How to start a business selling perfume/cologne

Hey everyone,

Recently, my wife and I took a trip down to Las Vegas. During this trip, we stayed at the Circus Circus hotel. 

For those of you who don’t know, the first and second floors of that hotel, and most hotels in Las Vegas, have a casino. 

Along the casino, there are little strip mall-like stores where locals sell products like souvenirs, jewelry, and little waving Japanese cats trinkets, etc… 

One of these stores was a little fragrance bar. 

One evening, I was passing this bar on the way to let my dog out when the lady at the counter stopped me and said, “I like your dog, much better size than that one,” as she pointed up ahead to one of the biggest pitbulls I have ever seen. This made me chuckle.

“Oh, Thanks,” I said. “Her name is Eliza,” eager to show off my adorable dog.

After a couple of seconds of petting my dog, this woman handed me a piece of paper and said, “For you! Smell”

After being a little taken back by their sudden pitch, I accepted the piece of paper on which there was cologne.

“You like it?” She asked with an enthused look in her eye.

“Ummm… It’s alright,” I said with a slight shrug. 

Her demeanor changed. It was clear that I had burst her bubble.

And with my remark, the conversation was over. 

However, as I was walking away, this led me to think. How hard would it be to start a fragrance brand?

As it turns out, it’s easier than I initially thought!

Why choose fragrance in the first place?

 Now, don’t misinterpret my introduction.

Even though I was taken aback and eventually declined the offer, it doesn’t mean that this isn’t a profitable business. 

In fact, throughout my time there, I was surprised by how many people I saw buying cologne from that shop.

Not only that, but the profit margins can be very high. 

The ingredients that go into cologne are very cheap. If you search the most successful cologne companies, you’ll see that the top companies will sell them for upwards of a hundred or so dollars. 

Why can they get away with selling it so high if it's so cheap? 

To put it simply, Many people equate an elegant smell with cologne and perfume with luxury

The goal is not to make them smell good, but also to sell the idea that they can feel good as well.

Just like everything else in life. A dream will sell more than a product.

Create your fragrance

The first thing that you need to do would be to start experimenting with smells.

These questions could help guide your decision-making process:

• What is your favorite smell?

• What is a smell that brings me back to a memory?

• What is your favorite cologne? If that cologne were a color, what color would it be?

• Is there a smell that you wish were more popular?

After considering what smell would be enjoyable, the next step would be to buy the ingredients.

Now, there are a lot of chemicals that are put in liquid fragrances; however, the many ingredients tend to be:

1. Ethanol (Alcohol) 

2. Water

3. Essential oils

Simple right?!

After combining all three ingredients in a bottle, seal the bottle and leave it for a couple of days to let the scent settle into the alcohol.

Then spray and see how your smell turned out!

These things can be ordered through Amazon:

Perfumer’s Alcohol: https://amzn.to/4iRbnFR

Essential Oils: https://amzn.to/3RSCRA3

Finding the right fragrance you like will take a lot of time and effort to figure out the right quantities of each ingredient. 

Create your Brand

Any good product will solve a problem for individuals or a group of individuals. 

Like, for example, I just recently saw an ad for a cologne that is designed to arouse women. Selling the solution to the problem of being a hopeless romantic.

Maybe you decide to target personal trainers who work out all day and want to smell better when working with clients? 

Let’s take the scenario above and create a brand based on this persona:

The brand would have these main characteristics:

• Advertised as water soluble, so sweat doesn’t wash away the smell the smell

• Designed in a bottle to fit in a gym bag.

• A smell that isn’t too potent so that the tainer won't distract from a session 

• The logo would have a sleek and simple look with a dumbbell on top.

• Would partner with local gyms for brand awareness

This is just an example of how your thought process could be for making your brand 

After designing your brand, the next step is to design a website to sell your product on. 

(Shopify or Creative OS could be very helpful)

Reach out if you want any more tips on setting up a brand, read more blog posts, or reach out at [email protected]. I’d love to hear your inquiries.

Flipping fragrances

Cologne is one of the biggest items to flip on the internet. 

This is what most fragrance bars, like the one in my story at the beginning. 

The business model for this type of business is simple

Buy stock for cheap. Sell at a higher price. 

There are many different places to find where to buy cologne.

You could buy them pre-owned on eBay or Facebook Marketplace. (Recommended for beginners)

Or you could go straight to a distributor and purchase through them. 

Then sell them anywhere else you think to sell: Online or in person at a mall or a local market.

Conclusion

My hope is that you will find that there are businesses everywhere that you can consider and make profitable.

Even if it's from a salesperson at a random Las Vegas cologne bar.

Truly, what it comes down to is finding your passion and calling in life. 

Go find what your passions are.

Go chase your dreams.