trees typical of the park, including aromatic plants of the Mediterranean maquis, buying the young plants from regional forestry nurseries. This green path, which is accompanied by the species of wild herbs and shrubs already present, enhances the access and at the same time reduces the impact of the traffic linked to the site’s activity; it is also a prelude to the building’s panoramic terrace, which has been turned into a hanging garden for decorative and educational purposes, with the botanical species from which the raw materials for perfumery are obtained. We have created a very sustainable chain of supply, as local as possible, to work with a reduced impact, slowly and in part still by hand and of the highest quality. The aim of Vieffe Noselab is creativity and education. It is a meeting place for clients curious to know the production processes of olfactory creation, up to bottling. The packaging can be designed and developed contextually with the fragrance thanks to the samples in the showroom and support of the graphic artist. Lastly, the educational area allows bringing professionals, enthusiasts, sales personnel and students of cosmetology closer to our world.
EM: How do you reconcile your soul as a master perfumer with that of an entrepreneuse in the world of niche perfumery?
RV: For me, doing business is on the one hand a vocation and on the other a necessity, The world of olfactory creation has always been difficult to access; although in the past few years the offer of courses and perfumery schools has increased, when I started out in composition, the path to become a nose had a first compulsory stage in French schools, then joining the large essence companies on long paths of growth and always as an employee. Independent perfumers are still rare, especially in France. In Italy the productive fabric is different, but anyway to a great extent linked to the large multinational corporations; perhaps we owe the success of niche perfumery to this and personally, I feel lucky that I had the privilege of having experienced the development of this phenomenon. After having created Coquillete in Paris, when I returned to Italy as an independent, to continue creating fragrances, I did not have many options except to create a business of my own: referring to the niche gave me the chance to devote myself to small projects and therefore to experiment, learn, and take my first steps independently and this way build up my personal path. With respect to my creative vocation, I cannot see any contradictions: after all, even historically, the artist in the entrepreneur of himself. I work a great deal in contact with artists, who call me to curate the olfactory part of exhibitions and installations. Art is a market and so is niche perfumery. To make a living, you have to be part of it, with the awareness that not all perfumery is art and, above all if you work in niche perfumery, keeping your autonomy of interpretation, in the respect of the consumers and their curiosity.
RV: For me, doing business is on the one hand a vocation and on the other a necessity, The world of olfactory creation has always been difficult to access; although in the past few years the offer of courses and perfumery schools has increased, when I started out in composition, the path to become a nose had a first compulsory stage in French schools, then joining the large essence companies on long paths of growth and always as an employee. Independent perfumers are still rare, especially in France. In Italy the productive fabric is different, but anyway to a great extent linked to the large multinational corporations; perhaps we owe the success of niche perfumery to this and personally, I feel lucky that I had the privilege of having experienced the development of this phenomenon. After having created Coquillete in Paris, when I returned to Italy as an independent, to continue creating fragrances, I did not have many options except to create a business of my own: referring to the niche gave me the chance to devote myself to small projects and therefore to experiment, learn, and take my first steps independently and this way build up my personal path. With respect to my creative vocation, I cannot see any contradictions: after all, even historically, the artist in the entrepreneur of himself. I work a great deal in contact with artists, who call me to curate the olfactory part of exhibitions and installations. Art is a market and so is niche perfumery. To make a living, you have to be part of it, with the awareness that not all perfumery is art and, above all if you work in niche perfumery, keeping your autonomy of interpretation, in the respect of the consumers and their curiosity.
EM: Do you mean that perfumery focuses on an artistic aura that is not always real?
RV: here is a tendency to fuel an image of perfumery detached from the real world, as though it were located in a dreamlike dimension. In actual fact, consumers are interested in and trained to discover what is behind the product: the romantic image of the creator of perfumes, which perfumery still uses, seems obsolete to me. Fragrances are prepared according to commercial briefs, budgets and markets which the perfumer interprets personally, this is why our work is creative. But not all creativity is art and, even in niche perfumery, there are creations which are the result of more commercial logics and perfumes which are clones developed from libraries. I don’t believe that we are still in the time of fairy tales: I am convinced that telling the reality of our world is the best way to present it. This is why I am fascinated by education, I hold lessons and welcome many students of cosmetology for internships in my facilities, to show the practical aspects of perfumery and to contribute to transforming their skills into a job.
