Chanel's Les Exclusifs reformulation

I think most people know by now that Chanel plans to stop production of their Les Exclusifs EdTs in September 2016 and reformulate them to EdPs. All of the ramifications of this are unclear to me, but I am considering whether or not I should acquire either 31 Rue Cambon, No. 22, and/or Coromandel before they are reformulated.

What do you think? Are any of you planning to purchase any of the current formulations before Chanel stops producing them? Do you think the planned EdPs will be better or worse than the current EdTs? What do you think will be the price increase for the EdPs? Will it be worth it to wait for the EdPs and pay higher prices?

Its impossible to know what the EdP's will be like, whether they will be stronger versions of the existing EdT's or more or less reformulated.

An SA at the Marais store told me the intention is to a) give them greater odour yields, and b) bring them into conformity with IFRA regulations. The former seems relatively benign, but the latter is a cause for concern.

My limited experience of Les Exclusifs has been mixed and I can't advise you how to proceed, except to try and sample them first.

Regarding the price, Boy sells at 320€ for 200ml, probably indicating the direction of travel for the new range.

^^^ Yes, my guess is that the EdPs will be priced at $250 for 75 ml. Perhaps they will be less, but I think it is doubtful that they will much less. I am tempted to at least purchase a 75 ml bottle of Coromandel now. A number of reviewers say Coromandel EdT's longevity and projection are pretty decent. The reviews of some of the others, e.g. Misia and 1932, however, are abysmal.

Not here.

"Les Exclusifs de Chanel - Misia"

"Les Exclusifs de Chanel - 1932 (Eau de Toilette)"

^^^ Enjoyed your review of Misia! If you browse over the reviews of the Les Exlusifs on Fragrantica, for example, you will find a lot of reviewers complaining of poor longevity.

I acquired Bois des Iles, and it is truly lovely, but it has poor longevity. Likewise, sillage and projection are not especially good. I have kept it, however, because it is just so beautiful.

Yesterday I made the trip with my daughter and smelled all the Chanel Exclusives. Oriane, my SA said four of the EdTs are to be replaced by slightly tweaked ("elevated" I think was the word she used) parfums. She wouldn't call them reformulations. Can't remember exactly which ones, though I've emailed to ask. It may have been 31 Rue Cambon, 1932, also possibly Bel Respiro and Bois de Iles. She said Eau de Cologne will be discontinued entirely.

I sniffed all 16 Exclusivs expect 28 La Pausa, but I came away with FB's of 1932 and No. 22. 1932 is a powdery oriental on the less ambery side. I like it better than 31 Rue Cambon, which is a lot greener, if still made luxurious by cistus and bergamot. I find both Cabotine and Cabochard more compelling. For me, 1932 is a stunner--not as loud as Jardins de Bagatelle EdT but with a similarly impressive floral composition.

I don't think they're changing Boy, which she said is the top seller of the Exclusivs. It's just out and it smells great, but its particular citrus/herbal combo doesn't personally appeal to me. I wore No. 22 years ago and was glad to rediscover it. Usually can't resist a well-done Neroli, Orange blossom, Tuberose combo, especially if enhanced by Jasmine. Jersey and Beige were new discoveries. I like them both and brought home decants to see if I'll grow to love them. I have Coromandel around here somewhere, I think, but in the end it was 1932 and No. 22 I couldn't risk losing to a reformulation. May have more to say tomorrow when I retest.

Thank you for the report, ScentFan. : ) I am still tempted to order 31 Rue Cambon. I finally tried on my Coromandel today, and I must say it is very nice. I definitely see how this one can be worn by men, too. I think I still prefer both vintage Coco and Bois des Iles over this one though. I am getting some odd notes in Coromandel that I cannot identify. They are sort of green and herbal (has to be the patchouli but it is not like the patchouli I have smelt in Miss Dior (new) or in Angel for example) but sort of sweet, too. I will have to wear this a few more times before I am able to do a fair review of it. I have only had it on for about thirty minutes so far, but the projection and sillage seem good at this point. I am anxious to know how long it will last on my skin. Coromandel is not one that I have heard has poor longevity. We will see.

I like 31 Rue Cambon more than Coromandel, in which I also detect odd notes. At least I can't identify them. Just put Cor on right hand and 31 on left. No comparison! 31 is a heady beauty that flies up my nose. Coromandel sort of stops at the entrance and skulks about being mysterious--hiding synthetics, no doubt. 31 Rue smells natural, whether it is or not.

