Reviews

Invictus

Published October 8, 2026

Invictus is the eau de toilette for men launched by Paco Rabanne in 2013, which became the original of an entire line. Véronique Nyberg composed it with Anne Flipo, Olivier Polge and Dominique Ropion, on the clash between a freshness of grapefruit and marine accord and a base of guaiac wood, patchouli and ambergris. Its trophy-shaped bottle was designed by Cédric Ragot.

For Kevin of Now Smell This, Invictus is an ugly, needless perfume, like hundreds of others, with the feel of a high school locker room.

What critics say

A damning verdict

Kevin devoted a Now Smell This review to Invictus on December 4, 2013. He tried it only on the back of his hand, and says so: he finds it ugly, pointless since hundreds of perfumes resemble it, and wishes to see it discontinued.

The reviewer describes an opening of sweet-and-sour fruit with a furry edge, perhaps the laurel, a sweetness that builds with indistinct florals, and a marine accent he compares to bilge water. He finds in it the tone of a high school locker room, shot through with whiffs of menthol.

An adolescent bottle

Kevin finds the bottle adolescent, while admitting it is a matter of taste. He wonders whether Invictus targets young men who find Axe deodorants too juvenile but do not want to give up their marine and sporty notes.

Near the end of its development, he notes a burnt musk and finds that the whole smells cheap. For this audience, he recommends instead Monsieur Balmain, Bvlgari Aqva pour Homme or Terre d’Hermès.