The unisex market is big business, remaining a buzzword especially in beauty and personal care well into 2023, encompassing clothing, accessories, skincare and fragrance.
As with all things from the 1990s that are coming back into fashion, unisex fragrances, which have seen continued growth over the past decade, have spritzed back into the spotlight as consumer online searches increase and fragrance fans eschew the idea of scents being feminine or masculine, preferring to make their own minds up about what smells good on their skin.
The first mass-marketed genderless fragrance was Calvin Klein’s CK One. Launched in 1994 with the slogan “One for all”, it upended the beauty industry, creating huge waves in the market with a campaign that featured modelling industry disrupters Kate Moss and Jenny Shimizu.
The simple glass bottle contained a perfume with top notes of pineapple, mandarin orange, cardamom and lemon, and was a huge success making over $5 million in its first 10 days and continuing to generate millions over the following years.
“When CK One originally launched in 1994, it helped redefine the boundaries of the modern fragrance because it blurred societal, gender boundaries and offered a freedom from convention and the status quo, a breaking of rules,” said Simona Cattaneo, chief marketing officer of Coty Luxury.
CK One combined the traditionally feminine scents of jasmine and violet with the more masculine smells of musk and amber to create a citrus fresh fragrance, and the US fashion house followed up with another unisex scent CK be in 1996.
A growing market
Traditionally, certain smells were viewed as being more feminine or more masculine. Woodsy, musky or freshwater scents have always been marketed towards men, while women’s perfumes leaned heavily towards floral, powdery or sweet fragrances.
Nowadays, most fragrance houses sell unisex perfumes, including Tom Ford who has declared all his fragrances to be genderless.
According to global research and marketing agency Mintel, gender-neutral fragrance launches accounted for 17 per cent of the market in 2010, growing to 51 per cent by 2018.
Research carried out by global personal care, household and industrial and institutional cleaning market magazine Happi found that the US unisex fragrance market is projected to reach $190 million by 2025 and that online searches for genderless fragrances in 2023 had grown 43.5 per cent from the previous year.
Scroll through the gallery below for some of the best unisex fragrances on the market
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Jazmin Yucatan by D S & Durga has won a global fanbase thanks to the fresh scent designed to evoke the Yucatan Peninsula. Photo: D S & Durga -
The brand may be called Boy Smells but Violet Ends Boy Smells is for both men and women. Photo: Boy Smells -
Gucci’s A Reason To Love Eau De Parfum blends Damascena rose, peony, amber and Oud. Photo: Gucci -
Bal D’Afrique Eau de Parfum by Byredo combines top notes of African marigold and bergamot with base notes of vetiver. Photo: Byredo -
All of Tom Ford’s fragrances are designed to be unisex, and Ombre Leather Eau De Parfum has become a fan favourite. Photo: Estee Lauder -
Fans of fresh-smelling fragrances will want to splash on Replica Sailing Day Eau de Toilette. Photo: Maison Margiela -
Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s unisex Aqua Celestia Cologne Forte Eau de Parfum is a veritable fruit cocktail of a fragrance. Photo: Maison Francis Kurkdjian -
Orpheon Eau de Parfum by Diptyque is the French brand’s homage to Parisian evening café culture. Photo: Diptyque -
L'Ombre Des Merveilles Eau De Parfum from Hermes combines woody aromatic scents and oriental fragrances. Photo: Hermes -
Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom & Honey Cologne is inspired by London's Covent Garden early morning market. Photo: Jo Malone
