Perfumes have a long history. The word ‘perfume’ comes from the Latin phrases “per” meaning “thorough” and “fumus” meaning “smoke”. The French later gave the name “parfum” to the scents produced by burning incense.
Over the years, perfumes have evolved from just ’incense form,” which was exclusive to priests and elites, to different forms of fragrance that can be carried around and used by individuals from different walks of life.
People use perfume because it gives a pleasant and desirable scent to a person’s body, typically intending to increase self-appeal and self-confidence.
Experts believe scents enhance health and well-being by improving mood, reducing anxiety and stress, increasing cognitive function, and improving sleep.
In Nigeria today, the perfume business is one of many businesses where you can get a good return on investment (ROI). Even on social media, the rise of perfume oil dealers has risen, and this is because more people are embracing the elegance and beauty of scents.
Although some scents are more expensive than others, you should think of fragrance as a recipe: Some ingredients are going to cost more than others. However, you can still buy cheap and sell at an extremely high margin.
A CognoScenti customer, Mrs Afolashade Fatokun, says she spends between N30,000 and N35,000 on perfumes and body spray. “I do not use roll-on, but body spray and perfume I cannot do without because it gives me a sweet smell and longevity on my skin and clothes.
“I wear a minimum of four perfumes and body sprays in a day. Some people wear one because they like one particular scent, but I prefer different types to give me multiple scents.”
Start-up Capital
A perfume store with over a thousand customers, Neemah_fragrance, holds the opinion that anyone looking to start their own business should have the necessary funds. You can start with N30,000 and, if you have more than that, investing up to N500,000 is not uncommon because some people are doing more than that.
PROFITABILITY
Speaking about the profitability of the business, the perfumer is sure the business is profitable and one can make great sales. For instance, some people make a profit of N24,000 when they buy a particular brand of perfume that is sold at N18,000 for a dozen.
At a retail store, a unit is sold for N3,500 but is sold for N1,500 at wholesale price. This is just one of many.”For us, we usually tell new customers to let us know their budget and we will work with it; we will carefully select products because they are just starting and do not have much experience in the business,” she says.
