During Paris Perfume Week 2026 (held in Paris from April 9 to 11), a panel discussion brought together Véronique Ferval, Global Director of Fragrance Design at L’Oréal Group; Éric Briones, Strategic Planner and Managing Director of Le Journal du Luxe and Alicia Restino, Global Marketing Director at YSL Beauté Parfums. Together, they explored Gen Z’s relationship with perfume.
“We’ve truly entered a new era in the wake of COVID,” Véronique Ferval begins. The pandemic changed everything. The fear of losing one’s sense of smell brought to light a sense that had long been underestimated. While in lockdown, consumers developed new rituals: scenting their homes, their sheets, and their hair. This marked the beginning of layering, scented candles, and scent boosters.
The market bears the marks of this shift. Approximately 6,000 new products are launched each year, compared to half that number before the pandemic. “We are being challenged by an extremely knowledgeable generation,” notes Véronique Ferval.
A generation of 2.4 billion noses
Gen Z (born between the late 1990s and early 2000s) represents 2.4 billion people worldwide, or nearly 30% of the global population. It is the largest generation ever recorded. And above all, according to Véronique Ferval, “the first to have a truly cultural relationship with fragrance.”
It all began with digital media. TikTok and social media have opened the doors to a world long reserved for insiders: ingredients, perfumers, niche houses. “This generation has had access to comprehensive knowledge,” she emphasizes. The result is a new language. Gen Z no longer describes a …
