Mugler Perfume pioneered ‘responsible luxury’ in the Fragrance Category by introducing a perfume bottle refilling station concept in 1992, called The Source. Its iconic Angel fragrance was the first juice available in this filling fountain. Today, with environmental issues being a high priority for an increasingly aware consumer, the couture perfume brand is stepping up its efforts. Providing the opportunity for Australian consumers to help minimise waste they are offering them the opportunity to recycle their old fragrance bottles and introduce them to The Source.
From the 7-21 July customers can visit participating Myer stores in Sydney and Melbourne to drop off any brand of an empty fragrance bottle into the Mugler x TerraCycle recycle bottle bins and receive a complimentary empty Mugler miniature bottle in return to refill at The Source for free.
The Source plays on the 18th century tradition of perfume fountains. It gives the Fragrance Advisors in store a role in luxury service where they can interact with customers during the process. Far from it being perceived as an inexpensive option, it is positioned as responsible luxury. And perfect for the role of the Advisor, it provides an opportunity to engage with customers as the refilling is performed. The BAs receive training in the brand’s gestures and ritual, emphasising its elegance. Each bottle is treated like a treasure. The Fragrance Advisor wears a black satin glove and engages with the customer as the heart of the ritual. She entrusts her jewel-like bottles to the Advisor, who refills them. The precious bottle is then given new life before her eyes: it is polished with care, and any parts are replaced, bringing it back to the shiny object it was when it was first created. On full sizes, they receive a 40 per cent discount for refilling instead of repurchasing. The customer saves money while also taking part in responsible practice.
Twenty-five years on, this initiative has achieved huge momentum as the stats show:
1 Mugler bottle is now refilled every 25 seconds and the latest data shows that over 1.2 million bottles were re-filled last year. That’s some 4320 bottles reused every day*.
Luxury done differently.
Jean Bailliard, General Manager of TerraCycle Australia and New Zealand comments: “At TerraCycle, our mission is to eliminate the idea of waste by repurposing complex waste streams and turning them into new products. Mugler’s eco-friendly perfume refilling concept is an excellent example of how we can work together to create circular economy initiatives that are more sustainable.”
ANGEL AND ALIEN TWO ICONIC FRAGRANCES REFILLABLE AT 12,000 SOURCES WORLDWIDE
These Sources have made it possible to… refill 803,000 litres since 1992 or the equivalent of 32 million 25ml bottles*.
1.2 million bottles were refilled in 2017 worldwide…all of them reused*.
30% of the MUGLER 2018 brand sales in Australia achieved thanks to the Source**
*Source: Internal Clarins Data –FY2017 – All sizes combined
**Source: Beauty Update Australasia – Calendar Year 2018 – All sizes combined