Annick Goutal

The tragic story of Annick Goutal

Originally, Annick Goutal began her artistic life with a professional career as a pianist. This lover of art in general spent many years in the world of music before giving up her profession to become a model in London. Then, a few years later, to help a friend who was launching a range of perfumed body creams, she went to Grasse, a Mediterranean town located not far from Nice and considered to be the world capital of perfumery. She was captivated by the world of fragrance and decided to learn the craft of perfumer there. More than a mere budding passion, mastery of scent proved to be a genuine gift for her. In 1981, Annick Goutal returned to Paris where she presented her first fragrant creation in collaboration with Henri Sorsona. Some of her early works, such as Eau d’Hadrien, met with immense success. Nevertheless, generally speaking, Annick Goutal is a house intended for a discerning clientele. Indeed, it does not follow trends and signs its own style. Then, in 1985, the Annick Goutal house was acquired by the Taittinger group, giving the house the means to expand internationally. Annick Goutal thus quickly became a star across the Atlantic. Yet this path strewn with stars was tarnished by illness. Annick Goutal died in August 1999 from cancer.

The continuation of the Annick Goutal adventure

Following Annick Goutal's death, the house was taken over by her daughter, Camille. The latter did not, however, come from the world of perfumery. A photography enthusiast, she nevertheless did not have the heart to let her mother's legacy fade away. She was thus trained by Isabelle Doyen, who introduced her to the craft of the nose. Since the early 2000s, Camille Goutal has therefore worked to carry on the family house's heritage. She says she transforms her emotions into fragrances, each creation symbolizing a moment of happiness, a feeling, a powerful memory tied to a lived moment or to a loved one. She has thus given life to fragrances named Mandragore, Songes and Matin d’Orage, always highly poetic compositions. Today, since 2011, Annick Goutal fragrances have been acquired by the Korean group Amore Pacific, which owns numerous luxury brands in Asia, including the iconic Lolita Lempicka. Annick Goutal is a house synonymous with ultra-femininity. Moreover, Camille Goutal's takeover of the house has given it a new lease of life. As Élisabeth de Feydeau, perfumery specialist and historian, explains, Camille is not her mother, and together with Isabelle, they have managed to move forward, remaining faithful without falling into repetition or the cult of memory. Annick would recognize herself in their creations.