Spritz and Tell: 5 Fragrance Trends Everyone Will Be Talking About in 2027
October 20 | 5 minute read
Words by Danielle Gay
There is no better feeling than getting stopped on the street and asked about your perfume. But in an era of viral notes and rotating trends, the only way to replicate said experience is by getting ahead of everyone else. Funny you should ask...
We’re spotlighting five emerging fragrance trends we predict will be the next big thing. From underrated ingredients like bitter green mango, to distinctive profiles that capture a whole mood (think intense or nostalgic), the next crop of signature scents are experimental, unexpected and leave a lasting impression.
Don’t want to smell like everybody else? Here’s what to spritz next to help you stand out in a crowd.
The New Vanilla Perfumes: Grown-Up Gourmands
Known as the ‘neo-gourmand’ movement, the latest wave of vanilla fragrances is edgier than their sweeter counterparts, meaning they won’t leave you smelling like a bakery. Get ahead of the trend by looking towards scent combinations that are rich and sophisticated, using a complex vanilla alongside woods, spices, musks or unexpected notes.
Cult-favourite fragrance brand PHLUR’s recent drop, Vanilla Canyon EDP, is formulated to bottle the feeling of watching a warm sunrise. It’s grounded in notes of oak wood with an unexpected pop of velvety plum.
Buzzy new BYREDO launch Future Memories EDP brings a hit of green amber and bitter galbanum to the equation. Using a silky vanilla base swirling around juicy blackcurrant and leafy accords, it smells like eating a vanilla sundae in the woods.
For those who favour their sweet side, Editions de Parfums By Frédéric Malle Northern Love EDP is packed full of cosy nutmeg and cinnamon, alongside a big scoop of vanilla. It’s all balanced with creamy sandalwood essence and lingers on the skin like a long-awaited embrace from a lover.
Savoury Perfumes Are Having a Moment
Straight from the farm to your wrist, this trend has emerged as a nod to photorealistic savoury notes like herbs, vegetables or pressed olive oil. Designed to capture the true-to-life aromas of some of the most unassuming ingredients in your kitchen, these food-inspired scents turn heads for all the right reasons.
For the advanced fragrance wearers among us, Jo Malone London Scarlet Beetroot Cologne is giving veggie patch with freshly cut beetroot and a dash of patchouli, as is TSU LANGE YOR’s POOL but with a combination of cucumber, tomato leaf, raspberry and coriander destined to earn you compliments.
Can’t choose one? TSU LANGE YOR The Garden Set lets you try three fragrances with earthy roots: Fig, Orange Grove and Tomato are all ripe for the picking. Dig in.
The Next Big Fruity Fragrance Trend: Mango Perfumes
Move over berries, tropical fruits are the next big thing in fragrance! If you want to get ahead of the trend, opt for mango – an oft-overlooked note that’s about to have its moment in the sun. Never sickly sweet; the latest iterations offer something totally unique with creamy mango flesh or crisp, underripe green notes.
In Mango Skin EDP by Vilhelm Parfumerie, milky ripe mango is blended with a delicious concoction of black lotus and wild orris, creating the kind of fragrance that has you smelling your wrist all day long. A solar alternative is Maison Margiela REPLICA Chasing Sunsets EDT, which was inspired by Brazil’s Ipanema Beach at sundown and has a mango-cardamom accord alongside heady white flowers.
Guava, banana and mango – it sounds like the best smoothie you’ve never had, but it’s actually the notes used in Ellis Brooklyn’s Guava Granita EDP. Anchored by subtle whiffs of vanilla and almond milk to cut through the sweetness, it’s both sexy and addictive.
Smoky Perfumes: Dark, Woody and Intense
This trend signals a move towards darker, moodier fragrance profiles – look to compositions that are smoked, charred or use intense ingredients like wood and tobacco. Full of decadence and not for the faint-hearted, these are for you if you want to smolder (figuratively – fireplace not included).
The bottle itself sets the tone with Perfumer H Smoke EDP: pitch black and mysterious, reflecting the notes within – birch tar, cedar and sandalwood.
Perhaps the perfume equivalent of ‘does what it says on the tin’, D.S. & DURGA Burning Barbershop EDP smells like a 19th century barbershop caught ablaze; blackened cologne, spearmint and lime converge. Meanwhile, Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s Oud Satin Mood EDP is a smoother take on the trend – a rich, warm, silky oud with staying power.
Mermaid and Siren Scents: The New Aquatic Perfumes
Summer is calling, and so are the mermaids and sirens. These mythical creatures have made their way to our scents – the former referring to sparkling, luminous scents with cool aquatic notes, while the latter are moodier and sensual, with a skin-like edge. If traditional ocean-inspired perfumes have always felt a little too fresh, too clean, this new wave might tempt you.
For the mermaids, a total crowd-pleaser is Ellis Brooklyn Isla Sirena EDP. It's a solar perfume (fragrances made to mimic the sun’s rays) that transports the wearer straight to St Barths with fresh notes of coconut water, dewy papaya and salted lime.
With Kyma EDT, KORRES set out to conjure the fresh scent of being out on a boat at sea: salt-kissed skin, ocean breeze through your hair and mojito in hand (okay we added that part!). Top notes of cold lime and mandarin settle to a marine heart and an unexpectedly nutty base.
Think of Maison Margiela REPLICA Sailing Day EDT as a mermaid in a bottle: an aquatic accord is used alongside red seaweed, salty ambergris and subtle notes of iris and rose.
Want to explore the depths of the ocean rather than splash in the sun? Push the limits with The Naxos Apothecary Alyko EDP – the kind of fragrance that defies categories. A little bit earthy, a little bit aquatic, it’ll have people a) stopping you on the street to ask what you’re wearing and b) mistaking you for a siren, thanks to its salty twist.
Bois Océan by ORMAIE is equal parts fresh and woody and is sure to lure you in with notes of driftwood, citrus and sandalwood. The fragrance house wanted to evoke the special feeling of departing for sea during golden hour – siren call optional.