I finally tried 31 Rue Cambon yesterday. The top notes are stunning, but the heart and base notes were nothing special. I still need to wear it at least two or three more times to be sure, but at the moment, 31 RC is in last place behind Coco, Bois de Iles, Cuir de Russie, and No. 22.

I gave two good spritzes to each arm and four to my decolletage. After only two hours, I could not detect 31 RC on my arms even though I pressed my nose to my arms and inhaled deeply---it had totally, completely, and utterly disappeared. I could still detect it on my decolletage five hours after application. I think my blouse was what kept the fragrance going. At the moment, I would rate longevity as quite poor. I also would rate projection and sillage as poor. 31 Rue Cambon became a skin scent on me in less than thirty minutes after application. It is not a bad fragrance, but it is certainly not worth nearly $200 for 75 ml.

How different all our reactions to scent are. Thanks for sharing. I must admit I didn't follow 31 Rue's drydown. For the first hour or so I could smell it, but not Coromandel unless I put my nose to my skin. Weird. Today I'll put 31 on alone and pay attention. Also, I sampled Bois de Isles at the counter with the others and it didn't even register. Cuir der Russie is lovely, but I have other leathers just as good or better, so didn't buy. No. 22 I can't live without! (Another subject: Today I am so excited I had to stop myself from buying Aventus for Her online, but wait until it gets into the stores and sample it first!)

Well, I wore 31 Rue Cambon all day and it was detectable about an hour on me. Though I do like it better than Coromandel, neither really work for me. Glad I didn't buy them.

I wore 31 RC again today, too (second time). It performed exactly the same for me today as it had two days ago. I was disappointed. The bergamot in the top notes is fabulous, but then it fairly quickly dries down to iris and little else. I like iris, but this is not the powdery, feminine iris one finds in L'Heure Bleue for example, and I do not detect any rose or ylang-ylang in 31 RC's heart notes whatsoever. In the deep dry down I detect a bit of very clean patchouli and nothing else. I had hoped for a bit of warmth from the laudanum, but there was none.

31 RC is not a "bad" fragrance by any means, but to be perfectly honest, I would take any one of my B&BW fragrances over 31 RC. Its longevity on me is absolutely appalling given its price point. I get 1.5 to 2 hours tops on my skin. It lasts 4-5 hours on fabric, though. Moreover, although it is definitely unisex, I personally think it leans slightly toward the masculine end of the spectrum after the top notes dissipate. If you desire a truly feminine fragrance, I do not think 31 RC fills the bill. If you desire a sophisticated, dry, completely un-sweet, un-powdery iris with no real base notes supporting it other than a slight hint of clean patchouli, then 31 RC is for you. Who does not love glorious top notes, but who is satisfied by glorious but fleeting top notes and so-so heart notes and base notes?

31 RC is supposed to be a chypre, but aside from the top notes, it does not seem very chypre-like to my nose. The patchouli is not a successful replacement for oak moss in my opinion. A high quality synthetic oak moss would be better than the patchouli-laudamum base in 31 RC.

My advice to anyone contemplating purchasing any of the Les Exclusifs is to try Bois des Iles, Cuir de Russie, and No. 22 over the others. I even prefer Coromandel over 31 RC, but Coromandel is only a more expensive smelling Angel in my opinion. If you have Angel, you do not really need Coromandel, but if you have neither one, then choose Coromandel over Angel if you can afford the Chanel price tag. Otherwise, choose Angel, and you will be happy.

I will not order any more of the Les Exclusifs EdTs at this point. I would like to try Misia and 1932 as I think they would be right up my street, but the number of reviews complaining about lack of longevity, projection, and sillage put me off them. Perhaps the EdP formulations in the Autumn will persuade me to try them. As for now, though, I find it incredible that Chanel would think anyone should pay almost $200 for a 75 ml bottle of EdT that does not perform half as well as a vintage, drug store eau de cologne such as Tabu! Unbelievable...shame on you, Chanel!!!! Shame, shame, shame!!!!!

Oriane, I wasn't recommending 31 Rue Cambon, which I didn't like enough to buy at the store. I was responding to your request for a comparison.

I pay no attention to the chypre label since it can mean nothing except the perfume contains oakmoss or a simulation. The genuine chypre accord per Lucca Turin and other purists is: Bergamot-Oakmoss-Cistus Labdanum. Very few fragrances have that, the best example being Chypre de Coty. It is an absolutely luxurious and narcotic accord. Instead, most contain Oakmoss or the IFRA-provoked substitute for it: Patchouli-Vetiver. Even my beloved Mitsuoko isn't a true chypre. It has Ambergris instead of Labdanum. 31 Rue has Bergamot and Cistus, and only Patchouli instead of Oakmoss. For me, it's not a successful enough perfume to warrant a purchase.

