7 Discontinued Perfumes I Wish They'd Bring Back ... (2023)

FAQs

Do discontinued perfumes ever come back? ›

That's right; sometimes, they come back. If you're longing for the return of a scent, let us know here, and we'll do our best to convince brands to #BringItBack, or if we can't, we'll find you an alternative! Here are four we're happy to see and smell again…

Sometimes, when a formula is too old, brands may take the easier route and let the fragrance go rather than have to update the formula. Other times, fragrances disappear off shelves when there is a change of business ownership.

Acqua di Colonia Santa Maria Novella

The oldest of their perfumes still in production is their Acqua di Colognia which was first bottled in 1533 by the Dominican friars that ran the apothecary. This perfume was created for Catherine de' Medici and the main notes are rose and citrus.

Most fragrance manufacturers recommend throwing away your bottle after anywhere from one to three years, but fragrance doesn't behave in the same way as food, so it can be okay to keep it for longer, most fragrance experts recommend around three to five years.

FLEA MARKETS, ANTIQUE AND THRIFT STORES

Each town has them, and it is not rare to find a cheap gem from someone that is selling the stuff they don't need anymore or don't know what they have. This is probably the safest way to buy vintage fragrances since you can test and see the bottle in real person.

A scent with few natural analogues, orris is exceedingly rare; the fact that people continue to seek out this fragrance despite its high cost speaks to its enduring appeal.

Most cheap perfumes can replicate a pricier version's top notes (the scent that lasts about a half hour after spraying), but without the proper essential oils to add mid-notes and base-notes, it won't be able to wear as long.

Velvet, Red Door and Always Red are discontinued, except for the 15ml Always Red still available. Over time, certain items need to be discontinued in order to make way for new innovation, such as the new Red Door Revealed.

A resulting scent cannot be exactly duplicated, and reputable perfume companies make sure that their loyal customers understand that in the case of scent duplication, they are not buying the original fragrance but rather one that is nearly identical to the original, and satisfying the client and their customer base.

Rule no. 3: if you want to know if a fragrance is discontinued, ask the brand, but don't assume that the right hand knows what the left hand is doing. The only way to find out for sure if a fragrance has been discontinued is to ask the brand directly, either by email, snail mail or telephone.

What is the oldest Bath and Body Works scent? ›

The oldest scent is Sweet Pea.

It launched in 2000 and has been a shopper favorite since then.

Bath & Body Works Japanese Cherry Blossom

According to Bath & Body Works' PR team, this scent continues to be a best-selling fragrance year-round. That's all the reasoning we need to stock up on the body lotion and body wash … and body spray, candle, and hand soap …

The independent perfumery Le Labo proposed an antidote to the obsession with hype in 2011 when the fragrance industry saw a rise in celebrity scents and relied on the allure of glossy marketing.

But what exactly is an Old Lady Perfume? The term is generally applied to perfumes launched between the 1920s to the 1980s. And though the fragrances that fall under the Old Lady Perfume umbrella aren't a monolith, there are some common threads. The best known Old Lady Perfume is probably the classic Chanel No.

Welcome to the '50s

Although launched in 1948, Nina Ricci L'Air du Temps became one of the defining fragrances of the 1950s.

An unopened bottle of perfume is likely to remain fresher for longer, as it hasn't been oxidised. However, eventually, even an unopened perfume bottle will expire. To prolong its life, you need to keep the bottle in the right environment — we'll look more into this below.

FLEA MARKETS, ANTIQUE AND THRIFT STORES

Each town has them, and it is not rare to find a cheap gem from someone that is selling the stuff they don't need anymore or don't know what they have. This is probably the safest way to buy vintage fragrances since you can test and see the bottle in real person.

If so, you might want to give the Missing Person fragrance by Phlur a try. Created by perfumer Constance Georges-Picot, this delicate bottle is said to "evoke the lingering scent of your lover's skin," or as TikTok argues, the scent of anyone you love.