RV: here is a tendency to fuel an image of perfumery detached from the real world, as though it were located in a dreamlike dimension. In actual fact, consumers are interested in and trained to discover what is behind the product: the romantic image of the creator of perfumes, which perfumery still uses, seems obsolete to me. Fragrances are prepared according to commercial briefs, budgets and markets which the perfumer interprets personally, this is why our work is creative. But not all creativity is art and, even in niche perfumery, there are creations which are the result of more commercial logics and perfumes which are clones developed from libraries. I don’t believe that we are still in the time of fairy tales: I am convinced that telling the reality of our world is the best way to present it. This is why I am fascinated by education, I hold lessons and welcome many students of cosmetology for internships in my facilities, to show the practical aspects of perfumery and to contribute to transforming their skills into a job.
EM: Is it to break away from stereotypes that you are working on a new and more personal brand project?
RV: I felt the need to do something completely mine, in which I can express myself, free from any market logic, without having to move away from the idea that I intend to represent: this is the reason why this brand will be my name, Rosa Vaia. It is a completely different project from Coquillete, which is a brand I continue to believe in but which does not represent me completely. With Rosa Vaia I intend to compose an extremely personal approach, because I would like it to be my business card, for those who want to get to know my way of seeing olfactory creation. This does not mean that I am not approaching the creations for Coquillete or for my clients without passion. The new brand will be my personal space in which to be completely sincere, which contrasts with the world of strong stimulation to which perfumery also belongs. I am aware that these creations will not be for the general public, I will make them for myself, to indulge in this luxury and to share deep inspirations, in which I deal with strong topics and difficult times in the human life.
RV: I felt the need to do something completely mine, in which I can express myself, free from any market logic, without having to move away from the idea that I intend to represent: this is the reason why this brand will be my name, Rosa Vaia. It is a completely different project from Coquillete, which is a brand I continue to believe in but which does not represent me completely. With Rosa Vaia I intend to compose an extremely personal approach, because I would like it to be my business card, for those who want to get to know my way of seeing olfactory creation. This does not mean that I am not approaching the creations for Coquillete or for my clients without passion. The new brand will be my personal space in which to be completely sincere, which contrasts with the world of strong stimulation to which perfumery also belongs. I am aware that these creations will not be for the general public, I will make them for myself, to indulge in this luxury and to share deep inspirations, in which I deal with strong topics and difficult times in the human life.
EM: Is it to break away from stereotypes that you are working on a new and more personal brand project?
RV: I felt the need to do something completely mine, in which I can express myself, free from any market logic, without having to move away from the idea that I intend to represent: this is the reason why this brand will be my name, Rosa Vaia. It is a completely different project from Coquillete, which is a brand I continue to believe in but which does not represent me completely. With Rosa Vaia I intend to compose an extremely personal approach, because I would like it to be my business card, for those who want to get to know my way of seeing olfactory creation. This does not mean that I am not approaching the creations for Coquillete or for my clients without passion. The new brand will be my personal space in which to be completely sincere, which contrasts with the world of strong stimulation to which perfumery also belongs. I am aware that these creations will not be for the general public, I will make them for myself, to indulge in this luxury and to share deep inspirations, in which I deal with strong topics and difficult times in the human life.
RV: I felt the need to do something completely mine, in which I can express myself, free from any market logic, without having to move away from the idea that I intend to represent: this is the reason why this brand will be my name, Rosa Vaia. It is a completely different project from Coquillete, which is a brand I continue to believe in but which does not represent me completely. With Rosa Vaia I intend to compose an extremely personal approach, because I would like it to be my business card, for those who want to get to know my way of seeing olfactory creation. This does not mean that I am not approaching the creations for Coquillete or for my clients without passion. The new brand will be my personal space in which to be completely sincere, which contrasts with the world of strong stimulation to which perfumery also belongs. I am aware that these creations will not be for the general public, I will make them for myself, to indulge in this luxury and to share deep inspirations, in which I deal with strong topics and difficult times in the human life.
EM: The relationship with art was the topic of the presence of Coquillete at Esxence 2023.
RV: I live the figurative arts as a personal passion, not only for work. I wanted my presence at Esxence to be different, I imagined a moment of enjoyment of art at a show that aims to be an expression of culture, so I did not take my olfactory creations and I asked Professor Pasquale Lettieri to curate the presence of some works by Endless. Of this street artist I am interested in the critical reflection on massification, a comment which bares some mechanisms of society which seemed an interesting idea in this context of artistic perfumery. I designed my stand as the enjoyment of a dialogue, a blend between figurative and olfactory languages. Just as artistic perfumery intends to propose new ways of seeing what is an economic product such as fragrance become increasingly more fashionable and a status symbol, a similar drive can be read in Endless in his reinventions of portraits or images linked to the brands. Although not everyone understood this operation, for me it was a reason of great satisfaction to let clients and visitors experience a moment of pure meeting, of discussions on art and society , of promotion of contemporary art and its reflection on the world.
