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Hedonist

Paragon Initio 2022

8.2 / 10 1343 Ratings

A popular perfume by Initio for women and men, released in 2022. The scent is creamy-fruity. The longevity is above-average. It is still in production.
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Main accords

Creamy

Fruity

Sweet

Woody

Spicy

Fragrance Notes

White sage

Lavender

Palo Santo

Sandalwood

Bergamot

Black pepper Oud

Oud

Ratings

Scent

8.21343 Ratings

Longevity

8.11211 Ratings

Sillage

7.71205 Ratings

Bottle

8.41169 Ratings

Value for money

6.71039 Ratings

Submitted by multiple users · last update on 02/07/2026.

Source-backed & verified

Interesting Facts

The fragrance is part of the Hedonist collection.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Vintage Radio

Virtora

Paradigm

Al Nashama

Orodion Blanc

Myrrh & Tonka Cologne Intense

Reviews

57 in-depth fragrance descriptions

02/21/2024

10Scent 10Longevity 9Sillage

Nanaafromgha
156 Reviews

Nanaafromgha

Helpful Review 3

The scent of pure comfort

Wow, what a fragrance. I used to be someone that was pretty indifferent to woodies, but as my nose is “maturing”, I’m finding myself being drawn to them. That being said, Paragon is definitely one of the best woody aromatics I’ve ever smelled.

As the review below said, I wasn’t expecting to get such a large dose of the plum, but it really balances the forest of woods and herbs surrounding it. To me, it’s unisex leaning ever so slightly masculine, and it’s absolutely so gorgeous. It’s the perfect scent to wear literally whenever because it doesn’t shout, but it stays present and reminds you it’s there. It’s clean, cozy, and comforting, but also kind of sensual? It has this smoothness that draws you in, and the sweet touch of plum just adds a bit of cheekiness. I really enjoy it a lot. I blind picked this one in a raffle-type contest that I won and I’m so glad I took a chance on it.

The projection is really strong at first, but it settles down after about two hours and gradually dwindles into a skin scent by hour 7-8 and onward. My fav so far from Initio and I can’t wait to test it in the warmer weather.

11/06/2024

10Scent

Redrot
32 Reviews

Redrot

Helpful Review 4

cool mountaintop air

The plum is tart and juicy, the sage and lavender are herbal and licorice-spicy, the palo santo is airy and elevating. Wish I could afford it...

I'm standing on top of a mountain I've just summited, looking out over a green valley and over to other peaks. The fresh, thin air swirls in my lungs, burning pleasantly against my hot insides.

12/30/2024

9Scent 9Longevity 7Sillage

Karapar12
2 Reviews

Karapar12

3

Great fall/winter/spring signature

Plump and juicy plum, aromatic/incensey qualities with the white sage and palo santo bringing also a green element to the fragrance, overall fruity/woody being perfectly unisex. Great signature scent (I just wouldn't use it in the high heat.)

Longevity is great, lasting anywhere from 8-10hours, projection is a bit lacking though. Maybe it's because I have a 80% alcohol content bottle but I do have to overspray a bit. Solid 9/10.

10/19/2022

8.5Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

NicheOnly
130 Reviews

NicheOnly

5

The sample tricked me

Edit: I originally wrote this review in mid-October 2022, around 2 weeks after Paragon was first revealed by Initio. What I have since found is that the experience previously described in this review did not align whatsoever with my full bottle experience. As such, I revised this review in March 2023.

---

As somebody that's fairly deep in the hobby now, I typically start off thinking about the accords, notes, and comparables. "Paragon" opens feminine-aromatic and sweet, most resembling women's hair products or something among those lines as it has that known (well-recognizable) musky-type sweetness. But the opening and top notes don't tell the story of Paragon. In the instant drydown, you get a lot of aromatic-woody tones with a considerable amount of smokiness from the palo santo in the base. It's definitely not Amouage type smoky, but it is noticeable.

For scent comparables, objectively speaking I don't think there are any. The opening has resemblance to the musky tones found in "Musk Therapy | Initio", a different scent in the Hedonist collection. The opening has vibes resembling scents like Dear Polly Eau de Parfum and Gris Charnel Eau de Parfum, but that is more-so to describe the accords of Paragon and not the scent. In the deep drydown, I find some resemblance to Imperator which is a creamy sandalwood fragrance.

My experience differed between the sample and the bottle as the sample had a lot more of the fruity-musky opening tones relative to the aromatic-woody-smoky tones that are in majority with my full bottle. As such, the scent that I previously found to open feminine and dry leaning feminine is now a leaning feminine open into a leaning masculine drydown. However, the other 2 Hedonist collection scents are more clear as Musk Therapy has a clear feminine lean and Rehab has a clear masculine lean.

Initio has subsequently to the release raised the price of the 90ml from €245 to €250, with US customers getting hit even harder. To me, Paragon is a spring aromatic and gets moderate sillage for up to 3-4 hours, with longevity between 8-10 hours. The scent is worth a look for somebody looking for a fairly unique smelling spring-fall fragrance. Scent does not perform well in winter weather and isn't the most fitting for summer.

Updated on 03/14/2023

11/13/2024

7Scent

Telekinec
526 Reviews

Telekinec

2

Strong liquorish herbs followed by jammy plums and woodiness

I'm starting to think the Initio house isn't made for my nose or skin chemistry. I haven't loved, nor liked any fragrances I've tried from them as of now. This one is no different.

There's a strong herbal start with the clary sage and lavender. I usually love those notes in perfume (I have a few bottles in my collection that have those notes), but here, they're screechy and annoying. There's also that mysterious, tart cherry note I've smelled in other Initio perfumes. All in all, it becomes a herbal, liquorish scent that veers straight into masculine territory. It smelled almost like a common blue freshie I'd see a man buy at a designer store. As it moves on, I start getting the plum and the palo santo with some dirty woody notes and spices in the background. Plums are jammy and palo santo is creamy. Both of them together somehow reminded me of You Rêve that I've recently smelled. It's nice and comfy, warm on the skin. I also get some black pepper at the edge of the scent that gives a gentle kick of spiciness and some depth. As it dries down, it becomes dark and creamy woods. I'm not sure I'm a fan of oud, but here it's a bit more tame and palatable.

All in all, it's an okay fragrance, but nothing that's a wow factor to me. I hated the beginning that reminded me of a generic designer freshie for men and the rest is just meh. Won't be making it to my collection but I'm glad I could try it.

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