discontinued products

I bought my first bottle of Safari by Ralph Lauren soon after it came out because I loved his original Lauren. I also liked the romance behind the name- probably because I was thinking about the imagery in Out Of Africa, Robert Redford and that wonderful scene where he washes Meryl Streep's hair. In my teenager mind it was the most romantic thing ever (still do, actually. But to this day there has never been a man brave enough to face my 2.5' of waves and curls). I wanted Safari to evoke just that.


I remember thinking back then that Safari was a little too pretty. I liked it well enough and even finished the bottle (it was the gorgeous lay-down version), but it took me about 15 years to buy another one. Safari didn't smell like it belonged in the early 90s and I wasn't sure how it fit with Lauren's Long Island horsey-set image. It smelled more... French, I guess. The green aldehydic opening, overabundance of flowers and gorgeous chypre base could have easily been a Chanel. Now that I think of it, none of the modern Chanel perfumes from the regular line (not the Exclusifs) has been even half as good as Safari.

I have a few older Safari bottles that are clearly the original formula, including the discontinued parfum. I smell a lot of galbanum and hyacinth which my nearly middle-aged mind translates now as romantic in that heartbreaking, full of longing way. The green and wood notes are dry and crisp and show a lot of elegance and restraint. The patchouli-moss-soft leather base (more pronounced in the parfum) clearly didn't fit in with the early 90s style- it was too perfume-like in an era of non-perfume opposites: you either had to smell like candy (see Angel and all the horrible mall vanilla and fruit body sprays) or like chemical nothingness (someone please slap Issey Miyake for me). Even the bottle- a vintage looking carved glass beauty- didn't belong.


It's no wonder that Safari has disappeared from the shelves that sell the Ralph line. For a while it was hard to find except for occasional appearances at places like TJ Maxx. From quick sniffing and spraying the current version at a couple of the discount outlets it's clear that the formula has changed for the very worse. It's a floral something or other without the galbanum, oakmoss or any of the notes that used to give Safari its  backbone. Despite rumors to the contrary, Safari (or what's left of it) is still in production and can be purchased on Ralph Lauren's American website: $60 for the 2.5oz EDP. The notes are listed there as "An exotic medley of floral and citrus notes gently warmed with the essences of Bourgeons de Cassis, Jasmine Italian and Fleur d'Oranger". I wouldn't bother.

Images:
Safari ads from 1993-1994, couleurparfum.com
Meryl Streep and Robert Redford in Out Of Africa (1985) from ew.com
Verushka in a YSL safari suit by Franko Rubartelli for French Vogue, August 1968

I bought these two Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited Lipsticks months ago and promptly misplaced both. I was thrilled to rediscover and make them part of my makeup rotation, only to learn this week that Shu Uemura's parent company, L'Oreal, was pulling the entire brand of the USA market. According to WWD, L'Oreal prefer to concentrate the marketing effort on its other major brands (I don't think they ever pushed Shu very hard in this country), and limit the distribution of Shu Uemura to regions where it's already a best seller (i.e. Asia).

It's really sad, as Shu Uemura is a great brand with a lot to offer and many dedicated fans. We can't have too many quality options and the line always had something unique to offer, even for those of us who weren't into extreme false eyelashes. I especially love the packaging- even now that I have a storage system with separate drawers for each major shade of lipstick, being able to actually see the color at a glance is very helpful.

But back to the colors at hand. Rouge Unlimited RD 198 is as true a red as they come. It has a muted satin finish, an incredibly rich pigment and the tenacity of Madonna. It stays put for hours and holds on for dear life. You can still see enough color even after having lunch, though it loses the finish. The lipstick isn't drying and my lips remain healthy looking even after spending a full day with it (two reapplications). I love it very much and usually wear it with an almost bare face (or at least what appears as an almost bare face. You and I know  the secret).

PK 360 has a more conventional look and feel. It's a low key red-based pink with shimmer and medium+ pigment. It's a great everyday color, low maintenance and no drama. It doesn't rock my world like the RD 198, but I reach for it when I'm not in the mood to make big lipstick decisions.

Since Shu Uemura is being phased out, it looks like the stores have stopped restocking sold out colors. I don't remember if I bought these two lipsticks from Barneys or Nordstrom, but it looks like they are no longer available from the major retailers and have moved on to the realms of shady discounters. Your best bet is to check with local counters and see what they still have.

All photos are mine.

There's only one issue that gets me more comments, emails and direct messages on Twitter than mascara: Brands and products that disappear from the market. The last few years have been brutal for many companies, resulting in a lot of confusion among customers. Let's try to make heads and tails out of this mess.

Has Prescriptives gone out of business?
Yes. The brand was shut down by the owner, the Lauder Group. Their fragrance, Calyx is still made, though. You can read more here and here.

Is Estee Lauder going out of business?
A world of NO.
Some of their less successful brands aren't safe, though.

What happened to Fendi perfume(s)?
All of them, including the original Fendi and Palazzo have been discontinued. Some online retailers still have a limited stock, but the prices have been climbing up.

What's the story with Crabtree & Evelyn?
While the company has filed for Chapter 11 (bankruptcy protection) it is still alive and producing its products. I might not be all that thrilled with the quality of its lotions and soaps lately, but many staples like the hand creams and scrubs are the same.

Is Annick Goutal going out of business?
No. The company has actually just released a new scent. There have been some distribution issues in the US, but things have gotten back to normal. It looks like the new distributor is going to keep a tighter control, so don't expect to see many Goutal products at discounters once they sell their current inventory.

Is MPG (Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier) a goner?
Even though for a while it certainly seemed dire with boutiques closing and the bottles disappeared from stockists all around North America, it was another case of a distributor going belly up. As of now Henri Bendel in NYC is carrying the line again.