The only solution, as always, is that we each follow our own noses. By reading reviews I've discovered others whose noses react similarly to mine and I pay attention to their opinions and recommendations. Even then, once in a while I find I dislike something they liked or vice versa. It's the same as trying to think like someone else. Impossible. Yes, there are hopefully points of agreement but as I point out to my husband, I'd be glad to think like him, but his head insists on being attached to his shoulders instead of mine. Each to his own.

I love your detailed analyses. How did you learn to analyze perfumes? Have you studied?

Hi ScentFan,

I did not think you were recommending 31 RC. I am sorry if I gave you that impression. I was more or less just discussing my impressions of 31 RC this week. I plan to retest it this Winter to see if it performs differently for me in cold weather. I hope it does perform better because I really want to love it. I really like Mitsouko, but I find I crave it most often on chilly, rainy Autumn and Winter days. It just "fits" those days like hand in glove for me.

Right now, it is very hot and humid where I live, and the heat destroys most fragrances I wear out of doors for any length of time, but the two times I wore 31 RC I applied a generous amount of it indoors and remained indoors, yet it performed very poorly. I did try Coromandel indoors, and it performed reasonably well. I later went out in the evening to run some errands. Coromandel was fairly tenacious until I went out in it for a while. The heat and humidity destroyed it, and that surprised me because I thought Coromandel was fairly stout and sturdy. I have a vintage No. 22 eau de cologne that performs as well as any contemporary EdP and better than some, so I have to conclude that the longevity, projection, and sillage problems I have encountered with the Exclusifs is not a problem with my skin but a problem with the formulations. They are puny and weak.

Thank you for the compliment re my analyses. To answer your question, no I have not studied fragrance. I just report my impressions in the hope that they help others. I consider myself to be a total "newbie" still.

Wore 1932 yesterday. Didn't project much or last! Then last night I wore African Orchid from Olympic Orchids. Ellen Covey there uses mostly natural ingredients. It's a heavily animalic floral with indoles galore. Lasted all night and in spite of bathing can still smell it today more than I smelled 1932 beyond the first moments. Yes, it's a little stanky but I'm spraying it on again just to enjoy actually smelling something brilliant.

Yes, that is what I have read in so many reviews of 1932. I wanted Misia and 1932 more than Coromandel and 31 Rue Cambon, but the former had poor reviews compared to the latter. In my opinion, 31 RC performs as badly as the reviewers claim Misia and 1932 do. Coromandel's performance as EdT is somewhat better, but I found that whence I go outdoors wearing it, the heat and humidity kill it within just a very few minutes.

This is nothing short of appalling for a house like Chanel and for the price point. Is it any wonder they are reformulating to EdP? However, given that my bottle of No. 5 EdP lost most of its longevity, projection, and sillage after one year despite being properly stored, I do not have great hopes for the upcoming Les Exclusifs EdPs.

Haven't had that experience with Misia. Will wear it today and report.

Misia was much better, if not the greatest longevity ever. I smelled it off and on for at least two hours. Wearing Jardins de Bagatelle EdT today to draw a baseline.

Two hours? That is as bad as 31 RC. A fragrance that only lasts two hours should cost well under $20 as far as I am concerned. Chanel should be ashamed.

I think I may be getting anosmic to perfumes after I put them on. I didn't smell Jardins de Bagatelle after a couple of hours but my husband did. Also, one of those caused my neck to break out in a rash! Actually I think it was multiple neck sprayings over several days.

Oh, dear, I am sorry to hear it ScentFan. I, too, have an allergic reaction to fragrances. The first time I broke out in the worst rash all over my body after over spraying Habit Rouge. It itched insanely and lasted almost three months. Since then I have been more careful to apply it only to my arms and decolletage. It still makes my face break out in red bumps, but I do not care. I tolerate it because I enjoy wearing fragrance.

Me, too. I love fragrance to much to let a mere rash stop me.

Yes, whence something gives one such pleasure, one is willing to overlook a lot of things. Of course, a lot of people would say we are crazy----my doctor for one!

Hi all,

Five year after this initial discussion was made, I found it today ... Never too late to learn, I guess!

With current state of mind: which Chanel les Exclusifs underwent major changes in terms of reformulations?

Happy to hear from you!

Best regards

The only reformulated Les Exclusif I have tried is Beige. It is still identifiably Beige in the dry down, but it does not smell quite the same to me.