Masculinity, Rebottled: How Marketing Men’s Scents Are Evolving
In 2025, men’s fragrances are shifting away from archetypal notions of power and seduction, embracing a more nuanced concept of masculinity. Where campaigns once relied heavily on models and sex appeal-led narratives to define marketing strategies, a growing number of luxury houses are exploring introspection, artistry and ingredient-led storytelling. This recalibration reflects broader cultural shifts in how men relate to the self-expression and sensory experience of scent. At the same time, LUXUO also examines how traditional campaigns continue to leverage celebrity ambassadors, high-profile personalities and aspirational imagery to communicate masculinity through mass recognition and desirability. By juxtaposing these approaches, pne can understand how scent and storytelling intersect to shape modern fragrance marketing. This recalibration reflects broader cultural shifts in how men relate to self-expression and sensory experience of fragrances.
The following five conceptual launches exemplify this pivot, demonstrating how the scent itself — its raw materials, structure and olfactory narrative — has become the primary vehicle for communicating depth and individuality.
Balenciaga Fragrance Collection
Balenciaga’s 2025 collection exemplifies a conceptual, ingredient- and heritage-led approach to fragrance, where technology, archival research, and olfactive composition take precedence over ambassador-driven campaigns. The collection’s ten fragrances — including No Comment, Getaria, Twenty Four Seven, To Be Confirmed, Muscara, Le Dix, 100%, Extra, Cristóbal and Incense Perfumum — foreground dualities such as tradition and innovation, nature and science, luminosity and shadow.
Each scent is anchored in materiality, from the resinous, woody facets of No Comment to the operatic floral intensity of 100%, and reflects Balenciaga’s signature fusion of couture precision with perfumery craft. Campaign visuals — created by Katerina Jebb through high-resolution scanning — underscore this focus on objecthood: the flacons, packaging and ingredients are rendered with meticulous detail, mirroring the House’s attention to olfactive architecture. The recreated Le Dix flacon and patinated packaging signal a dialogue between the past and present, turning heritage into a tactile and visual element that reinforces the concept-driven identity of the collection. Through this approach, Balenciaga frames masculinity as an experience embedded in the transformative power of scent.
John Varvatos Artisan Forest
John Varvatos’ Artisan Forest leans into ingredient-led storytelling, using the symbolism of nature rather than a model to express its message. The campaign places self-discovery and solitude at its centre, aligning with the wider pivot in men’s fragrance marketing where brands are drawing on mood, environment and materiality to communicate identity. The focus on fig leaf, cedarwood and vétiver positions masculinity as measured and introspective, distancing itself from the outward sensuality that once dominated the category. The woven green bottle and wooden cap reinforce this shift, presenting the fragrance as an artisanal object shaped by craft and raw texture. Tranquil, balanced, and uninhibited, this rare and artisanal woody green fragrance captures the rhythm of the forest. By foregrounding the relationship between scent and setting, Artisan Forest underscores how men’s fragrances are increasingly sold as experiences rather than symbols of conquest. Artisan Forest instead signals a return to authenticity built through composition and atmosphere rather than character performance.
EX NIHILO Blue Talisman Extrait de Parfum
EX NIHILO — a Parisian fragrance house founded in 2013 by a trio of creatives — positions itself as an alternative to stereotyped luxury and mass personalisation. As a house built on French codes and Place Vendôme refinement, EX NIHILO’s Blue Talisman Extrait relies on its technical savoir-faire and the idea of the fragrance itself rather than a model as the protagonist. The new Extrait pushes this approach by amplifying its raw materials — an overdose of pear, a white-flower core and a dense ambery base — positioning the scent as an object of olfactory engineering rather than image-driven fantasy. The house’s commitment to experimentation with scent structures reinforces its position as a leader in ingredient-focused, concept-driven men’s fragrances rather than a reliance on overtly sensual campaigns, choosing instead to market the notion of masculinity in a more nuanced and introspective way.
Creed Absolu Aventus
Creed has revisited one of its most iconic male-fragrance lines, refreshing the house’s signature DNA to offer something simultaneously familiar and new. Creed’s Absolu Aventus is an ingredient-led reimagining of the house’s beloved Aventus. The fragrance foregrounds olfactive complexity, highlighting citrus, pineapple, Haitian vetiver and warming spices as its central narrative. The jet-black bottle signals the scent’s intensity and layered character, reflecting the precision and care of its formulation rather than relying on visual storytelling. Absolu Aventus is part of Creed’s broader strategy to frame masculinity through contrast — freshness and depth, brightness and warmth — allowing the composition itself to define sophistication rather than a projected persona. By rooting the campaign in its ingredients and the “millésime” concept of selective quality, Creed emphasises the expertise and artistry behind the fragrance, catering to consumers who prioritise olfactory experience and craftsmanship over external narratives.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540 Édition Millésime
Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s Baccarat Rouge 540 Collection demonstrates how a modern fragrance can convey identity through its composition alone, emphasising craftsmanship and olfactory signature over model-driven imagery. Limited to only 54 bottles per year for the next decade, this edition is encased in hand-blown red crystal by Baccarat and finished with a 24-karat gold cap, each bottle individually numbered and engraved. The extrait de parfum amplifies the luminous, woody-ambery-floral signature of the original, blending Grandiflorum jasmine, Ambroxan, saffron and Cashmeran to create a composition defined by intensity and sillage. The striking red bottle mirrors the perfume’s radiant presence, reinforcing the idea that the object — its formulation, longevity and interplay of notes — carries the message of luxury. By foregrounding the transformative power of raw materials, Baccarat Rouge 540 frames modern masculinity through complexity and refinement, inviting the wearer to engage with the fragrance as an experiential statement rather than a curated image.
BOSS Bottled Beyond
BOSS Bottled Beyond exemplifies a traditional, ambassador-driven approach to marketing, leveraging high-profile figures to embody the values of success, ambition and camaraderie. By enlisting Bradley Cooper, Maluma and Vinicius Junior, the campaign communicates a multi-dimensional vision of masculinity rooted in achievement, influence and interpersonal connection, creating aspirational narratives that extend beyond the fragrance itself.
The scent — a premium ginger-leather Eau de Parfum — mirrors this duality, balancing electrifying freshness with deep, carnal warmth and is engineered at a high concentration with innovative extraction technologies for maximum performance. The design of the bottle, from its black lacquer and leather-touch trim to the engraved Double-B monogram, signals quality and status in a language instantly legible to consumers, reinforcing the ambassador-driven narrative. In contrast to conceptual launches, Bottled Beyond uses personalities to contextualise the fragrance, framing masculinity as something socially recognised rather than introspectively experienced.
Armani Stronger With You Parfum
Emporio Armani’s Stronger With You Parfum places Nicholas Galitzine front and centre, using his global appeal and refined, yet relatable image to embody the fragrance’s vision of modern masculinity. Galitzine’s presence conveys warmth and confidence, transforming the campaign into a story of connection and desire — a departure from the traditional “power‐perfume” approach. Dancing amidst a lively ensemble, he illustrates how the fragrance complements social energy and charisma, reinforcing the idea that “Stronger With You” is as much about personality and shared moments as it is about scent. By anchoring the campaign around Galitzine, Armani leverages his aspirational aura to make the fragrance feel like an extension of identity, style and relational magnetism.
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