RV: I live the figurative arts as a personal passion, not only for work. I wanted my presence at Esxence to be different, I imagined a moment of enjoyment of art at a show that aims to be an expression of culture, so I did not take my olfactory creations and I asked Professor Pasquale Lettieri to curate the presence of some works by Endless. Of this street artist I am interested in the critical reflection on massification, a comment which bares some mechanisms of society which seemed an interesting idea in this context of artistic perfumery. I designed my stand as the enjoyment of a dialogue, a blend between figurative and olfactory languages. Just as artistic perfumery intends to propose new ways of seeing what is an economic product such as fragrance become increasingly more fashionable and a status symbol, a similar drive can be read in Endless in his reinventions of portraits or images linked to the brands. Although not everyone understood this operation, for me it was a reason of great satisfaction to let clients and visitors experience a moment of pure meeting, of discussions on art and society , of promotion of contemporary art and its reflection on the world.
EM: The relationship with art was the topic of the presence of Coquillete at Esxence 2023.
RV: I live the figurative arts as a personal passion, not only for work. I wanted my presence at Esxence to be different, I imagined a moment of enjoyment of art at a show that aims to be an expression of culture, so I did not take my olfactory creations and I asked Professor Pasquale Lettieri to curate the presence of some works by Endless. Of this street artist I am interested in the critical reflection on massification, a comment which bares some mechanisms of society which seemed an interesting idea in this context of artistic perfumery. I designed my stand as the enjoyment of a dialogue, a blend between figurative and olfactory languages. Just as artistic perfumery intends to propose new ways of seeing what is an economic product such as fragrance become increasingly more fashionable and a status symbol, a similar drive can be read in Endless in his reinventions of portraits or images linked to the brands. Although not everyone understood this operation, for me it was a reason of great satisfaction to let clients and visitors experience a moment of pure meeting, of discussions on art and society , of promotion of contemporary art and its reflection on the world.
RV: I live the figurative arts as a personal passion, not only for work. I wanted my presence at Esxence to be different, I imagined a moment of enjoyment of art at a show that aims to be an expression of culture, so I did not take my olfactory creations and I asked Professor Pasquale Lettieri to curate the presence of some works by Endless. Of this street artist I am interested in the critical reflection on massification, a comment which bares some mechanisms of society which seemed an interesting idea in this context of artistic perfumery. I designed my stand as the enjoyment of a dialogue, a blend between figurative and olfactory languages. Just as artistic perfumery intends to propose new ways of seeing what is an economic product such as fragrance become increasingly more fashionable and a status symbol, a similar drive can be read in Endless in his reinventions of portraits or images linked to the brands. Although not everyone understood this operation, for me it was a reason of great satisfaction to let clients and visitors experience a moment of pure meeting, of discussions on art and society , of promotion of contemporary art and its reflection on the world.
EM: An artist or a work on which you would like to create a composition?
RV: The slashes by Lucio Fontana. But I still haven’t understood which side of the canvas I am on.
RV: The slashes by Lucio Fontana. But I still haven’t understood which side of the canvas I am on.
Coquillete Parfum: an identity based on excellence and craftsmanship
This brand is an example of a brilliant association between French elegance and Italian savoir-faire. Coquillete Parfum fragrances are creations for people of character, who disdain conformism and are looking for something that blends with their individuality. Rosa Vaia works with immense passion, and her constant and intense research results in fragrances that feature only the best raw materials, selected with great care to ensure products of exceptionally high quality.
The latest creations
With her latest creations for Coquillete Parfum, Rosa Vaia continues her quest for excellence and craftsmanship. Tubexotic is a luminous, mysterious, sincere and romantic fragrance. Orange blossom notes open the dances, standing out against a warm balm of Moroccan jasmine and ylang ylang. The middle notes have a mischievous soul with the piquant notes of black pepper and spices, clove, labdanum, benzoin and the floral notes of tuberose. Lastly, coconut wood, sandalwood, benzoin, amber and tonka bean are combined for an elegantly persistent and sensual drydown. The tuberose in this extrait de parfum, is toned down by a refreshing breeze which brings with it the pride of summer notes, without half-tones, that are exquisitely luminous. Cuiris expresses a game of contrasts between the intense notes of leather and the explosiveness of flowers, between the suaveness of suede and the buttery caress of iris. Unusual combinations bring the classic scent of leathers up to date: thanks to Rosa Vaia’s audacity and competence, Cuiris offers a magic union between leather and iris. Top notes of bergamot, magnolia, amber, cardamom and cumin set the scene; the middle notes are of jasmine, Turkish rose, mimosa, iris, violet
leaves and leather while the base notes of suede leather, raspberry, patchouli, tolu, vanilla, benzoin, amber and tonka bean create occasions of encounter between contrasting notes.