Review: Jovoy Paris, the address for niche perfume lovers

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After Lisbon, we came back to Paris – for 2 days – before heading to Normandy (for a month) with our cat Rosalie. I’ll tell you about Normandy later. Today, I’ll first tell you about my quick but very interesting visit to Jovoy Paris.

I went there to find a new perfume.

Since I was a little girl, thanks to my rather developed sense of smell, I’ve always loved and worn perfumes. Lately, due to an unknown element/change (diet?), my perfumes are starting to make me feel sick, and not knowing what types of perfumes suit me anymore, I clearly needed help.

That’s when I discovered through a private Facebook group the name Jovoy, a store selling niche perfumes. Since I had to pass by the area, I planned to spend 30 minutes there.

JOVOY PARIS
4 Rue de Castiglione, 75001 Paris
jovoyparis.com

Despite the store’s 5-star location (near Concorde), its huge stock (more than 1000 perfumes), and the sober, elegant design, the welcome is very very warm (and not snobby like in some places).

I was in hiker mode (world tour clothes required) and at no point was I looked down on 😀

Knowing that the store’s strength is the advice, I immediately approached a saleswoman to ask for her advice.

She asked me what types of perfumes and the names of the perfumes I wear/like. And then she started presenting perfumes from different families (citrus, floral, fougère, woody, etc.) to understand my tastes.

The perfume is sprayed onto a paper strip, on which she writes the name of the perfume. If I like it, I keep the strip; if not, I put it on the table (so I don’t clutter myself with papers).

At no point does she tell me the name of the perfume/brand or show me the bottle… so the marketing/packaging has no impact on me, and my only job is to know whether or not I like the strip of paper in my hand.

At one point, she presents a perfume that assaults my nose as much as the second perfume presented, I comment on it, and she makes the connection between the two, telling me that the common scent is rose, and it’s probably the very pronounced rose smell that I don’t like after all.

That’s how we move forward step by step. After about ten perfumes, I hit my limit. Since there’s one perfume I really like, I decide to stop there. We could have continued, the saleswoman shows no impatience at all, well, I think we were ready to test 20 more perfumes if I wanted 😀

I also noticed another customer lingering in the store since I arrived, testing lots of perfumes himself, and no one came to pressure him. I read on the internet that this was the temple of niche perfume lovers in Paris. You can really take your time here.

So, it’s only at this point that I ask what the paper strip corresponds to, the one whose scent has been obsessing me for a while. She shows me the bottle, I finally have the perfume’s name, we talk about the ingredients, the philosophy of this perfume house whose existence I didn’t know. And then, I ask… the price.

The price

So, even though these are niche perfumes, prices vary enormously, from 30€ to 300€ (or more). I didn’t give the saleswoman a price limit, but I set a limit in my head (100€).

Unfortunately, the perfume I fell for costs 170€ for 100ml and there’s no smaller size (at least in their store) than that. Carrying 100ml around the world is unimaginable anyway.

The sample

I was about to leave the shop (the perfume is too expensive for me) when the saleswoman kindly offered to spray the perfume on my wrist to see how it evolves on my skin. And she also gave me, free of charge, a sample of the perfume, so I could test it over several days.

At no point was I pressured into buying anything.And even though I really liked the perfume in the shop, I was still advised to take my time and test it on my skin (because perfume doesn’t react the same way on paper as it does on a person).

If I had fallen for several perfumes, I would have received several free samples (1ml) as well.

What I loved

• The knowledge and passion of the saleswomen—they are light-years ahead of Sephora sales assistants, who always steer you toward the most expensive perfumes or the ones they earn the most commission on at the time.
• Rare perfumes that not everyone wears.
• Quality perfumes, because the fragrance houses are smaller and focus more on quality and creativity rather than having to “please everyone” or set a price limit.
• My perfume: she chose very well for me. It’s the first time I’ve liked a perfume this much, and the scent evolves beautifully on my skin.
• There are other JOVOY boutiques in Le Mans, London, Dubai… and they also have an e-commerce site.

What I liked less

• I thought I’d find vintage or discontinued perfumes there (I thought I’d find my Midnight Poison— don’t judge), but I was told that the quality of vintage perfumes couldn’t be guaranteed, so they sell little-known perfumes that are still in production.
• Even though the store is very well ventilated, it still smells strongly of perfume. It’s a shame because a few years ago, apparently you could smell the perfumes directly on the stoppers, which avoided scenting the entire store.

In short, I recommend with my eyes closed this extraordinary boutique for your next trip to Paris or if you’re looking for an exceptional gift for yourself.

In the end, I managed to find a smaller size by contacting the perfumer directly, but I will definitely come back to JOVOY (this time stating my budget lol).

I’ve also heard great things about their candles. Apparently, they don’t tunnel, burn evenly, scent the room very quickly, and come with a glass cloche.

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