Loja Weekly: Fragrance Powers L'Oréal Luxe Growth | 17–23 Oct 2026
Earnings week delivered a clear verdict: fragrance is the engine of luxury beauty. L'Oréal's Luxe division grew 12.3% in the third quarter on the back of Yves Saint Laurent, Lancôme and Creed fragrances, and Puig posted its highest-ever third-quarter revenue with double-digit growth in niche fragrance. On the launch front, Floraïku expanded its most luxurious line, and Bertrand Duchaufour signed an oud-and-ambergris scent for a young house. Here is the global fragrance news from 17 to 23 October 2026.
Deals and business
L'Oréal: fragrance drives Luxe to €4.2 billion
On 22 October, L'Oréal reported third-quarter sales of around €11.6 billion, up 11.9% (7.2% like-for-like). Luxe grew 12.3% to €4.2 billion, driven mainly by fragrance from Yves Saint Laurent, Lancôme and Creed [1]. The South Asia Pacific, Middle East, North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa zone was the fastest-growing region, up 21% [1]. For Gulf readers: houses like Creed keep growing inside the world's largest beauty group, which means more investment in launches and distribution.
Creed Aventus 100ml Eau de Parfum
Creed is one of the houses L'Oréal named as a driver of its Luxe growth, and Aventus is its best-known signature.
Shop it at Loja →
Lancôme Idôle 100ml Eau de Parfum
Lancôme is part of the trio that led L'Oréal's fragrance growth this quarter.
Shop it at Loja →
Yves Saint Laurent Saharienne Sultry Neroli 125ml Eau de Parfum
From YSL's couture Le Vestiaire des Parfums collection, signed by Alberto Morillas.
Shop it at Loja →
Gucci moves to L'Oréal in mid-2027
In its Q3 revenue release on 22 October, Kering noted that Gucci and L'Oréal signed a 50-year exclusive beauty licence in July, expected to take effect in mid-2027 subject to regulatory approvals and the early termination of Gucci's current agreement with Coty [2]. Gucci fragrance will change hands in less than a year, and a new owner usually means new launches and revisions.
Puig: record Q3 and double-digit niche growth
On 22 October, Puig reported record third-quarter revenue of €1.39 billion, up 5.6% like-for-like. Fragrance and Fashion, about 71% of revenue, grew 3.9% to €985.8 million, with double-digit growth in niche fragrance and a strong showing from Carolina Herrera [3]. Puig owns niche houses such as Penhaligon's, and continued growth here confirms that the taste for distinctive scent is no passing trend.
Carolina Herrera Good Girl 80ml Eau de Parfum
Carolina Herrera is the house Puig singled out in its quarterly performance.
Shop it at Loja →
Penhaligon's Babylon 100ml Eau de Parfum
A niche house in Puig's portfolio: vanilla, saffron and sandalwood, with warmth suited to the start of winter.
Shop it at Loja →
Interparfums: flat sales as Montblanc and Coach advance
On 21 October, Interparfums reported flat third-quarter sales of $430 million after about $10 million of US gift-set shipments slipped into Q4. Coach grew 23% and Montblanc 12% on Legend Elixir and Explorer Infinite, and the company said the situation in the Middle East cut about 1% from quarterly sales [4]. The takeaway for the Gulf: demand for established designer scents is steady, and gift sets are arriving slightly late this season.
Montblanc Explorer 100ml Eau de Parfum
The Explorer line was among Montblanc's growth drivers this quarter, according to Interparfums.
Shop it at Loja →
Chanel sells majority stake in Capsum
On 20 October, Motion Equity Partners announced it had acquired a majority stake in Capsum, the French microfluidics specialist that makes skincare, make-up and fragrance products for luxury houses, with Chanel remaining a minority shareholder [5]. A glimpse behind the scenes: behind every luxury bottle sits a network of specialist manufacturers few people know.
Launches
Floraïku adds four scents to Edition 3776
Glossy reported on 20 October that Floraïku Paris has added four scents to its most luxurious line, Edition 3776, named after Mount Fuji's height: Make My Heart Sing, Many Different Stories, Lost For Words and Bows And Arrows. They join I Am Not A Flower, launched in 2018 [6]. Co-founder John Molloy says perfumers were given premium ingredients with no cost ceiling [6]. For Gulf lovers of quiet luxury, this is a line built on rare materials rather than loud marketing.
