Jacques Polge (born 14 June 1943) is a French

perfumer A perfumer is an expert on creating perfume compositions, sometimes referred to affectionately as a ''nose'' (French: ''nez'') due to their fine sense of smell and skill in producing olfactory compositions. The perfumer is effectively an artist w ...

, best known for his role as Head Perfumer at Les Parfums

Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chanel i ...

from 1978 to 2015.

Early life

Jacques Polge grew up near

Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label=Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune ha ...

, France, where he says he was inspired as a child by the scent of air in the surroundings of

Grasse Grasse (; Provençal oc, Grassa in classical norm or in Mistralian norm ; traditional it, Grassa) is the only subprefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region on the French Riviera. In 2017, the co ...

, which was redolent with the scent of

jasmine Jasmine ( taxonomic name: ''Jasminum''; , ) is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family ( Oleaceae). It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. Jasmines are widely cult ...

. After university, Jacques Polge began a traditional apprenticeship in Grasse under the guidance of Jean Carles.

Works

* 1970 - ''

Rive Gauche The Rive Gauche (, ''Left Bank'') is the southern bank of the river Seine in Paris. Here the river flows roughly westward, cutting the city in two parts. When facing downstream, the southern bank is to the left, and the northern bank (or '' Rive ...

'', Yves Saint Laurent * 1982 - ''Diva'', Emanuel Ungaro * 1987 - ''Senso'', Emanuel Ungaro * 1990 - Ungaro, Emanuel Ungaro * 1989 - ''Tiffany for Men'',

Tiffany Tiffany may refer to: People * Tiffany (given name), list of people with this name * Tiffany (surname), list of people with this surname Known mononymously as "Tiffany": * Tiffany Darwish, (born 1971), an American singer, songwriter, actress kn ...

Polge's perfumes at Chanel include: * 1982 - ''Antaeus'' * 1984 - ''Coco'' :inspired by the Parisian home of

Coco Chanel Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing a sporty, c ...

* 1990 - ''Égoïste'' :originally launched as a limited edition scent named "Bois Noir"' in 1987, the fragrance was eventually relaunched to the general market under the name ''Égoïste''. Jacques Polge has said Égoïste is his favourite creation. * 1996 - ''Allure'' * 1999 - ''Allure Homme'' :including flankers ''Allure Homme Sport'', ''Allure Homme Sport Cologne'', ''Allure Homme Sport Extreme'', ''Allure Homme Edition Blanche''. * 2001 - '' Coco Mademoiselle'' :winner of FiFi Award for Best National Advertising Campaign / TV in 2008 * 2002 - ''Chance'' * 2010 - '' Bleu de Chanel'' * ''Les Exclusifs de Chanel'' fragrances notably ''Coromandel'' and ''Sycomore'' created with Christopher Sheldrake. * 2012 - ''Coco Noir'' :created with Christopher Sheldrake

References

Living people French perfumers Chanel people 1943 births {{Fashion-bio-stub