Is it true that Chanel Hydrabase lipsticks are being phased out?
Yes. As is often the case when a company introduces a new spiffy line, they get rid of older formulas. The new Rouge Coco is fabulous (I'll review and show photos later this week). The same goes for the older Dior single eye shadows, by the way. They've been replaced with the new 1-Color Extreme.

Is Le Metier de Beaute exiting Liberty London?
No. The counter is moving, but Le Metier de Beaute is going strong and expanding. You will soon be able to find their products in a couple of other prestigious London locations and also in Paris.

Do you have more questions about discontinuations and product availability? Let me know and I'll do my best to find out.

Eau du Fier is one of those perfumes that make me wonder if I actually enjoy the way they smell or the fact they're so unusual and unconventional. It's probably a mix of both, since this Annick Goutal creation (by house perfumer Isabelle Doyen) is not the only tarry perfume I like. But there's something to be said for the uniqueness and element of surprise whenever I spray myself with it.

Eau du Fier smells mostly like a cocktail of Lapsang Souchong with a splash of non-sweet orange juice. The opening is extremely smoky, medicinal and would challenge many people's idea of perfume, unless they're familiar with CDG Tar, Tauer's Lonestar Memories or at least Bulgari Black and Tea For Two by L'Artisan. Still the last two have a nice dose of vanilla that makes them go down easily enough, while the Goutal has little to none sweetness. My skin tends to neutralize heavy smoky notes and reduces them to their woody or shrubbery origin. Eau du Fier becomes very much a tea scent with an almost sheer quality. It's a lot less heavy than one would assume after the birch tar assault of the top notes and settles very close to the skin, feeling more exotic than avant-garde.

I enjoy the entire journey and find it very wearable on days I don't have to mix with the general public which might raise an eyebrow at a woman who smells of a burnt substance. It's not a perfume I'd recommend to wear for a romantic date for either men or women, unless the object of your desire is a tea connoisseur who would appreciate the nuances. Still, the bottom line is that Eau du Fier smells good in an off-the-beaten-path way and is worth becoming part of one's perfume journey. If you can find some, that is.

Eau du Fier was released in 2000 and vanished from our shelves around 2005. A few European Annick Goutal boutiques had it until a couple of years ago and while the official Goutal website doesn't even mention its existence, a handful of bottles still make an appearance overseas, which is how I found and purchased mine.

Photo: theteacentre.com.au

The perfume industry isn't what it used to be. We've known it for a while, years actually. Some optimistic but severely misguided souls tried to comfort themselves that while the big names, traditional houses and huge designer brands are all about the money and thus happy to comply with both IFRA and their CFOs and discontinue scents left and right, we will always have niche.

But niche houses, big and small, have their own bottom line to consider. Gobin-Daude disappeared into the ether, the exact status of Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier remains unclear, but they haven't updated their website in a couple of years and their NYC retailers only have a handful of bottles still remaining (if any). They haven't received a new shipment in ages. Other great brands have been phasing out perfumes left and right. Tom Ford said from the very beginning that the Private Blend line will change over time. Underperformers will be replaced with other scents. Sadly, the first victims of the policy have already been announced (Bois Rouge, Moss Breches, Purple Patchouli and Velvet Gardenia. All of them deserved a better fate). JAR had to stop producing the magnificent Shadow, most likely because of IFRA's oakmoss restriction. Annick Goutal had to reformulate the classic Eau d'Hadrien because, apparently, citrus oil is a weapon of mass destruction. But the worst news yet broke yesterday when Elena of Perfume Shrine posted about Serge Lutens sending four of his fragrances to the big Palais Royal in the sky.

This is a first for Serge Lutens and has shocked and devastated many fans, me included. Uncle Serge has been honest and upfront (well, as much as his Holy Crypticness can be) about the reformulation issue. It's no secret that the new version of Feminite de Bois isn't the same as the old Shiseido one. The same goes for Chergui. There were persistent rumours about the future of Miel de Bois after it was pulled from the export range and placed in the more exclusive bell jar. Between the scent's lack of popularity and an issue with the raw materials being placed on IFRA's black list, MdB was doomed. But no one saw the other ones coming: the relatively new (though admittedly not the biggest seller) Chypre Rouge and the two classics Douce Amere and Clair de Musc. The latter is especially surprising as Clair de Musc was considered by many a Serge for beginners and a layering essential. It really seemed like it was selling relatively well. Obviously, not well enough.

The axing of the four perfumes was not the only disquieting news from the Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido. The most recent release, L'Eau Serge Lutens, had many of Uncle Serge's biggest fans scratching our heads. It was not just an "anti perfume". It was an "anti Serge", "anti Lutenade" and anti everything we've ever expected to emerge from the famed purple halls. Speculations were aplenty. From Papa Serge always doing the unexpected to simply selling out. Since Elena's review was as favorable as it was insightful, I was ready to believe it was his way of telling the world "You wanted clean? Here, let me show you how to do it right". Sort of flipping the bird in his very refined and ironic way.

But the latest news seem to be pointing to another, sadder direction. Have the Powers That Be at Shiseido, Uncle Serge's financial backer, started to put their foot down? Did they tell him to start making money, or else? Did they tell him that any new release must have a mass market appeal and smell shower fresh?

This is nothing but speculation of course, but my guess is that dear Uncle Serge is not going to have his art be dictated by bureaucrats and bean counters. As Elena has mentioned, he has hinted in the past that might go do something completely different. We've always known that perfume is not his be all and end all and he can always have Chris Sheldrake whip for him a special batch of extra strength MKK. It's us who are losing here big time and might be left with nothing but this.

Photos of Uncle Serge: luxuryculture.com