The Fragrance Foundation Awards, held at Alice Tully Hall at New York’s Lincoln Center, honored the industry’s most gifted artists and fragrance creators last month. Comedian and Emmy Award winner Dana Carvey hosted the event, which featured notables from the worlds of fashion, fragrance and entertainment, as well as a literary tribute to fragrance, presented by poet Richard Blanco, in his ode To The Artists of The Invisible.

With recollections ranging from “the smell of the first drops of rain steaming off the sidewalk when he first learned to ride his bicycle; to the scent of the stars…” Blanco gave voice to the illusory world of perfume, posing the question, “perfumer, magician? No, artist of the invisible.”

In an evening that ran the gamut from comedy to celebrity to sensory explorer, the Awards captured the triumphs and truths of a dynamic industry.

Carvey, who provided comic relief for the evening, paid tribute to the classics, citing Elizabeth Taylor’s White Diamonds, and broached new territory with a suggestion for his own fragrance, titled, Satan’s Scent, by The Church Lady, a nod to his well-known “Saturday Night Live” character.

Elizabeth Musmanno, president of The Fragrance Foundation, acknowledged the work of the Foundation’s collaborators, including the artistic design team, welcomed international attendees, and thanked event sponsors, particularly Coty, Firmenich and IFF, and The Fragrance Foundation’s board of directors led by chairperson Jill Belasco.

“Tonight we come together to celebrate the artists of this seductive and silent art form,” said Musmanno, adding, “The Fragrance Foundation Awards have been referred to as the ‘Oscars’ of our industry because we honor the year’s highest achievements.”
Belasco, who is also president and CEO of Coscentrix, greeted attendees and welcomed them to the gala evening, noting the excitement surrounding the Awards, and acknowledging Elizabeth Musmanno, for creating a new spirit and direction for The Fragrance Foundation.

The Fragrance Foundation Award Winners were as follows:

Best Packaging of the Year Men’s – Montblanc Legend by Interparfums Luxury Brands
Best Packaging of the Year Women’s – Florabotanica Balenciaga Paris by Coty Prestige
 
Fragrance Celebrity of the Year – Taylor Swift
 
Consumer Choice Award Men’s – Giorgio Armani Acqua di Giò Essenza
Consumer Choice Award Women’s – Justin Bieber’s Girlfriend
 
Retail Innovation of the Year – QVC
 
Media Campaign of the Year Men’s – Dolce & Gabbana the one for men Sport by P&G Prestige Products
Media Campaign of the Year Women’s – Dolce & Gabbana Pour Femme by P&G Prestige Products
 
Hall of Fame – Linda Wells, Editor in Chief of Allure Magazine
 
Fragrance of the Year Popular Men’s – James Bond 007 by P&G Prestige Products
Fragrance of the Year Popular Women’s – Justin Bieber’s Girlfriend by Elizabeth Arden
 
Fragrance of the Year Prestige Men’s – Tom Ford Noir by Tom Ford Beauty
Fragrance of the Year Prestige Women’s – DOT Marc Jacobs by Coty Prestige
 
Fragrance of the Year Luxury Men’s – Colonia Intensa Oud by Acqua Di Parma
Fragrance of the Year Luxury Women’s – Florabotanica Balenciaga Paris by Coty Prestige
 
Fragrance Hall of Fame – Red Door by Elizabeth Arden
 
Perfume Extraordinaire – Robertet for Black Saffron by Byredo Parfums, Perfumer: Jerome Epinette
 
Perfumer of the Year Lifetime Achievement – Alberto Morillas, Master Perfumer for Firmenich
 
Highlights
 
Scott Beattie, chairman, president and CEO of Elizabeth Arden, announced the Fragrance Celebrity of The Year Award winner, Taylor Swift, noting, “The Elizabeth Arden family is proud to have the Grammy award-winning star as part of the Arden family.”
Swift, who took a break from her Red Tour to accept the Fragrance Celebrity of The Year for her back-to-back successful launches of Wonderstruck and Wonderstruck Enchanted by Elizabeth Arden, thanked everyone at Arden for their collaborative spirit, the gratifying experience of working on the scents, and her fans, for appreciating the fragrances. The award secures her place in fragrance history and raises awareness for her soon-to-be-released third fragrance, Taylor by Taylor Swift.

Continuing the wave of celebrity successes, Justin Bieber demonstrated his star power with one tweet to his 40 million plus followers, and invited them to cast a vote on fragrance.org for Girlfriend. The fragrance won the Women’s Consumer Choice Award, as well as for Popular Fragrance of the Year Women’s.

Additional highlights of the event included the Hall of Fame Award, which for the first time was awarded to a magazine editor. Actress Connie Britton presented *Allure’s Linda Wells with the honor.

“Linda Wells demystifies fragrance, while keeping its romance,” said Britton, who noted that Allure has been celebrating fragrance since 1991.

In a moving tribute, Patrick Firmenich, CEO of Firmenich, presented renowned Master Perfumer, Alberto Morillas, with the Foundation’s first Perfumer of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award, to a standing ovation. Morillas was honored for more than four decades of his fragrance creations that included legendary launches such as CKOne, Estée Lauder Pleasures, and Marc Jacobs Daisy.

In his acceptance, Morillas said, “Everything I see in nature inspires me. The beautiful and the ugly…The perfumer brings the perfume to life,” he added, noting that this process could include as many as 1,000 modifications.

The glamorous event features a cadre of celebrity presenters each year, and this night was no exception. Andre Leon Talley, magazine editor and fashion personality, presented the Fragrance of the Year Prestige Men’s Award to Tom Ford Noir; Dita Von Teese, fashion and fragrance icon, presented the Perfume Extraordinaire Award to Robertet Perfumer, Jerome Epinette, for Black Saffron by Byredo Parfums; and singer, songwriter and model Sky Ferreira presented the Consumer Choice Award Men’s honors to Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio Essenza.

The Fragrance Foundation was founded in 1949 to increase awareness and appreciation of fragrance in all its forms. Additional information may be found on the foundation’s website: www.fragrance.org.