Givenchy
Gentleman Eau de Toilette
Givenchy modernizes its Gentleman. Hubert de Givenchy was born in Beauvais. However, at barely 17 years old, he decided to move to Paris with a single idea in mind: to make a name for himself in the field of fashion. He began his career as a designer at only 24 years old.
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In 1952, he decided to found his own house. Then, barely a year later, Hubert de Givenchy met the young American actress Audrey Hepburn. A pivotal figure in his career, she encouraged him to venture into perfumery. This happened in 1957. However, it was not until 1973 that a first masculine line appeared within the house. This was followed by a masculine fragrance named Gentleman, in 1975. Now, it is precisely a modernized version of this iconic fragrance that Givenchy delivers in its new Eau de Toilette Gentleman.
Gentleman, a fragrance ahead of its time
For many years, perfumery was a factor exclusively reserved for women. Men, meanwhile, enhanced their grooming with a touch of Eau de Cologne. They particularly appreciated its freshness. However, the longevity of this product left something to be desired. Then, perfume as such made its appearance. Displaying a longer duration, it preserved for a very long time the freshness of Eaux de Cologne. Now, when Hubert de Givenchy decided to create the perfume Gentleman, he sensed that the men of his time had changed. To satisfy them, he crafted a fragrance at the opposite end of the overly timid fragrances of his era. Gentleman is not a clear and transparent fragrance. It is a seductive and daring perfume, displaying a spicy, wild and elegant masculinity. Gentleman then paved the way for many other fragrances, and success was immediate.
The new Eau de Toilette Gentleman
The new version of Gentleman managed to preserve the DNA of its predecessor while bringing it a touch of novelty. Once again, the idea is to stand out, and Gentleman is thus regarded as an immediately identifiable fragrance. Its scent opens with an intense and striking freshness. This is provided by the crisp presence of pear, a fresh fruit, barely ripe and very green. Then, Gentleman highlights one of the noblest flowers in the entire perfumer's palette: iris. This plant here delivers a very elegant powdery scent paired with one of the flagship ingredients of men's perfumery: lavender. The scent of Gentleman thus becomes more aromatic before evolving toward more eroticism. Finally, the Eau de Toilette Gentleman ends with a duo of leather and patchouli. On the bottle side, this fragrance is presented in a very graphic, massive and modern design. The look of its bottle is timeless and assertive. Its neoclassical style is very elegant, simply encircled by a black band at its center. Gentleman is available in a 50 ml or 100 ml size.
Olfactory pyramid
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The advertising
1975: Givenchy decides to offer a third masculine fragrance to men, crafting a refined yet powerful perfume, with a very couture aura. The fragrance in question is named Gentleman. 2017: Givenchy repeats the experience and chooses to modernize this composition, as if to depict a new portrait of today's man. Once again, its composition takes the name Gentleman. On the scent side, it is a woody and floral creation, completely different from the first edition of Gentleman. Moreover, to establish the notoriety of its fragrance, Givenchy decides to accompany it with a brand new advertisement. So, how about decoding with us the television ad for Gentleman? Back to the heart of a festive evening in the company of Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
The lively advertisement for Gentleman by Givenchy
The advertisement for the perfume Gentleman by Givenchy is filmed entirely in black and white. It all begins with the sight of a high-society dinner, during which a young man seems severely bored. Slumped in his chair, he does not take part in the conversation at all and stares off into the distance. Suddenly, accompanied by a kitten, he decides to put on a vinyl record. The evening then takes a completely different turn. The atmosphere becomes much more festive, and the guests are outright invited to dance on the table. The young man in question even leads a pretty young woman outside the house. The disco-funk rhythm of the advertisement speeds up as the euphoria rises a notch. The advertisement ends as the young woman pushes the face of the Gentleman campaign into the outdoor pool of the Bastide. It is then that the bottle of Gentleman by Givenchy appears against a black background.
Who is the face of the campaign for Gentleman by Givenchy?
The advertisement for Gentleman was directed by the British director Sam Taylor-Johnson. Now, the role of face of the campaign for this fragrance simply falls to her husband, Aaron Taylor-Johnson. An English actor, he is at the heart of cinematic news. Indeed, in January 2017, he won the Golden Globe for best supporting actor for the film Nocturnal Animals. However, it is not his wife who plays the seductive dark-haired woman in the advertisement. Here, he is accompanied by the Canadian model Elizabeth Salt.
Givenchy chooses to use a well-known musical track
To rally the crowd and accompany its advertisement, Givenchy chose the track Enjoy Yourself by the American rapper A+, from his second album Hempstead High, released in 1999. Now, this is a song with genuine success, appreciated for its disco and funk-influenced rhythm. Moreover, it is a cover of one of the most famous pieces in the world: Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. This had already been covered in 1976 by the Jackson Five. It was also the soundtrack of the film Saturday Night Fever. In other words, it is an ideal track to energize any evening, as Aaron Taylor-Johnson so aptly does here.