People voted for President Donald Trump, wearing his shoes, hat and watch, and soon they could make calls on the phone. However, there seems to be another addition, that one can experience everything about Trump: This makes us the Commander-in-Chief, the Commander-in-Chief’s ever-expanding fragrance collection.
The Man’s Victory 47 promises “a rich, male notes, with exquisite performance” without actually listing any ingredient or its scent profile. It is beneficial that early comments from users on the fragrance forum described it as “Oriental Qualification” but only 1.9 out of 10 points.
Price-wise, the 3.3 ounces of fluid ounce is $249, which rivals luxury lines like Tom Ford Noir Extreme ($240 for 3 ounces), but the cachet between the two may be a far cry from Tom and Donald’s politics.
For a personal brand that prides itself on simple and masculine metaphors, perfume seems like a weird option, but according to NPD Group data, U.S. celebrity perfumes hit $148.5 million between August 2022 and 2023, a 30% increase over the same period of the same year. While this isn’t exactly monumental money, who doesn’t want that pie when you can leave the Guunt work to a third party?
That higher but non-noble price of $249 also puts Trump perfume ahead of the more refined celebrity scent field. On one hand, names like Jennifer Lopez and Antonio Banderas have long been on the shelves around the globe, with their lower-market side quotes (think $25 per purchase). Stars like Ariana Grande are a huge market on the ladder, with sweet candy bottles on them for $45 to $68. Then we have Rhiannas and Billie Eilishes on the $140 court, affordable luxury.
It’s not The Donald’s first foray into the world of celebration stink, of course—back in the misty, pre-presidential days of 2004 we had Donald Trump The Fragrance (courtesy of midrange powerhouse Estée Lauder), then Success by Trump in 2012 followed by Empire by Trump in 2015 (both by the parent company of Parlux, which produces Eilish’s fragment line).
Of course, this is not the first time we want to know what power actually looks like: Kennedy famously had the Eight and Bob and Jockey Club during his tenure, but he did not license his name and “portrait” to a third party, which he probably never bought.
Despite this, Trump’s brand spread plan has attracted the attention of authoritarians. Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has his own perfume collection, provided by Brazilian beauty brand Agustin Fernandez, although the retail store is retailing at a retail price ($50).
Like Melania Trump, former Brazilian first lady Michelle Bolsonaro has taken action with the launch in 2024. Maybe Donald will exchange free bottles with Jair, or maybe a rare liar for Putin-inspired leaders, a growing number of leaders in Russia? Mind and nostrils – boggle.
