Classique (originally JPGaultier Eau de Parfum) is a women's fragrance created by

Jacques Cavallier Jacques Cavallier-Belletrud (born 24 January 1962) is a French perfumer, formerly with the Swiss fragrance and flavor company Firmenich, who currently works for Louis Vuitton of the LVMH Luxury Group. He has created or collaborated in the cre ...

for

Jean Paul Gaultier Jean Paul Gaultier (; born 24 June 1952) is a French haute couture and Ready-to-wear, prêt-à-porter fashion designer. He is described as an "enfant terrible" of the fashion industry and is known for his unconventional designs with motifs in ...

in 1993. It has been manufactured by Puig since 2016, and was previously manufactured by

Shiseido is a Japanese multinational cosmetic company founded in Tokyo, Japan in 1872. Its product categories consist of: skin care, makeup, body care, hair care, and fragrances. The company is one of the oldest cosmetic companies in the world an ...

subsidiary Beauté Prestige International from 1995 until 2015. The men's fragrance Le Male was developed as a counterpart to Classique, and was introduced in 1995. A number of flanker fragrances have since been released on the strength of the Classique name. The most recent fragrance, La Belle Le Parfum, was launched in 2021.

Conception and scent

Classique is described as an oriental floral women's fragrance, a classification which is identified by the combination of a "sweet, warm, powdery base" and flowery or spicy notes. The eau de parfum Classique contains top notes of

rose A rose is either a woody perennial plant, perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred Rose species, species and Garden roses, tens of thousands of cultivar ...

and

rum Rum is a liquor made by fermenting and then distilling sugarcane molasses or sugarcane juice. The distillate, a clear liquid, is often aged in barrels of oak. Rum originated in the Caribbean in the 17th century, but today it is produced i ...

; middle notes of narcissus and vanilla orchid; and base notes of

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

amber Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...

tonka bean ''Dipteryx odorata'' (commonly known as "cumaru", "kumaru", or "Brazilian teak") is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. The tree is native to Northern South America and is semi-deciduous. Its seeds are known as tonka bean ...

, and

sandalwood Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods. Sanda ...

. The bottle design, a female torso wearing a pink

corset A corset /ˈkɔːrsɪt/ is a support garment worn to constrict the torso into the desired shape and Posture correction, posture. They are traditionally constructed out of fabric with boning made of Baleen, whalebone or steel, a stiff panel in th ...

, has been compared to the corset Gaultier designed for

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

for her 1990

Blond Ambition World Tour The Blond Ambition World Tour (billed as Blond Ambition World Tour 90) was the third concert tour by American singer Madonna. It supported her fourth studio album '' Like a Prayer'' (1989), and the soundtrack album to the 1990 film ''Dick Tracy ...

. The fragrance is packaged in an

aluminum can An aluminum can (British English: aluminium can) is a single-use container for packaging made primarily of an aluminum exterior with an epoxy resin or polymer coated interior. It is commonly used for food and beverages such as olives and soup b ...

, a motif he has used in his collections since 1980; Gaultier felt that "it was in some way a kind of a provocation to put it in something very industrial," and noted that some perfume shops did not offer the fragrance because it was "scandalous". Media personality

Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel Kardashian (born October 21, 1980) is an American media personality, socialite, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the celebrity sex tape ...

was accused of copying the Classique bottle design for her KKW Body fragrance in April 2018. She claimed that " lassique isiconic and celebrates the woman’s body, but hat herinspiration was a statue ndwanted ersto be really personal with erexact mold." Gaultier responded that " ecouldn’t put isbody or a women's perfume so eput a different body. She did her own body, so it's different."

Release and impact

The fragrance was released as JPGaultier Eau de Parfum in 1993, and renamed as Classique in 1995.

subsidiary Beauté Prestige International distributed Jean Paul Gaultier fragrances, including Classique from launch in 1993, through a

license agreement A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

that was to extend from 1991 through June 30, 2016. On January 1, 2016, Puig acquired the fragrance license from Shiseido for $79.2 million and compensated the early termination of the license for $22.6 million. With this purchase, Puig now holds control of both the fashion and fragrance divisions of the Jean Paul Gaultier brand. A new advertising campaign was premiered in Paris during a relaunch party held by Puig on January 28, 2016, in which a joint commercial for Classique and Le Male retains the " Casta diva" aria from the original commercial and Dutch model Daphne Groeneveld portrays the lead female figure. The brand's fragrance general manager Thomas James acknowledged Classique and Le Male as "the flagship of the brand

hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...

represent all the Jean Paul Gaultier values nd willcontinue to be an emblematic and historical pillar" at the launch of the women's fragrance Scandal in 2017.

Products

Eau de toilette Eau de toilette (, meaning "grooming water") is a lightly scented perfume. It is also referred to as aromatic waters and has a high alcohol content. It is usually applied directly to the skin after bathing or shaving. It is traditionally composed ...

spray – 3.3 fl oz (100 ml)

Flanker fragrances

: Indicates repackaging of the original fragrance

References

{{ref list History of cosmetics Perfumes Products introduced in 1993