Floraïku I Am Not A Flower Gift Set 50ml + 10ml
The scent that opened Edition 3776 before this week's expansion.
Shop it at Loja →
Bertrand Duchaufour signs Festin for L'Entropiste
Young house L'Entropiste unveiled Festin on 21 October, a 25% concentration inspired by a banquet in Nero's palace as Rome burned, by perfumer Bertrand Duchaufour. Top notes of blackberry, violet leaf and a truffle accord with a salty touch of caviar; a heart of marine-tinged shagreen leather; and a base of oud with an ambergris accord [7]. When a perfumer of Duchaufour's stature builds a new work on oud, it confirms oud has become a global language in niche perfumery.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian celebrates the Grand Siècle for the holidays
Wallpaper went behind the scenes on 20 October of Maison Francis Kurkdjian's 2026 holiday campaign, built around a handcrafted miniature of the Théâtre de la Reine at Versailles, with Kurkdjian himself appearing as a dancer. The house is celebrating its best-loved creations and debuting new ones, with the full film on its website on 1 November [8]. Holiday season is gift-set season, and the house is opening it early.
Raw materials and sustainability
IFEAT's 12 sustainability finalists: wood-based vanillin and fallen-fruit tonka
Perfumer & Flavorist+ published on 19 October the finalists for the 2026 sustainability award of IFEAT, the International Federation of Essential Oils and Aroma Trades. Highlights include Borregaard's vanillin made from spruce with about 90% lower emissions than fossil-based vanillin, Venezuelan tonka beans gathered from fallen fruit without felling trees, and programmes for patchouli in Indonesia and tuberose in India [9]. These materials sit at the heart of the warm scents Gulf fragrance lovers favour, and sustainable sourcing means steadier supply and quality.
What to watch next week
- Q3 earnings season continues for other fragrance groups and ingredient suppliers.
- Maison Francis Kurkdjian's full holiday film on 1 November, and the names of its new releases [8].
- IFRA: the 52nd Amendment will be presented at a conference on 24 November, with formal notification of the final Standards expected in January 2027 [10].
- 11.11 approaches: delayed US gift sets start reaching shelves.
Explore the international houses making headlines in Loja's collection, and see you in next week's edition of Loja Weekly.
Sources
- Premium Beauty News — L'Oréal accelerates in Q3, with growth across all divisions (23 Oct 2026) — https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/l-oreal-accelerates-in-q3-with,28397
- Kering — Revenue for the Third Quarter of 2026 (official release, 22 Oct 2026) — https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/10/22/3386683/0/en/kering-revenue-for-the-third-quarter-of-2026.html
- Premium Beauty News — Puig hits record Q3 sales on makeup and fragrance growth (22 Oct 2026) — https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/puig-hits-record-q3-sales-on,28392
- Investing.com — Interparfums Q3 sales flat at $430 million as U.S. giftset shipments delayed (21 Oct 2026) — https://www.investing.com/news/earnings/interparfums-q3-sales-flat-at-430-million-as-us-giftset-shipments-delayed-4961710
- Premium Beauty News — Motion Equity Partners takes over microfluidics specialist Capsum (21 Oct 2026) — https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/motion-equity-partners-takes-over,28385
- Glossy — Beauty Briefing: Would you buy a $775 fragrance sight unseen? (20 Oct 2026) — https://www.glossy.co/beauty/beauty-briefing-would-you-buy-a-775-fragrance-sight-unseen/
- Premium Beauty News — L'Entropiste indulges in olfactory decadence with Festin (21 Oct 2026) — https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/l-entropiste-indulges-in-olfactory,28383
- Wallpaper — Francis Kurkdjian 2026 holiday campaign (20 Oct 2026) — https://wallpaper.com/fashion-beauty/fragrance/francis-kurkdjian-2026-holiday-campaign-bts
- Perfumer & Flavorist+ — Waste, Wood and Wild Botanicals: IFEAT's 2026 Sustainability Finalists (19 Oct 2026) — https://www.perfumerflavorist.com/fragrance/ingredients/article/22976708/waste-wood-and-wild-botanicals-ifeats-2026-sustainability-finalists
- IFRA — IFRA to present the 52nd Amendment at Global Cosmetics Regulations 2026 — https://ifrafragrance.org/latest-updates/ifra-news/ifra-52nd-amendment-global-cosmetics-regulations-2026
